the auto gearbox on my wife's Smart roadster. 5 second wait before a connection is made. Pity since the rest of the car is excellent.
We have a Smart in the Family, my daughter drives it, i know what you mean, i when driving it tend to just release the pressure of the throttle a little to let the gear change, i find it is better to use manual mode when the Car is first started from cold for app the first 2-3 miles then flick into Auto Mode, see if that helps.