I occasionally use the paddle shift, but not for the purpose of achieving top speed or faster acceleration. I only use the paddle shift during bumper to bumper crawl traffic. 0 - 30 - 0 - 30 km/h.
Not sure about your gearbox behaving funny, but currently these are the 3 main issues with my car :-
1. Noisy driver's seat - Will be bringing the car to the service centre next week to have it fixed. They have previously replaced the seat 2 times (not sure if the seat was REALLY replaced). This time they said they are not going to fix the seat but rather do something. Not sure if they can get rid of the sound from the seat once and for all.
2. Woo Woo sound from the transmission - This woo woo sound from the transmission is getting louder by the days. Even when you do not step on the accelerator, with your foot lifted up from the pedal and the car is just gliding at say 40 to 50 km/h on its own, the woo woo sound is much louder than before.
3. Rattling sound from the back seat - rattling sound everywhere from the doors, back seat and seatbelts etc. Passengers sitting at the back were commenting on the rattling sound.
Due to the above issues, I am considering whether to sell the car sooner than expected and get something else instead.
my transmission emits the normal cvt whine but i think its normal and my car dashboard to the door trim to the seat and the glove compartments everything vibrate badly after the first start in the morning and eventually the vibation lessen...nevertheless the vibration is still there...i have changed all my shock absorbers and abosorber mounting as well.. i guess i need change the engine mountings at next service 80k