So I was driving today and was just curious what gear my car was in as I have been getting this strange vibration sometimes when I am going 30mph at 1000k rpms. I put the car into slap stick mode and downshifted to 5th gear? Is this normal? Why would the trans be in 6th gear at 30mph? I was driving 50 mph and slowly slowed down to 30 as I was entering a residential zone. This would explain why the car is at a low rpm at 30mph. Is this normal? I know autos today stay in high gears for fuel economy but it seems strange for the car to be in 6th gear at such a low speed. I have 125k and the fluid was flushed at 108k. I went to the dealer yesterday for the vibration and they could not find any codes or any thing wrong apart from my rear rim being bent pretty bad. Thanks.

 

Normal.

One way auto makers claim the fuel mileage they do is partially due to having the transmission upshift as soon as possible and to hang onto a gear as long as is mechanically possible when decelerating. It's why I hate my 7AT when in D. I bought my Ark exhaust so I could hear the engine rpm so I could use the paddle shifters and shift manually. Car was too quiet with stock exhaust for this.

 

I wouldn't say being in 6th gear at 30mph is normal... if I recall, my car shifts to 5th gear automatically around 45mph.

 

Your car is up shifting with acceleration, but the OP was coasting from a higher speed and the car was holding the gear as it slowed down.

 

It's normal for this transmission but it's stupid imo. You know how many instances I had to switch lanes and try to accelerate and car goes nowhere because it's such in a high gear it's dangerous could of been hit once or twice before due to that. Most of the time I have to be in manual mode to accelerate well. I hate this 7 speed been two years I owned it and I dislike it

 

No clue about the vibrations, but being in 6th gear at a low speed is normal. As explained above, it's for better MPGs, and I would also assume less strain on the engine as well.

Ricio made a good point though. This is probably the main reason why I never drive in D/DS anymore. I probably look douchey driving an auto as if it were a manual, but I would much rather be able to choose the gear that will keep the engine in an optimal spot of the power band for the speed I am traveling at. I prefer to keep the car in the 2.5-3k range despite the lower MPGs.