Chrysler automatic transmission will be equipped with 9 gears in 2013

It is hard to believe that car buyers in the mid-1990s were still buying vehicles with only 3-speed automatic transmissions. It is believed that it will take about 25 years for most vehicles to upgrade to a 4-speed automatic transmission. The additional gears will be the next step in the rapid improvement of automotive technology. Unlike the slow progress in gear inclusion since the popular two-speed Powerglide transmission from General Motors in the 1950s to the four-speed transmission, significant advances in transmission programming and better packaging skills have made automakers rush to increase in a decade More gears. automatic transmission. The fifth gear was introduced soon, and the sixth and seventh gears were introduced shortly after. In 2007, Lexus ranked first among all automobile companies with an 8-speed automatic transmission in its LS sedan.

Claiming a momentary victory in the race to expand automatic transmission gear selection, Chrysler has announced their intention to offer a 9-speed automatic on some vehicles starting in the 2013 model year. Design and built by German-based firm ZF, this transmission is specially suited to obtaining peak efficiency as well as performance from the very common transverse-mounted engine configuration (powerplants that feature cylinder arrangements running parallel with the front drive axle). Flexible to front-wheel and all-wheel drive vehicle platforms makes the 9-speed automatic gearbox a fit for a wide assortment of compact to mid-sized vehicles.

As 4-speed automatics being the norm through the late 1990s, drivers began to realize improved gear transitions aiding in more comfortable driving which also presented better acceleration. Another plus about increased gears in an automatic transmission is fuel economy enhancements. In one recent example of fuel efficiency improvement, the Infiniti EX35 has been upgraded to a 7-speed from a 5-speed automatic gearbox netting a gas mileage boost of 1 mile per gallon city and 2 miles per gallon highway.

Expected to start production by mid-2012 at a Greenvile, South Carolina manufacturing facility, Chrysler products as well as for potential Fiat vehicles. New transmission technology, new 9-speed automatic is slated to replace the also radical Continuously Variable Transmission (CVT). For several reasons, the CVT layout in automobiles is losing support in the North America. Though still providing an advantage for gasoline/electric hybrid powertrains, the experimentation of CVTs in conventional internal combustion-engined vehicles is finding fewer new applications. With winding of the CVT belts presents an uncomfortable driving experience for some motorists, it is also becoming apparent to some owners of older CVT vehicles how expensive these units are to replace. Representing a more familiar operation and design, the 9-speed automatic should also provide strong fuel economy.

In line to become to market with a production 9-speed automatic transmission for the 2013 model year, Chrysler Group cars will not have exclusive reign for the record gear selections. Announced July of last year, Chrysler’s former parent company Daimler AG has been working on their own 9-speed automatic transmission for use in future Mercedes-Benz.

Information source: Association of Automotive Engineers and ZF. Photo source: ZF.