Picking the proper transmission has been a simple choice up so far because the Indian market really didn’t have too many options. most of the people opted for a manual as those made up the bulk of the choices , and therefore the few automatic options that existed were either too expensive, consumed an excessive amount of fuel or simply couldn’t be had with the car you were looking to shop for .
India’s ever-increasing traffic problem and buyers pleading for a more relaxed driving setup has pushed carmakers to supply an automatic drive option with most new cars today. The trend has reversed such a lot that cars which can’t be specced with an automatic drive nowadays are often chastised for this very reason. These options have posed another problem though, which is selecting the proper automatic drive .
After all, there’s iMT, AMT, CVT, a converter or a DCT, all of which give you with the convenience of a two-pedal driving setup. The difference between all of them, however, is that the amount of cash you would like to spend over a daily manual transmission, the type of driving experience they provide and therefore the fuel efficiency they’re capable of returning.
To make things simpler, we compared of these transmission options on these three parameters to seek out out which one will suit you best. this is often not the sort of comparison which can have an outright winner. it’ll instead tell you which of them transmission might best fit your requirements. we’ve skipped going over the upkeep cost of those different transmissions intrinsically costs not only vary from type to type, but also can differ vastly between different carmakers.
- iMT (Intelligent Manual Transmission)
iMT may be a term coined by Hyundai for his or her latest advancement: the clutchless manual transmission. it’s as simple because it sounds: a manual transmission during which the clutch is missing. you continue to need to shift gears by yourself using an H-pattern shifter, a bit like during a manual transmission. However, an actuator takes care of engaging and disengaging the clutch whenever required, supported a sensor built into the gear shifter. This technology is extremely new the Indian market and is merely available in cars just like the Hyundai i20 and Venue, and therefore the Kia Sonet.
In terms of price, iMT is that the most affordable option on the list and it offers quite little bit of value for money. because it is predicated on a manual transmission and uses most of an equivalent components, the increment in price over a three-pedal setup falls between Rs 20,000 and Rs 25,000.
As far because the drive experience goes, things are just about an equivalent as during a manual transmission. We had initial apprehensions about it not being smooth during shifts but all such concerns were blown away once we first drove the Hyundai Venue iMT. there’s still a touch of fine tuning which will enhance the experience but the package on offer now’s pretty sophisticated in itself. If you’re wont to driving a manual and are only considering an automatic because you’re always stuck in traffic, then an iMT could also be worth considering. Still, considering that it still requires you to shift, its value to lesser-experienced drivers is a smaller amount than that of usual automatic options.
The only explanation for concern here, and this one will only trouble those that wish to drive, is that the incontrovertible fact that you not have clutch control over the car. you’ll not miss it in city traffic or while cruising on the highway and it’d not necessarily be even better for your 0-100kmph times, but you’ll still find yourself missing it when approaching corners on a twisty road, especially if you wish to heel and toe into a corner.
Lastly, because the transmission acts during a similar capacity as a manual transmission, there’s no significant difference in their fuel efficiency. Not only that, within the world not having to use a clutch means you’ll find yourself within the right gear at the proper time more often, which could even offer you a small advantage over a daily manual transmission.
- AMT (Automated Manual Transmission)
Before the iMT came along, the AMT was the foremost economical automatic drive option on the market. a bit like the iMT, it’s similar in its construction to a manual transmission but here, not only is that the clutch controlled by an actuator but so is that the shifting of gears. So between the iMT and AMT, the latter is best at replicating a real automatic experience. you only lookout of the throttle pedal and therefore the brake, and therefore the transmission will decide the simplest gear for you supported your inputs.
The price of this added convenience is that you simply will need to distribute Rs 50,000 to Rs 60,000 more over a daily manual transmission. While AMTs provide you with an equivalent experience as an actual automatic drive at a lower cost , there are trade-offs you finish up making when it involves the driving experience. The shift quality isn’t all that smooth and jerks are often felt, especially when downshifting. Then there’s the top nod problem. When the AMT is trying to match the engine speed thereto of the wheels and is slipping the clutch to form that happen, it induces a head nod which may be quite irritating. this is often tons more prominent once you are driving a touch faster than usual. This problem isn’t all that bothersome at slower speeds, but it’s still apparent.
Gear changes are generally slower than usual, in-gear acceleration takes time and out on the highways, you’ll need to plan your overtakes. the simplest thanks to drive an AMT is linearly and with smooth inputs. If you are trying and hurry it up, especially while accelerating, it quite gets confused and takes longer to react. Thus, an AMT is best fitted to those that wish to drive at a sedate pace and aren’t really trying to find a sporty experience from behind the wheel, and instead just want truth convenience that an automatic drive has got to offer, without paying an excessive amount of off a premium over a manual transmission.
As far as their fuel efficiency cares , things are often a touch different from brand to brand. Maruti’s AMT options come quite on the brink of their manual counterparts when it involves fuel efficiency and if driven with a light-weight foot, they might probably be even better. Hyundai AMT’s also are decent when it involves returning good fuel efficiency compared to their manual counterparts. Then there are brands like Tata and Renault who are a touch off the mark during this quite comparison with reference to their manual counterparts. within the end, it all comes right down to the type of tuning that has been done and therein regard, we’ve handy it to Maruti for offering a number of the simplest tuned AMT transmissions.
