How many gears

obi_waynne

Administrator
Staff member
Moderator
Points
1,157
Location
Deal, Kent UK
Car
A3 1.4 TFSI 150 COD
How many gears do we need in a car?

Most of us remember when 5 speed boxes came out, a few can probably remember the overdrive.

Now we have 6 and 7 speed boxes? (7 speed autos at least) Do we need this many gears? How many drivers actually use the gearbox correctly?

I tend to use "versigear" a lot otherwise I'd always be changing gear. Is this a fuel economy thing, or do engines have a much wider power band now and the extra gears is to take advantage of these?

Will we ever see 8 speed boxes as standard on cars?
 
My first car had 4. :D

I imagine as more cars get electronic shifting & lose the manual gear stick we'll see more gears. I've got six gears in the Van & I'm always forgetting to change up to 6th. :lol:
 
I thnik Lexus has eight speed autos now. BMW possibly does too but I'll need to check. Personally 5 is enough in a manual car.

Engines are far far far more flexible than they were even twenty years ago so it's a bit of a dichotomy that we need so many ratios.

I think the traditional torque converter automatic is on its way out, and rightly so.

My car is a Steptronic 6 speed - nice as this seems you have to keep in mind that it's still a traditional torque converter arrangement. Works well but there's better to be had with more modern arrangements.
 
6 is plenty for most cars, anymore and as hdi says youd have to be pretty good at selecting gears.
its bount to be down to emissions and economy that were getting more and more
 
Is this a fuel economy thing, or do engines have a much wider power band now and the extra gears is to take advantage of these?

Lots of gears would be required for an engine with a narrow power band as these would allow the engine to be kept within this range. A wider power band would not need so many gears.
 
The standard Elan had 4, the later versions had 5. My beastie has 6. Based on the usable power band of my engine, carefully selected ratios allow the engine to be kept within the sweet spot of this band. For my application 6 gears is perfect.
 
i got 5 but sometimes go to change up again even though i have never had 6! i can remrmber when cars had 4 and top end cars had overdrive! then 5 gears became the norm!,i think if manual gearboxes get many more gears you will be forever changing gear!!!
 
Think about HGV drivers. :blink:

i got 5 but sometimes go to change up again even though i have never had 6! i can remrmber when cars had 4 and top end cars had overdrive! then 5 gears became the norm!,i think if manual gearboxes get many more gears you will be forever changing gear!!!
 
6 gears are sufficient aslong as the car has enough poke.
In the leon 6th was useless for overtaking so 9 times out of 10 i had to drop to 5th making 6th really a pointless gear! untill the car was remapped that is;)
 
HGVs are generally high and low ratioed but still use normal 6 speed layouts in the ones ive been in.

yes herb i remember having the usable 6th gear in the bora.
miss it on the octy as its not coming into the torque band until its above motorway speeds
 
About twenty years ago I drove a 1984 Model Volvo 740 GLT. Four speed box with electrically switchable overdrive available in 3rd and 4th. Was quite a novelty :)
 
Lots of gears would be required for an engine with a narrow power band as these would allow the engine to be kept within this range. A wider power band would not need so many gears.

Agreed, but I have a BMW 325 with a 5 speed that I'm always wishing had 6, and a Corvette ('93) with a 6 speed that I rarely get past the first 5!

The Corvette has so much torque at low RPMs that at the factory (to promote fuel economy) they put a solenoid in that forces the shifter into 4th directly from 1st unless you're giving it the gas!!. (Naturally most owners disconnect it after a few frustrating days).
 
Just a question, don't you put a lot of stress on your gearbox going slower in a higher gear then accelerating, ex. doing 40 in 5th then putting the foot down or similar?
 
Just a question, don't you put a lot of stress on your gearbox going slower in a higher gear then accelerating, ex. doing 40 in 5th then putting the foot down or similar?

Absolutely! My dad called it 'lugging' the engine. Two solutions- teach people the physics behind gear selection or put in bigger engines that can pull from idle. Guess which choice Chevrolet took!! I drove a Camaro once that had the infamous '1st to 4th' feature. It was maddening, BUT the engine could put up with shifting to 4th at 15 MPH. A smaller engine under similar circumstances would ruin the rod bearings or main bearings. :amazed:

I have the bypass kit that allows me to shift normally (Imagine that!).
It would have been nice if GM had allowed different ratios to be purchased for the transmission. My 5th gear is Overdrive at 0.75. 6th is 0.5!!! Closer ratios would make for a lot more fun! :p
 
My Dad is an engine labourer. Always in too high a gear and terrified of going over about 105rpm. God forbid the engine should ever reach operating temperature too. Wouldn't want it overheating now would we?
 
Absolutely! My dad called it 'lugging' the engine. Two solutions- teach people the physics behind gear selection or put in bigger engines that can pull from idle. Guess which choice Chevrolet took!! I drove a Camaro once that had the infamous '1st to 4th' feature. It was maddening, BUT the engine could put up with shifting to 4th at 15 MPH. A smaller engine under similar circumstances would ruin the rod bearings or main bearings.

Aaaaaand the gearbox, no strain on that.
 
Aaaaaand the gearbox, no strain on that.

Ohhh, maybe just a little!! :blink1:
It's what scares me about buying a used manual trans car. More than a few people have no idea of the principles behind the manual gearbox. (Here I'm referring mostly to the US, where automatics dominate.)
 
Ratios come into it as well. No point in having an engine which can pull 80mph at 1500rpm and then gearing it uselessly low just so it can go in 4th at 15mph.
 
Where can I get one of these gearboxes :p

1901254_232485830271946_1107025621_n.jpg
 

Please watch this on my YouTube channel & Subscribe.


Back
Top