Hyundai Ups The Ante, Announces Ten-Speed Automatic Transmission

Newsletter Stay up to date on car reviews, buying guides, articles and more For the 2012 model year, Hyundai is launching an eight-speed automatic transmission in its Genesis and Equus luxury sedans. The transmission, developed by Hyundai in-house, promises to improve acceleration, boost fuel economy and deliver a smoother ride than more traditional six-speed transmissions.

If eight speeds are good, then ten speeds must be better, so Hyundai has begun development of a ten-speed automatic transmission for future version of its Genesis and Equus luxury cars. Automotive News (subscription required) reports that the ten-speed transmissions could debut in Hyundai's luxury cars as early as 2014.

The benefits of added gear ratios are easy to see; they yield more seamless acceleration while boosting fuel economy and reducing emissions. As Nelson Ireson points out on Motor Authority, however, the transmission wars will ultimately yield diminishing returns, and there’s no real evidence that a ten-speed gearbox will yield a noticeably smoother ride than an eight or nine-speed transmission. Sometimes, more isn't better, it's just more.

Hyundai’s announcement also verifies that the Korean automaker will continue in-house powertrain development, instead of farming the business out to third-party suppliers. Doing so allows Hyundai to keep tighter reins on both quality and production costs, two areas where Hyundai has excelled in recent years.

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Hyundai Ups The Ante, Announces Ten-Speed Automatic Transmission

Newsletter Stay up to date on car reviews, buying guides, articles and more For the 2012 model year, Hyundai is launching an eight-speed automatic transmission in its Genesis and Equus luxury sedans. The transmission, developed by Hyundai in-house, promises to improve acceleration, boost fuel economy and deliver a smoother ride than more traditional six-speed transmissions.

If eight speeds are good, then ten speeds must be better, so Hyundai has begun development of a ten-speed automatic transmission for future version of its Genesis and Equus luxury cars. Automotive News (subscription required) reports that the ten-speed transmissions could debut in Hyundai's luxury cars as early as 2014.

The benefits of added gear ratios are easy to see; they yield more seamless acceleration while boosting fuel economy and reducing emissions. As Nelson Ireson points out on Motor Authority, however, the transmission wars will ultimately yield diminishing returns, and there’s no real evidence that a ten-speed gearbox will yield a noticeably smoother ride than an eight or nine-speed transmission. Sometimes, more isn't better, it's just more.

Hyundai’s announcement also verifies that the Korean automaker will continue in-house powertrain development, instead of farming the business out to third-party suppliers. Doing so allows Hyundai to keep tighter reins on both quality and production costs, two areas where Hyundai has excelled in recent years.

View the original article here

Hyundai Ups The Ante, Announces Ten-Speed Automatic Transmission

Newsletter Stay up to date on car reviews, buying guides, articles and more For the 2012 model year, Hyundai is launching an eight-speed automatic transmission in its Genesis and Equus luxury sedans. The transmission, developed by Hyundai in-house, promises to improve acceleration, boost fuel economy and deliver a smoother ride than more traditional six-speed transmissions.

If eight speeds are good, then ten speeds must be better, so Hyundai has begun development of a ten-speed automatic transmission for future version of its Genesis and Equus luxury cars. Automotive News (subscription required) reports that the ten-speed transmissions could debut in Hyundai's luxury cars as early as 2014.

The benefits of added gear ratios are easy to see; they yield more seamless acceleration while boosting fuel economy and reducing emissions. As Nelson Ireson points out on Motor Authority, however, the transmission wars will ultimately yield diminishing returns, and there’s no real evidence that a ten-speed gearbox will yield a noticeably smoother ride than an eight or nine-speed transmission. Sometimes, more isn't better, it's just more.

Hyundai’s announcement also verifies that the Korean automaker will continue in-house powertrain development, instead of farming the business out to third-party suppliers. Doing so allows Hyundai to keep tighter reins on both quality and production costs, two areas where Hyundai has excelled in recent years.

View the original article here

NHTSA expands transmission investigation to 1.5M Ford SUVs

Wednesday, Apr 13th, 2011 @ 5:52 p.m.

The National Highway Traffic Safety Administration has expanded its investigation into 1.5 million Ford SUVs for defective transmissions. The investigation, which now includes 2002-05 model year Ford Explorer and Mercury Mountaineer models and Lincoln Aviators from 2003-05, originally launched in 2009.

The agency has received hundreds of complaints involving the vehicles in question rolling away after the driver had put the vehicle in park. The complaints include 85 crashes and 32 injuries. No fatalities have been linked to the transmission defect.

“We have expanded the scope of the investigation to include components other than the brake shift interlock system,” NHTSA’s director of defects investigation, Frank Borris, said.

The NHTSA’s probe is focusing on the vehicles’ transmission parking pawl assembly components. The pawl is a device that allows the transmission to lock into park.

In addition to the rollaway reports, the NHTSA has also received 883 complaints of drivers having difficulty or not being able to shift the vehicle into park.

In a separate case, Ford is facing the recall of 1.3 million F-150 models. Ford recalled 135,000 F-150s earlier this year for an airbag defect, but has refused to comply with the NHTSA’s request to recall 1.3 million addition units. The NHTSA says the F-150’s airbags can deploy without warning.

References
1.’Feds expand probe…’ view

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