Oh boy

 

Xs2

 

The history of Porsche and of racing is that the tachometer is way more important than the speedometer. You'll get used to it when your eyes are trained to know where it is. It's only a theoretical problem.

 

The big digital speed numbers at the bottom of the centrally located analog tachometer make it the best of both worlds. You will never look at the analog speedometer off to the left side.

 

Yikes . Mmmm.... hmmmm . You get used to it . Did you like the way the car drove ? Did you like the road feel, engine sound , response ? PDK transmission and other interior and exterior appointments ? If you did then once again , you'll get used to the "lack" of a billboard speedometer gauge/dial. If you didn't like any or all of the above ; pass . Don't get a Porsche .


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Well the digital speed display is way easier to see than the transitional speedometer, which is not precise at all, no matter how big it is.

 

Have you ever driven a sports car before?

 

I think we may have blown away a new member Lots of Macan owners have never owned a Porsche or any sports car before.

Personally I like the digital speed readout...have grown very accustomed to it. In fact, I wish the Macan offered a heads up display like we have on our X5...oh wait, it would be unaffordable anyway

 

can we say troll? First post and it's a complaint? Seems like a trend.

 

I don't think that's the case. I can think of plenty of people that would see the dominent tachometer right in the middle of the instrument cluster and ask why. Plenty of Macan owners are not "car enthusiasts". The next complaint will be regarding the location of the ignition key

Perhaps I'm more tolerant than most

 

No need to know what speed I am travelling at, as long I am enjoying the drive. Thus far, I have not been pulled over for speeding infraction

 

@Shark Yeah, I reconsidered and though I may be incorrect. And there is nothing wrong with making complaints. But the Macan is such an amazing vehicle, that if that is the only thing one notices and comments on, then it's not the car for them. And not a word in the first post about the digital readout which makes the speedo superfluous.


And in a review of a Porsche in one of the mainstream rags, they also complained and said it was old thinking to have the tach in the middle. Come to think of it, it was CR which I like.


I happen to love the tach in the middle. With the pdk, it's the most important gauge.

 

Calling RJMcGinnis, RJMcGinnis line 1.

 

You forgot to type @RJMcGinnis

He won't answer if not properly addressed remember . He's a bidness man and too busy otherwise


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I don't understand why the analog speedometer is there at all in the first place since the digital is so clear. That space could have been used for some better information. Maybe a secondary configurable TFT-screen.

 

I don't understand why the analogue speedometer is there at all in the first place since the digital is so clear. That space could have been used for some better information. Maybe a secondary configurable TFT-screen.

An interesting idea. I have not seen it yet on any other car, but I'll bet it's coming. Suits me just fine too.

 

Back to the racing heritage note -- I've often wondered why many car mfgs even bother to have a tach on the dash in a AT car, unless you have flappy paddles/"sport" shifter (and use them). The racing reason for the tach is, in a MT car (remember those?) you want to see the RPMs so you know when you are at/near redline, in your motor's sweet sport of the hp/torque curves, or when you are learning heel/toe downshifts you have a visual cue as to what rpm levels you are trying to match. In a racing environment having a visible tach is even more critical info as at race start many times you can't hear your engine, and the only way you know when to shift is by glancing at your tach needle.

I'll bet for a large majority of AT drivers -- the Camryites of the world -- having the tach is actually useless information. And I would think for a good portion of Macan drivers they never use the paddles. But for those of us who do, having a LARGE tach in the middle of the gauge cluster is wonderful.

 

I've often wondered why many car mfgs even bother to have a tach on the dash in a AT car, unless you have flappy paddles/"sport" shifter (and use them).

No doubt there are a lot of drivers who have no idea how knowing the engine speed could possibly be useful. But as for me, I like that it's there even on my 16 year old Pathfinder. I tend to avoid pushing the engine over 4000 RPM because after 165k miles I'm not sure how much life it has left, and the tach also lets me know if I need to back off on the throttle a bit to let the trans upshift. And a tach is very useful for heavy towing. My preference would be to have a tach on any vehicle I drive.

 

But officer, its a Porsche - I really do not how fast I was going.. the analog speedometer is in the wrong place!!!

