The area of automotive transmissions has been witnessing an increase in the number of gears (progressing from three-speed gearboxes to 10-speed gearboxes), variation in ratios as well as different types of clutch systems supporting these advanced gears, all aimed at ensuring an efficient power transfer from the engine to the wheels. There is an increasing industry focus on environmentally-friendly powertrains, while at the same time ensuring they are able to maintain vehicle dynamics and support active safety systems. There is little doubt that the future gearbox will have to be much smarter so that it delivers higher efficiency without compromising on the fun-to-drive experience of vehicle users.
GLOBAL AUTOMOTIVE TRANSMISSION TRENDS
The auto industry has been witnessing adoption of different transmission technologies across the globe. The Chinese transmission market is dominated by continuously variable transmissions (CVTs), dual-clutch transmissions (DCTs), and conventional automatic transmission. All these transmission technologies enjoy an equal presence because the Chinese market has been growing so fast that no single technology could bridge the demand gap, thus resulting in consumers lapping up all these technologies. In the US, conventional automatic transmissions are firmly entrenched, while the transmission story in Europe is also about conventional automatics but are increasingly moving towards dual-clutch transmissions (DCTs). As far as Japan is concerned, continuously variable transmissions (CVTs) rule the roost, which is hardly surprising since CVTs were invented there.
INDIAN TRANSMISSION STORY
This story is from the October 2019 edition of Auto Tech Review.
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This story is from the October 2019 edition of Auto Tech Review.
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