When did paddle shifter change occur?

[Eltee]

In process of searching for a newer Z with DCT and have found that some have the "newer" configuration of left down, right up. I would prefer this set up.

Looks like some 2011s have and some not. Was that a model year change?

[Hujan]

I always believed the change was made in 2012. I ordered paddle shifters from a 2012 Z4 for this reason.

[tranquility]

^I think that's right. Also, didn't they come up w/ the better folding-top mechanism in MY2012? Sucks mine is a 2011.

[jparnes1]

Originally Posted by tranquility

^I think that's right. Also, didn't they come up w/ the better folding-top mechanism in MY2012? Sucks mine is a 2011.

Yes but I think it was June 2012. My car was made in February and has the old mechanism.

[copperplate]

2011's were the last year for push/pull; 2012's had pull/pull.

It's an easy DIY for ~$300, so if you find the right car don't let that stop you.
http://e89.zpost.com/forums/showthread.php?t=825480

[rking117]

Oh my how i hate the newer style paddles. The pull left to down shift and pull right to up shift is horrible since they are attached to and move with the steering wheel. In a hard turn when you are trying to correct for oversteer and feather the gas pedal the last thing I want to try to remember is the steering wheel orientation. They need to make the paddles stationary to the column then this configuration would be ok. But this new configuration sucks to say the least. At least now in my Z i know that if a push them i will downshift and pull to upshift. In my 1 i bet i do the opposite as to what i want half the time so therefore i use the shifter slap instead.

[jparnes1]

Originally Posted by rking117

Oh my how i hate the newer style paddles. The pull left to down shift and pull right to up shift is horrible since they are attached to and move with the steering wheel. In a hard turn when you are trying to correct for oversteer and feather the gas pedal the last thing I want to try to remember is the steering wheel orientation. They need to make the paddles stationary to the column then this configuration would be ok. But this new configuration sucks to say the least. At least now in my Z i know that if a push them i will downshift and pull to upshift. In my 1 i bet i do the opposite as to what i want half the time so therefore i use the shifter slap instead.

I agree. The previous orientation allowed you to up or downshift with the same lever, either by pulling or pushing. That way you don't have to know which lever is which.

[Hujan]

Originally Posted by rking117

Oh my how i hate the newer style paddles. The pull left to down shift and pull right to up shift is horrible since they are attached to and move with the steering wheel. In a hard turn when you are trying to correct for oversteer and feather the gas pedal the last thing I want to try to remember is the steering wheel orientation. They need to make the paddles stationary to the column then this configuration would be ok. But this new configuration sucks to say the least. At least now in my Z i know that if a push them i will downshift and pull to upshift. In my 1 i bet i do the opposite as to what i want half the time so therefore i use the shifter slap instead.

Originally Posted by jparnes1

I agree. The previous orientation allowed you to up or downshift with the same lever, either by pulling or pushing. That way you don't have to know which lever is which.

Gotta say I disagree, fellas. I have an E92 M3 with the left/right single-function shifters and much prefer it to the push/pull style on the earlier E89 Z4s. I have no trouble remembering which is which and to the extent I ever need to shift when turning, I use the stick. (Though, to be honest, the better practice is to get your braking/shifting done before a sharp turn.)

Anyway, I actually picked up a new M Sport wheel for the Z4 and made sure to get the new style shifters to go with the new wheel. I can't wait to install them.

[tranquility]

Why would you shift when turning? Anyway, face it guys, the new - / + is much better than our + / - (x2) nonsense. More intuitive. Stupid BMW and Porsche for having those in the beginning and both companies have since come to their sense and gotten w/ the - / + prg.

[rking117]

Originally Posted by tranquility

Why would you shift when turning? ...

Maybe i am full throttle and red lined coming around the curve and want to go a tid bit faster? Come on really?!. I mean you have tracked your car right? If not then I hope that you do and find the pure joy that i have experienced. Shfting is not un heard of during a corner especially coming out of the corner. The wheel can be turned quite extensively under a sharp turn and the orientation can be way off or even reversed. The M Sport wheel has an orientation marker so that you know when the steering wheel is pointed straight. (usually a yellow or red piece of tape or fabric marking the top center of the wheel). This allows you to at a glance understand when you are correcting for oversteer etc. Without this indicator it is hard to understand what way the wheel is facing. Since i dont track the 128i as it is my wifes daily driver it isnt a big deal BUT the Z on the other hand if i had this orientation i can imagine an easy overrev or selecting too high of a gear at a critical point causing a loss of forward bite and a spin out.

[tranquility]

Originally Posted by rking117

Maybe i am full throttle and red lined coming around the curve and want to go a tid bit faster? Come on really?!. I mean you have tracked your car right? If not then I hope that you do and find the pure joy that i have experienced. Shfting is not un heard of during a corner especially coming out of the corner. The wheel can be turned quite extensively under a sharp turn and the orientation can be way off or even reversed. The M Sport wheel has an orientation marker so that you know when the steering wheel is pointed straight. (usually a yellow or red piece of tape or fabric marking the top center of the wheel). This allows you to at a glance understand when you are correcting for oversteer etc. Without this indicator it is hard to understand what way the wheel is facing. Since i dont track the 128i as it is my wifes daily driver it isnt a big deal BUT the Z on the other hand if i had this orientation i can imagine an easy overrev or selecting too high of a gear at a critical point causing a loss of forward bite and a spin out.