 

It's a sports car thing, the tach reading being the most important. Also, it's fun to convert from tach reading to speed. While cruising at highest non-overdrive gear cut tach reading in half, add 1 mph for each wind speed reading behind you, deduct 1 mph for each foot above mean sea level, deduct 1 mph for each humidity point above the dew point and divide by pi (3.1412), simple. . Or just look at speedo.

 

@RJMcInnis , you are being paged. :laugh:

 

I'm guessing that I'll really enjoy seeing the more active movement of the tacho as opposed to the speedometer - which I'm guessing will also be quite active under my normal, 'spirited' driving - but still won't be as active as the needle of the tachometer. This is still a sports car, and under acceleration there's something exhilarating about watching the needle dance.

There are many cars that do not have a tachometer at all, which to me is the first indication that the car is not for me. I remember a buddy's Toyota Tercel in college that didn't have one and honestly really didn't need one. That car was as generic as possible.

I will also be using the tacho immediately when taking delivery of my Macan, since I plan on following the break-in period recommended by Porsche in the US, but that's a secondary advantage.

 

Having owned nothing but sports cars for 20 years now, I appreciate the tach in the middle. I never use the analog speedometer and find it archaic. I much prefer looking at the digital readout under the tach. Most performance buffs and mags appreciate such gauge position. What I miss the most on the Macan is lack of HUD.

 

I too like the tach in the center and the digital speedometer display. I don't want a digital display of the RPMs, oil pressure or temperature though, I'm sticking with the traditional gauge displays for them.

 

I love the Macan S in every aspect; and i will own one soon. I am just concerned that without good simple visual of speed, chances of speeding tickets are surely increased. Sadly, the sales guy never told me about the digital display and once I parked I first looked at it and saw the number 7..I inquired about that and he said it stood for 7 speed transmission ..hmmm, really??

 

Short video below shows the digital speedometer so, you can see it is very obvious once driving & the small left side analog speedometer is superfluous & you'll never look at it while driving.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=idbwX8sgh3Y

Welcome to the MF!

 

I have owned a 1971 corvette for 25 years...so yes, I know about sports cars...seems like the consensus is that seeing mph in the digital display is not an issue so I am still with the Macan club here...just need to check it out for myself one more time...many thanks to all comments provided?

 

I'll tell you in my 3 months of owning now - I never have an issue finding the speed. I never look at the analog read either...the digital is quite sufficient.

That said...with the speed I tend to go, I have little desire to look down at the dash. The car is so much fun to drive. It is silent at high speed, handles perfectly, and comfortable...it's a dream. And yes, I average 5-10 mph higher on this car than i did on any other car I previously owned...

 

Just give me the speed in the HUD that's the best place for it! - Ah, ****, Porsche don't do safety related tech 'fluff'

 

Oh wow, is **** really considered a swear word!?

**** **** ****!

I would have thought it would have *** out HUD!

 

The only drawback of the digital speed display is that there is no differentiation between 20 and 100 mph. On the traditional speedometer, the needle position would have alarmed me before I took a glance at the digital speed.

Well, that's entirely my own fault. Mostly, I intentionally chose not to look at the digital speed, much like a puppy sneaking in a pee under the kitchen counter fully knowing it is a perfectly punishable deed but couldn't help it.

 

Wow @jzwu, no differentiation between 20 and 100 mph? I can generally sense that, but of course, I'm old and 'experienced'. Once, when I was younger, I thought I was going 20 mph, looked down and discovered I was doing 100! I peed under the dash. I couldn't help it. Now I always monitor the digital speedo.

 

And once when I smoked some "medicinal herbs" ahem , I thought I was doing 100mph and looked down only to discover I was doing 20mph


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And once when I smoked some "medicinal herbs" ahem , I thought I was doing 100mph and looked down only to discover I was doing 20mph


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Now that's funny right there. And I can relate, man!

 

I already know that I drive too fast -- so I did set the speed alert at 84 MPH ((for an actual speed of 80 MPH) out of an abundance of caution and just to alert myself.

 

So I'm not the only one whose speedometer registers 4 MPH over the actual speed.