Quote:
Originally Posted by abraxis
Obviously quoting text is not an indication of someone actually reading and comprehending it or the actual thread before it. I'll say it again since this appears to be a slow news day, a modern automatic transmission can be operated in a manual mode thanks to modern electronics, a modern manually selectable semi automatic transmission can be operated in an auto mode thanks to those same modern electronics.
For more, see a Venn diagram.
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Venn_diagram
I'm curious how you would operate a Formula One or other race type of DCT in auto mode since they don't have it.
https://www.formula1.com/en/champion...--gearbox.html
"Formula One cars use highly sophisticated semi-automatic, seamless shift gearboxes......But despite such high levels of technology, fully automatic transmission systems, and gearbox-related wizardry such as launch control, are illegal - a measure designed to keep costs down and place more emphasis on driver skill."
Can you find me a torque converter hydramatic/automatic transmission that was only designed to be operated manually? If you still find this confusing, see above.
Btw, what kind of semi auto washing machines are you folks using in the outback these days? Is this a result of the Coriolis effect or high ABV? |
I get your point, but I must add that arguing definitions when discussing the 'grey area' of a topic is usually a wasted endeavor; there is usually just too much subjective opinion muddling up the talking points. Nevertheless, I shall also give my muddled, subjective opinion.
A manual transmission requires the driver to disengage the engine from the transmission using a clutch pedal and requires the driver to move a linkage to slide a gear out of position and a new gear into synchronization with the drive assembly. This process is fundamentally basic in architecture, yet it requires the maximum in both effort and skill to perform. Every deviation from this architecture that complexes this system, while reducing the effort and skill necessary to perform said operations is an automatic or semi-automatic transmission.
I have driven a Ferrari F430 with a DCT. Some things to note: the car will go to redline and not shift, if the driver doesn't hit the 'gear selector'; with that said, the transmission selects the gear more often than the driver. What do I mean? If the driver has the car in neutral and selects first gear then the driver put it in gear, but not physically, right? The paddle didn't move a linkage like with a stick shifter; a computer servo thingy moved the linkage, and it gets worse. Once in first gear the computer puts the transmission in standby mode for second gear. Yes, the computer already has engaged second gear before the driver. By upshifting with the flappy paddle, the driver hasn't actually selected a gear; the driver has asked the computer to disengage the odd, geared clutch and shaft, and now to engage the even, geared clutch and shaft. Hmmmmm, this really isn't manual driving at all, is it?
Ahhh, but I can see the argument circling back around to the fact that if the driver doesn't hit that flappy paddle then the car will redline to destruction. Well, to that argument I reply with the fact that all the engineers would have to do to turn a DCT that doesn't shift into a full automatic that shifts without the driver's input is to write some code for the computer to automatically shift, since everything is in place for the transmission to operate independent of the driver.