Quote:
Originally Posted by Keito
FWIW my '17 Fusion locks the converter after it shifts into 3rd, has a 6 speed trans
I'd like to know why the engineers chose to have it this way.
Not saying it's wrong, just curious.
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Interesting. My guess would be because they found that 3rd gear is the earliest they can lock the converter while still shifting smoothly. I noticed that at least with my car, shifting it with the torque converter locked up feels a lot harsher in lower gears. A 1-2 shift locked up jerks the whole car and makes the engine surge and doesn’t feel happy. But a 2-3 or 3-4 shift locked doesn’t feel nearly as harsh for some reason. My guess would be because the car has more inertia at higher speeds, but I don’t know for sure.
This could also be because some people don’t like the immediate and direct response of getting on and off the throttle that occurs with a locked converter. I notice this more in lower gears. I like the direct response, but some people may feel like it’s harsh.