Rough shifts when driving in Eco Mode?

[NoTalentLoser]

So for the last few weeks, I have been doing a lot of driving (2012 M37X) in Eco Mode since there's been so much road construction around here that makes for miserable, slow, stop-n-go traffic anyways (so I figure why not save the gas). However, I've noticed that when accelerating at low speeds, one of the first transmission gear shifts (maybe the second or third?) feels a bit rough, and it's usually accompanied by a pretty big drop in RPMs (it also makes a noticeable, deep "whirr" noise when it does this, like a spaceship powering down, LOL). Does anyone know if this is normal? There's a chance my car needs the most recent transmission update from a year or two ago, but I want to make sure I'm not damaging the transmission by driving in Eco Mode. Thanks...

[tbmgu]

My car acts funky in ECO mode. Can't describe it now because I only drove on ECO a couple days the week I first got it but it did feal like something odd with the transmission. Out of town for work but I'll try ECO again when I get back and see if I can nail down a description.

BTW, all is fine in normal and sport mode. I just assumed ECO and the hybrid didn't jive together very well.

[Debonair]

Try snow mode when driving slow. It should take the jerkiness out and give you better results. I use Eco mode from time to time but only on the highway.

[DoN_BLaZe34]

From my experiences, Eco mode isn't really made to be driven on the highway or instances where you're not constantly stopping then going.

[NoTalentLoser]

Thanks for the responses and advice. So is it actually rough on the transmission when I experience the jerky shifts that occur when driving in Eco mode? Also, I typically just use it when I'm driving on non-highway roads in stop-and-go traffic (it doesn't really accelerate fast enough when in Eco mode to make it safe to merge onto highway traffic via an exit ramp anyways, IMO), but what's ironic about that is that sometimes, it doesn't even seem to accelerate fast enough in city traffic (e.g., when accelerating from a stop at a redlight).....

[DoN_BLaZe34]

I can't say for sure if you're hurting the transmission (though I'm inclined to say you are), but the jerkiness is enough to not make me use it for city driving. As I mentioned think it's more designed for highway driving but specifically for when you're maintaining a somewhat constant speed. I would never use it to merge onto a highway, as you mentioned, it doesn't seem like it's meant for that.

I think the confusion is most ECO mode cars are equipped to be used whenever. For example my gf's GLK350 will shut the engine off when the car is stopped. Infiniti's ECO system doesn't seem to work in the same way. It more so seems like it tries to keep the rpms as stable as possible in order to provide better gas mileage which explains why the cars fights us when you try to accelerate from a dead stop.

I'm sure this is explained in one of the manuals, I just havent taken the time to read it lol.

[NoTalentLoser]

I just wish there was more of an official "word" from Infiniti on when/where/how the Eco mode should be used. I always figured that it was meant for use in city driving situations, in which a driver actually WOULD be doing a lot of stopping/going (after all, isn't that when the most gas is typically burned -- during acceleration from a dead stop?). In other words, I always looked at it like this: if I know I'm going to be stopping at 3-4 redlights over the next few miles while in a constant line of traffic, then why not use Eco mode? Isn't that the perfect time to save gas?

[tbmgu]

Well, I tried to recreate the issue but couldn't do it. Eco was pretty smooth, but it definitely takes ALL the fun out of driving this car. Whatever you save can't be worth it.