I came from driving a stick myself. The only real use for it that I have encountered is when descending steeper grades where I want to use the engine brake.

 

I've started using it a little more often in sub-60 mph heavy traffic to prevent constantly having to tap the brakes with slight fluctuations in traffic speed, or for merging onto the highway in heavy traffic when I don't want to wait for it to kick down when I'm ready to roll into the throttle.

It's a rather mediocre auto stick in that it doesn't rev-match on the downshift, is slow to respond to driver inputs, and the trans feels slushy when upshifted manually in some gears while it kicks abruptly in others. The shifter itself isn't a tactile delight, either. It's one of the few things you'll interface with as a driver that actually feels flimsy and plasticky, and even sounds a little hollow when you clack it into a new position, and is especially cheap-feeling when tapping against the sides of the plastic shifter surround gate shifting between "D" and "S". It bothers me enough that I'm tempted to disassemble the shifter and figure out a way to add weight to it and some way of dampening the plasticky hollow sounds and feel, perhaps by stuffing it with lead weights and putting dynomat under the the shifter surround, or springing for one of the more substantial aftermarket shifters from Heico. It's definitely not a performance- or enthusiast-oriented shifter and transmission, which is a pity because my T6 motor is so strong, and the chassis feels capable of delivering a genuinely sporty driving experience, but that experience is held back by a transmission that is pure dumpy passenger car.

 

Daily driving it's not really practical for me. It's good when you want to do a little "spirited" driving.

 

The programming on my '16 V60 RD holds gear well, including downhill off-throttle for engine braking (I know, because the instant fuel consumption goes to zero). The paddle shifters are aluminum, feel substantial, and I usually use them for holding a lower gear or two on an on-ramp to merge.


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Yup paddle shifters would make the experience far more rewarding than what I'm getting out of my 2011 T6's console shifter.

 

+1... basically not using the console shifter
KRN => for the I6, under the impression that programming can be updated for all 2011+ cars
I had to force the dealer to update mine (free of charge) when I took possession of the car
back in january 2016 cause there was no sport mode when I did my test drive.
So it was updated to the latest patch.
The 8 speed transmission for the 2.0 DriveE seems to be an improvememt

 

You don't say what year you have. Newer cars, 2014+, will be better as the
transmission was updated to shift faster and the latest 4 cylinder models have a totally
different transmission which I 'm going to assume must be much more responsive.

My 2011 T6 my first auto (and I bought the car at age 51) and one of my first thoughts was
this car would be just fantastic with a manual transmission (instead of being very good).
The auto stick it not even close to the experience or responsiveness of a manual transmission
and I rarely use it other then to occasionally try it to see if it is better then I recall the last
time I tried. It never is.

 

Newer cars, 2014+, will be better as the
transmission was updated to shift faster and the latest 4 cylinder models have a totally
different transmission which I 'm going to assume must be much more responsive.

Correct. My 2015 has an 8-speed automatic with Drive-E/VEA.

 

My 2015 T6 is my first automatic transmission after decades of shifting manual transmissions. I like it and I rarely use the paddle shifters. I do love the feel of the acceleration when I shift into sport mode for climbing steep hills.

 

I have a 2012 T5 so the transmission is not great. They dropped the ball on that. Having said that, manual shifting is what you'd expect. It does the job when you need it but nowhere near a real MT, not even close.. Shifter sure is hollow so I got the Heico knob.
I come from manual and I wish the S60 came in a MT.
I would not use it in the city. I mostly use it on the highway when there is moderate traffic and I want more control. It makes it fun with all the power the car has. Also in going down hill to keep in gear. In summary I don't use it very often.

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All of my POV have been AT although I can drive manual (and typically get MT when renting a vehicle in Europe). I love the transmission in my 2012 S60 T5. Decent shift points and downshift responsiveness in Drive, hotter shift points in Sport (although the downshifts are a bit jerky since they happen at higher revs, but how do you keep the shift points for responsiveness without the corresponding increase in engine braking?), and the ability to choose the gear when I want (keep it in first when in stop&inch traffic, engine braking downhill or to bleed off a bit of speed when approaching the pack/traffic on the highway, get into a higher gear for better gas mileage).

Oh, yes, and when in the city, it handles all the shifting for me (and I've driven MT in London and Paris; I much prefer the time in Paris with my Volvo and the AT).

 

For me, moving the shift lever over to sport mode is great for entering the freeway onramp. Similar to the sport mode button on the shifter of our old Saab Aeros. The only time I have bumped the shifter (or used the paddles) to a different gear is on a steep downhill, twisty grade to save the brakes.

 

>>KRN => for the I6, under the impression that programming can be updated for all 2011+ cars
>>I had to force the dealer to update mine (free of charge) when I took possession of the car
>>back in january 2016 cause there was no sport mode when I did my test drive.

Wow! Funny it was so difficult. Mine was done on my first service around 2012 (dealer
didn't even mention they did it -- Sport Mode was just there after the service).
Software updates are also supposed to be free with any service or repair and are
supposed to be applied at every service. I guess some dealers don't do it (and the 2011
included 5 year/60K free dealer service so the previous owner would most likely be using
the dealer).


One thing to keep in mind is that when manually shifting in
Sport mode the transmission will still upshift and downshift.
It upshifts at redline and will downshift if you press the
throttle to the point where you engage the kick-down switch.
Example: Manually select third gear, drive at 3000 RPM and
push the throttle to the floor (until you feel that click for
the kick-down switch) and it downshifts to second.

 

Don't mean to hijack the thread, but I too am curious about the AT's performance, and considering various used x60 models with the T6/6AT drivetrain. What were the years where there were changes in shift mapping? I know 2014 introduced paddles to R-designs, but beyond that, anything else different from 2011 onwards? Thanks!

 

Great question to hijack with because I want to know too.

I didn't know that 2014 R design got paddles either.

Volvo really made this more complicated than it needs to be.