No I haven't tracked my car, but in your situation, aren't you already near straightened coming out of the corner? So, ya, I don't see a prb w/ shifting there. The ppl above are talking about the wheel being all disorientated so they practically don't know where it's pointing yet they still want to be shifting at that moment.

Coming out of a corner is not the same thing as during a corner. I stand by my statement that one shouldn't shift during turns.

[rking117]

Originally Posted by tranquility

No I haven't tracked my car...

When this changes you will likely change your mind on this. Take it from experience.

[pete_z89]

I absolutely hate the newer style shift paddles. Being able to shift up or down with just one hand on the wheel, whenever you want, is 1000x better than the newer style. The newer style is terrible. But of course, that is just my personal opinion.

[tranquility]

Originally Posted by rking117

When this changes you will likely change your mind on this. Take it from experience.

I'm really curious...we should have a poll. Like I said, I never tracked but always thought that if you're turning, shifting is not good (you do it before and after the turn). Again, I'm saying in your situation where you're coming out of a turn shifting is no big deal since you're straightening out anyway.

Originally Posted by pete_z89

I absolutely hate the newer style shift paddles. Being able to shift up or down with just one hand on the wheel, whenever you want, is 1000x better than the newer style. The newer style is terrible. But of course, that is just my personal opinion.

You're in the minority unfortunately. BMW and Porsche used the old style and have since relented and switched to the new one. Don't see it going the other way around. It's simply more intuitive to have - / + vs a bit more confusing having our old style. The only advantage is if the driver only has 1 arm imho.

[Mayhem]

Originally Posted by rking117

Maybe i am full throttle and red lined coming around the curve and want to go a tid bit faster?

Ok, I'll bite. Tell me how to make my Z throttle past redline and I'll buy you a beer.

[Alext]

I have these new style paddle shifters on my Benz - I prefer the all in one BMW ones to be honest. I love using them.

[Asbjorn]

When the paddles follow the wheel it is clearly smarter to have +/- x2. And when they are fixed -/+ is better.

I guess it became an industry standard at some point to have -/+ (just like wiper and indicator switches are placed like they are on almost all cars), so BMW has been forced to follow the standard although their paddles are not fixed (like the wiper switches etc are).

[BMWZ4RIDER]

My 2 cents. Since I have never had a car before with the paddle shifters, (that actually shift with authority and impossibly fast speed), I like my "Old" style Pull +/Push - style being availabe to use on both sides, exactly the same. This way when I am driving in Manual mode, which I enjoy 90% of the time, I can still have my JUMBO coffee in either hand and still manually shift the car. Having never tracked it, I have no opinion either way.

[Hujan]

I can't imagine a situation where I'd be shifting while performing a significant enough turn on the track that the pull/pull paddles would become a problem.

If you track, you know that your throttle input is inversely proportional to your turning angle. In other words, the more dramatic the turn, the less throttle input. Thus, if I was in a sharp enough turn that the wheel was more than, say, 90 degrees off center, the last thing I'd be doing is shifting, since I would not be on the gas (or brake at all). Now, certainly, as I come out of the turn I might want to be in a different gear in order to be in a better part of the power band when I get back on the gas. But if so, then I should have anticipated that fact by downshifting before the turn when I did all my braking.

Really the best defense of the push/pull shifters is being able to use one hand, which is an admittedly good argument in this day and age of mobile devices (for music and navigation, of course). Though, in those scenarios, I just keep the car in "D" mode and let the computer do the shifting.

[rking117]

Originally Posted by Mayhem

Ok, I'll bite. Tell me how to make my Z throttle past redline and I'll buy you a beer.

it wont it'll auto shift after it hits red line

[mbetoni]

Originally Posted by Hujan

If you track, you know that your throttle input is inversely proportional to your turning angle. In other words, the more dramatic the turn, the less throttle input. Thus, if I was in a sharp enough turn that the wheel was more than, say, 90 degrees off center, the last thing I'd be doing is shifting, since I would not be on the gas (or brake at all). Now, certainly, as I come out of the turn I might want to be in a different gear in order to be in a better part of the power band when I get back on the gas. But if so, then I should have anticipated that fact by downshifting before the turn when I did all my braking.

+1

[tranquility]

+2 That's what I thought, having never tracked but I never shifted mid-turn, just instinctively doesn't feel right.

Anyway, go back to which system is better, again, it's just more intuitive to have - / +. The first times I tried out both systems, the pull-pull was a no brainer, no learning curve at all. However, when I bought my car w/ the old system, it took a while to get used to it and it still sometimes is not fluid.