D1 or D2

In 5800 miles I have used D2 twice

If I find I need more torque I switch to ESP
sometimes when I'm in higher elevations
having a few more RPM's and holding it
in a lower gear has worked better for me

just a side note I have had the Rubicon up to
9200ft without ANY jetting issues

My07 is one month old and has 370 miles that were mostly riden in d2 mode. No sign of trouble.

ChuckD

Manual says to use D1 for "maximum performance" and D2 for "minimum traction situations, such as ice." Local Honda service manager said the only difference is that in D2 the bike starts off in 2nd gear to reduce wheel spin in slippery conditions. Just like starting in L2 with an auto truck tranny.

I must be really confused. I am pretty sure that the Rubicon does not have gears and that when you run in ESP, those are just presets in the transmission. When in auto, it is continuasly variable or something like that.

I don't know about everybody else, but my machine has a higher top speed in D2 then it does in D1. D2 does have less low end torque, as if you were starting in a different gear and D1 is a better performer on the low end.

QUOTE ("IL_Bow_Man":34hafd33)

I must be really confused. I am pretty sure that the Rubicon does not have gears and that when you run in ESP, those are just presets in the transmission. When in auto, it is continuasly variable or something like that.

I don't know about everybody else, but my machine has a higher top speed in D2 then it does in D1. D2 does have less low end torque, as if you were starting in a different gear and D1 is a better performer on the low end.

Click to expand...

Your right in that the bike does not have actual seperate gears as in a manual trans. The gears are actually as you said , just different preset points along the CVT range. So saying that D2 starts off in second "gear" could mean that it engages at a different point than D1 or it may even actually change the shifting points along the entire CVT range to develop less torque than D1. Next time I ride my buddy's bike I'll pay more attention to how it operates in both. Isn't it frustrating when you want more info on its operation than the manual or even the dealers can provide. I guess most peolpe are content to ride and not fully understand exactly how everything works.

ive noticed on mine that if your on flat ground d2 shifts easier with lower rpm's but doesnt climb hills very well , if you get in the mudd deep and your radiator gets clogged up run in d2 and it will run cooler. have you all seen the new 08 rubicons? i want the white one

I've been running mine in D2 since I bought it, seems like it starts in the same gear but keeps the rpms down, haven't heard anything on putting more stress on the tranny, I found a schematic on the shift torque curves, I'll try to attach it here.

D1 = Horsepower

D2 = Torque

What ever that means??

D1 = Horsepower

D2 = Torque

What ever that means??

D1 = Horsepower

D2 = Torque

What ever that means??