Using paddle shifters in the mountains

[Smallsea]

We have a 2021 AWD SEL Palisade. We live in the flat prairie, but recently took a trip out west and spent considerable time going up and down mountain roads and climbing steep mountain passes. My husband was the driver, and he had some success controlling the gears using the paddle shifters - especially on the descents, to control speed of the car without burning out the brakes. But there were times when we'd be going downhill steeply, then the road would flatten out a bit, then resume the steepness. He wanted the car to maintain the same gear through the whole stretch of road (knowing the next section of steepness was rapidly approaching), but it would keep shifting back into automatic Drive when the road temporarily leveled-out, and he would lose his manually-selected gear setting. This was mostly an annoyance for him, but at one point it was an issue because he needed it immediately back in whatever gear he was using, right at the same time the car decided it could go back to auto mode, and it took much longer than he wanted to get back to his preferred gear (burning the brakes in the meantime).

We were mostly in Eco mode, and wondered if Sport mode would've been a better choice for mountain driving, or if the "mode" selection matters at all.

It is uncommon for us to be in this situation, and it may be months or years before we need to use the paddle shifters in this manner again, but we wanted to post and ask about it before we forget. We'd like to understand how we can improve our driving experience with paddle shifters in the mountains, and getting the car to maintain the self-selected gear until we tell it not to.

We are new to this forum. I tried searching for this topic but didn't find anything. If this has already been discussed, please feel free to point me to another thread.

Thanks so much, we appreciate it.

 

[rcwxok]

If it's a very steep hill and you are going < about 25 mph, you can use the Downhill Brake Control on your AWD (button that looks like a duck on the center console). I've seen recommendations to leave the selector in Smart mode and let it learn your preferences. Otherwise, I'm not sure what the answer to your question is. I've had similar experiences.

 

[Smallsea]

If it's a very steep hill and you are going < about 25 mph, you can use the Downhill Brake Control on your AWD (button that looks like a duck on the center console). I've seen recommendations to leave the selector in Smart mode and let it learn your preferences. Otherwise, I'm not sure what the answer to your question is. I've had similar experiences.

Thank you. Most of the roads we were on were state or federal highways with higher speeds, so that wouldn't have worked for us (although we did wonder about it, and good to know it's an option for slower roads).

Also glad to know we weren't/aren't the only ones with this experience. Doesn't make the experience any better, but glad to know it's not just our car.

Thank you.

 

[elp_jc]

Use SPORT mode. The paddles don't revert back to auto in that mode... except when you come to a stop. But you can select 1 (or 2) when stopped, and it'll stay in paddle mode until your next stop. I use sport mode all the time mostly for that reason. And also because the engine is not lugged, like with the other modes. Hope this helps.

 

[Smallsea]

Use SPORT mode. The paddles don't revert back to auto in that mode... except when you come to a stop. But you can select 1 (or 2) when stopped, and it'll stay in paddle mode until your next stop. I use sport mode all the time mostly for that reason. And also because the engine is not lugged, like with the other modes. Hope this helps.

thank you, this is super helpful and exactly what we needed to know. I appreciate it.