8 and Beyond: A New Generation of Automatic Transmissions
Figure 4
Initial road test statements are, “It shifts so fast and smooth, if it didn’t have a
tachometer you might not have known it shifted.”
Creature Features Sporty models like the Chrysler
300S and the Charger Rally will receive a manual shift mode with shift paddles mounted on the steering wheel. Initial road test statements are, “It shifts so fast and smooth, if it didn’t have a tachometer you might not have known it shifted.” With 200 millisecond shift times, it’s hard to argue with that. Other, lower-priced models won’t
have the manual mode feature. Those cars will only have drive and low select options.
Production Chrysler will start producing the
8-speed transmission under license with ZF in 2013 at their Kokomo plant. For the 2012 model year the transmis- sions will come from the ZF plant in
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Germany. Look for variants of this transmission in future Durangos and Jeeps and beyond.
ZF9HP The world’s first 9-speed trans-
mission has been designed for front wheel drive vehicles with transversely mounted engines (figure 4). The goal of this transmission is to allow auto- makers to reach the increasingly strin- gent Corporate Average Fuel Economy (CAFE) standards placed upon them. The transmission is expected to
improve fuel economy by up to 16%, versus vehicles with the now common- place 6-speed automatics. ZF claims that, at optimal fuel consumption speeds, the 9HP will allow the engine to run at 1900 RPM, as opposed to 2600 RPM in a typical 6-speed equipped model.
The transmission will be able to
handle all wheel drive and hybrid con- figurations. The torque range capabili- ties are between 200 and 353 pound-feet of torque. It is also stop-start capable. Due to installation limitations, this
transmission won’t have the mecha- tronics module incorporated with the valve body. This unit has four planetary gear sets and six multi-disc friction ele- ments. To keep the transmission com-
GEARS January/February 2012
pact it will incorporate one-way clutch assemblies. For a perspective on the 16% fuel
economy jump, a midsized sedan that now hits 35 miles per gallon on the highway could theoretically hit 40 or 41 mpg.
Chrysler and Mini are scheduled
to have the 9-speed for 2013. Chrysler will build the ZFHP9 in Kokomo plant at a future date.
Who and What Is ZF? The company was founded in
1915 in Friedrichshafen Germany by Ferdinand von Zeppelin. The compa- ny produced gears for Zeppelins and other airships, hence the German name Zahnradfabrik (ZF), which translates to gear factory in English.
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