we used to do zero speed autos by plummetting down at about 40kts indicated
Hold on...are we talking two different things here?
I read the original question to mean, vertical descent with 0 indicated airspeed. That to me is a 'zero speed auto'.
Oldpinger, you are describing what I would call a 'constant attitude / no flare' auto.
Nick, which were you refering to?
cl12pv2s