[Azjya]

Can anybody report on experience of Soft Stop with a manual gearbox?

I cannot detect this feature working at all - as far as I can tell the brakes behave like a "normal" car.

The car was at the dealer having an alarm fitted last week and I asked the to check this function - they report that it is working fine. How on earth they can tell is beyond me!

[MTMnet]

I find the soft stop to have the opposite effect. I tend to have jerky stops, however I have only had the car for week. Not sure what the deal is here..

[Xens]

Originally Posted by Azjya

Can anybody report on experience of Soft Stop with a manual gearbox?

I cannot detect this feature working at all - as far as I can tell the brakes behave like a "normal" car.

The car was at the dealer having an alarm fitted last week and I asked the to check this function - they report that it is working fine. How on earth they can tell is beyond me!

I've never noticed the soft stop feature, but being that I can drive fairly good I'm glad it's not making any decisions for me. I'm sure it's functional, but I'm glad it doesn't really "work".

[ward]

the only thing i notice is that at times when almost at a complete stop the brake pedal seems to give just a tiny bit, just as if ABS had allowed 1 extra tiny little bit. it doesn't happen every time, just under a specific set of conditions

[AudiA4]

I'm a fairly observant person, and I can't tell that it does anything on my 330i manual. Applying some logic here, it would seem that this would be more effective/appropriate for an automatic transmission.

[tctic]

Originally Posted by ward

the only thing i notice is that at times when almost at a complete stop the brake pedal seems to give just a tiny bit, just as if ABS had allowed 1 extra tiny little bit. it doesn't happen every time, just under a specific set of conditions

Exactly what I feel when soft stop is working. With the mileage building up and experience with the brakes, I can initiate a soft stop 90% of the time. But it's quite impossible to do in a stop-go moderate traffic.

[silverado]

I feel it. It is more likely to happen if you break with mostly constant pressure all the way to a stop, but it would happen at other times too.

I figure the car isn't going to let off the bakes if it doesn't think there is a predictable point at which the car will stop, and the predictability is high if your braking action is smooth and isn't varying a lot. If it can't predict where you'll stop, soft stop will not kick in.

[selm]

Originally Posted by silverado

I feel it. It is more likely to happen if you break with mostly constant pressure all the way to a stop, but it would happen at other times too.

I figure the car isn't going to let off the bakes if it doesn't think there is a predictable point at which the car will stop, and the predictability is high if your braking action is smooth and isn't varying a lot. If it can't predict where you'll stop, soft stop will not kick in.

I must not be braking very smoothly, because I didn't even know about the "soft stop" feature and I certainly haven't felt anything.

[JamieA]

My soft stop is working very effectively. I haven't changed my braking behaviour and it just seems to smooth out that last bit, even though I am easing off anyway. Just flattes you I guess and makes your stops seem finessed.

I did try different techniques including constant pressure, I think it confuses soft stop and I got a jerky result, like it couldn't make it's mind up. I guess the real test will be when I drive it to work Monday - just got the car today...

[thd13]

I haven't felt anything extraordinarily softer when I stop in my manual tranny.

[benoitch]

I was just asking myself the same question. Tried to observe the stopping behavior but I cannot notice anything different than when I normal break'n stop in any car. I haven't made many tests like others. But my point is that: if you keep driving like you used to, most probably you won't notice it (either it does not kick in or is soo good it does not make a difference), otherwise, maybe you have some bad breaking habit

[timzerofive]

The soft stop works horribly for me. During regular stops it doesn't really work, but during slightly more abrupt stops (not talking about slamming on the brake, just braking a little harder), it kicks in, and end up me stopping over the line I want to stop at. I

f I'm going slightly faster and decide to brake a little later, I can gauge about how hard I need to brake to stop before the line at the light, but the soft stop ease up on the brake at the last moment which results in the car going beyond the line a good yard or so. It's not much, but it looks pretty stupid, not to mention dangerous at times. At first I just thought I gauged it incorrectly, but after this happening several times, when it never use to happen, I realized it was the soft stop function.

I'm pretty sure people on here who has driven for a while, you can feel the car coming to stop and know when it's going to stop. Your body muscle kind of prepares for that final halt and the slight jerk, but when it doesn't come at when you expect it, your body feels weird. I think thats what the soft stop does, and I think this function shouldn't be on a BMW, it belongs on a Mercedes or something.

[Atty]

Nope, haven't felt it kick in either, and I've been pretty curious to see it in action. I've also been driving like grandma b/c I'm still in the break in period.

I do like the hillholder though. That's awesome, all cars should come with it!

[selm]

Originally Posted by Atty

Nope, haven't felt it kick in either, and I've been pretty curious to see it in action. I've also been driving like grandma b/c I'm still in the break in period.

I do like the hillholder though. That's awesome, all cars should come with it!

I don't know how I could drive another manual transmission without the "hillholder".

[timzerofive]

Originally Posted by selm

I don't know how I could drive another manual transmission without the "hillholder".

Pull up your ebrake.

[ward]

the hill holder's annoying

just let me drive the damn car