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Electronic throttle vs. cable throttle (cars)

psteng19

Diamond Member
Will be experiencing DBW for the first time soon when my TSX arrives.

Who's driven both and which do you prefer?
Is DBW transparent to the end-user?
 
We had a new E55 AMG for a year before suing Mercedes to buy it back in accordance with Lemon Laws. (another story for another day). But that car had electronic throttle and the only difference I noticed was that the fake resistance they applied to make the pedal "Feel" normal was... well, fake feeling. But what worried me was that the car also had electronic braking, with a backup battery whose sole purpose was to react in case the primary braking circuits gave up the ghost while driving. I'm all for fly-by-wire, but not for something so important as the brakes when MB's AMG line in 2003 was so dang full of electrical gremlins.
 
not a fan, pedal feels artificial IMO

also it's not something that's really necessary in my mind, it's a very simple system that doesn't need to be computerized, I want to open the throttle as much as I want to - why does a piece of electronics have to do it for me?
 
I like cable better as well, but I drive an older 911, so it has basically nothing electronic.

Even a cable vs. hydraulic clutch.

My friends Mini is DBW, or at least it seems so, the most unnerving thing about it is not feeling it hold the pedal down while on cruise. I always waited to feel the pedal resistance lessen to know that it was working, and it'd be just right to give it a little gas if I wanted as well, but the Mini just pops back up to the top.
 
Originally posted by: MysticLlama
I like cable better as well, but I drive an older 911, so it has basically nothing electronic.

Even a cable vs. hydraulic clutch.

My friends Mini is DBW, or at least it seems so, the most unnerving thing about it is not feeling it hold the pedal down while on cruise. I always waited to feel the pedal resistance lessen to know that it was working, and it'd be just right to give it a little gas if I wanted as well, but the Mini just pops back up to the top.

MINI is DBW.

 
You can make a direct comparison with near identical cars with a (pre-06) Subaru WRX, which has cable throttle, and a WRX-STi, which has drive-by-wire. I guess I just like to feel the engine through the gas pedal.
 
Even a cable vs. hydraulic clutch.
Yeah, seems like too much equipment to replace a simple cable... never got what the big deal was, I've never driven a hydro-clutched car that had significantly less pedal resistance to make it worth it
 
Originally posted by: geno
Even a cable vs. hydraulic clutch.
Yeah, seems like too much equipment to replace a simple cable... never got what the big deal was, I've never driven a hydro-clutched car that had significantly less pedal resistance to make it worth it

You have never driven a vehicle with a bad cable, eh? 😛

The Jeep had one, it would stick or stutter, it felt like trying to push a 50lb rock.
 
I've got an 04 Accord V6 with DBW and I notice a little lag, but it may be the traction control that's doing that.
 
Originally posted by: iamwiz82
Originally posted by: geno
Even a cable vs. hydraulic clutch.
Yeah, seems like too much equipment to replace a simple cable... never got what the big deal was, I've never driven a hydro-clutched car that had significantly less pedal resistance to make it worth it

You have never driven a vehicle with a bad cable, eh? 😛

The Jeep had one, it would stick or stutter, it felt like trying to push a 50lb rock.

My Jeep has cable too. I don't have a problem with it 99% of the time. I drove my brother's Malibu to Cleveland (from Chicago) last week and I loved the DBW. It was smoother, faster, and I had nothing to complain about. I really liked the Malibu's ride in general. That along with getting over 30mpg (rather than my Jeep's 13) the entire way was nice.
 
What does the Scion TC have, and what does the Saturn SC have?

I found the shifter in my Saturn SC a lot smoother than the one in my Scion TC, but I dont know what kind of throttle either has.
 
Well, I've driven both and can't say I recognized much of a difference.

But I bet I know which is easier to fix after 5-10 years of future ownership!
 
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