- CVT (Continuously Variable Transmission)
CVT’s are the foremost different quite transmission on this list as they don’t have actual gears. They instead work on a belt-driven system which is suspended off two pulleys. These pulleys can change their radii to mimic any quite gear ratio, meaning they’re capable of offering infinitely different gear ratios. A transmission control unit decides what gear ratios to use counting on your throttle input, speed, incline and other factors.
CVT’s usually find yourself costing anywhere between Rs 1 lakh and Rs 1.30 lakh over their manual counterparts and that they offer a really different experience from a daily manual transmission. during a manual transmission vehicle, you rev the engine and alter gears once you are approaching the redline. A CVT transmission on the opposite hand continuously keeps changing the gear ratios while keeping the engine spinning at a continuing rpm. The engine speed are often varied by using more throttle input but the essential concept of ever-changing gear ratios stays an equivalent .
CVTs tend to supply a smooth driving experience as they’re very linear in their nature and this is often quite good for city driving. A CVT requires a smooth driver and this type of a transmission isn’t built keeping a sporty dynamic in mind. it’s thus not the simplest option if you wish picking gaps in traffic or making quick overtakes. Some CVT’s accompany inbuilt fixed gear ratios that closely mimic a standard automatic in feel and performance .
The real magic of a CVT involves light once you inspect their fuel efficiency. Drive it with a light-weight right foot, the way it’s meant to be driven, and a CVT will find yourself offering you excellent fuel efficiency within the city. However, if you begin pushing a CVT transmission, its fuel efficiency drops quite quickly because the engine operates at higher speeds, thus consuming more fuel. you ought to be picking a CVT if you drive around tons within the city, aren’t always looking to urge from A to B within the shortest amount of your time possible and would really like to be frugal while doing so.
- converter
A converter is one among the oldest sorts of automatic transmissions and over the years, they need gotten more refined and efficient. within the old days, torque converters weren’t really geared for any quite performance or fuel efficiency. it had been just the means to a two-pedal driving setup, as nothing else offered an identical convenience at the time. A converter uses two turbines, one connected to the flywheel and therefore the other to the gearbox. A transmission liquid within the middle transfers the force from one side to the opposite .
In the olden days, torque converters wont to offer a damped/slushy effect where you’ll feel the engine revving and creating power, but it wouldn’t be transferred to the wheels because the liquid within the middle would find yourself damping tons of that power. modern-day torque converters however feel tons different and there’s no perceptible loss in power. This however means they’re pricey too and torque converters find yourself costing anywhere between Rs 1 lakh and Rs 1.5 lakh over their manual counterparts.
Modern day torque converters feel quite responsive and are compatible for city or highway driving. counting on their tuning, they will either offer great performance or excellent efficiency, or maybe an honest mixture of both.
A converter may be a good bet for you if your driving includes a mixture of various scenarios like slow city crawls in traffic, long highway stints where you easily cruise at triple digit speeds, or a twisty road that needs you to travel through the gears often — and every one of that with the choice of still returning a fuel efficiency that might be on the brink of its manual counterpart.
- DCT (Dual Clutch Transmission)
A dual clutch is that the most sophisticated automatic drive that’s available in mass market cars today. Over the years, this technology has trickled down from higher-end sports cars and supercars. even as the name indicates, it’s two different clutches which operate two sets of drugs ratios, one odd and therefore the other even. When driving around, a computer pre-selects what it feels are going to be subsequent required gear using the second clutch, and thus, at the time of the gear shift, the difference between the 2 is negligible. the pc uses multiple parameters to guage if an upshift, or a downshift are going to be required. However, the essential premise here is that a better gear are going to be selected if you’re accelerating and a lower gear are going to be chosen if you’re decelerating.
In terms of price, they’re ideally around Rs 1 lakh to Rs 1.5 lakh costlier than their manual counterparts and are tons costlier to repair also . Not only this, their elaborate setup also makes them quite heavy. However, DCTs structure for all of that with their range of performance.
Due to the extensive machinery onboard, a dual clutch transmission are often fine-tuned to supply quick shifts, or easier shifts. What’s more, all of this will be changed by just changing the tune of the gearbox. this is often nowadays possible by simply pressing the drive modes button in most cars, which automatically changes the response you get from the engine, gearbox and even the steering and suspension in some cases.
The DCT then comes across as an automatic drive that caters best to the enthusiast, with its super quick shifts. it’s the closest an automatic drive has are available replicating the type of joy you’ll expect from manual cars. As far as their fuel efficiency cares , it all depends on how you drive. A smooth and lightweight input will end in good efficiency and in most cases comes very on the brink of the efficiency numbers you’ll achieve from a manual gearbox equipped car. Thus a DCT is that the best all around package, especially if your driving scenario isn’t limited to only city or highway driving.