In a hill climb with a full load and bumper-to-bumper traffic, such as on the Mumbai–Pune Expressway during days preceding holidays, will a petrol automatic perform well, or is a manual transmission better suited for such conditions? I am currently driving a 2017 diesel manual Maruti S-Cross and am planning to buy a petrol automatic (Victoris AT). Please advise.

Autocar India

•1w

In a hill climb with a full load and bumper-to-bumper traffic, managing a manual transmission can be tricky, and if not done correctly, you can end up wearing out the clutch and overheating your entire drivetrain.

You should go with a manual only if you are confident of driving it correctly and not having to resort to slipping the clutch. However, you need not worry about an automatic car, something like the e-CVT or the torque convertor that the Maruti Suzuki Victoris automatic comes with. Unlike an AMT or DCT, these gearboxes are better at handling start-stop conditions and so would perform better and more reliably in your driving conditions.

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