Why don't we have a pushbutton manual?

[MaineShark]

Riddle me this: why is a pushbutton manual not an option on the new 'Vettes? Unless I'm missing something, all you really need is a few hydraulic actuators (so let's beef up the PS pump and use it for PS and shifting) and a computer to control them. With the "fly by wire" throttle on the LSx engines, that becomes even easier, because the computer can directly intervene with the engine to shift smoothly. (you oculd do the same thing with a cable-throttle engine by using a bypass similar to the IAC motor to allow the computer to add air)

So why is this not already available? It seems simple enough, and the Corvette really deserves to have something like that! There is (obviously) some development work to do, but I can't believe that the market isn't there.

Joe

 

[matchframe]

Some Chryslers in the '60s had them, as did the Ford Edsel. But these were for Automatics.

The new C5R's have Autosticks for their manual trans, (still has to be approved for racing last I heard) similar to what I have in my 300M. This is not quite pushbutton, but almost the same concept.


Bill

 

[Fishman]

Had the push button on the dash of my first car, a '63 Plymouth Belvidere... auto trans however.

Not sure if too many folks would want to give up the tactile feeling and control of the shifter and clutch combination.

 

[DWS'03Z]

my first car - '61 Plymouth: push button on the dash:L .....

 

[MaineShark]

I don't mean an automatic with a pushbutton selector (ala Chrysler), or even an automatic that can be shifted manually via pushbuttons (Tiptronic, etc.).

While torque converters are nice, automatic transmissions have some trouble handling truly large amounts of power, and are less than efficient about transmitting power to the wheels.

I mean a true manual transmission, but actuated with pushbuttons (upshift, downshift) instead of an mechanical shifter and clutch pedal. Similar to what Ferrari uses.

Joe

 

[DkBG]

Maineshark , my John Deere lawn tractor uses the same pump for the steering and the hydraulics , so your concept is sound . Maybe someday we will see that very system . Personally i like shifting the way it is . Cliff

 

[MaineShark]

If I had a machineshop, and someone who could program the electronics, I'd take a try at converting an old tranny, just to see if I could make it work.

My left knee is no good, so while I'd like to have a manual, clutches are a big problem...

Plus, shifting without taking your hand off the wheel would definitely fit with taking a run through the twisties

Joe

 

[Ken]

Paddle shifters are available, just cost prohibitive.

 

[corvettecrazy]

I think paddles would be much better than buttons. If you look on the new grand prix (or bonniville sorry I dont remember right now) which has the button shift, I would think getting your finger to reach the buttom would be more of a hassle than tapping a paddle behind the wheel.

I do like the idea though...even if it were an option so you could put the auto lever in a special spot that activeates the paddles.

 

[Robin7TFour]

if i were racing where every second counts ,yes i'd want paddles,with instant kill ignitions. but for the sheer pleasure of driving ,which is why i own a corvette. i want to shift by hand.
there is a spiritual man-and- machine feeling when driving . clutch ,shift, turn ,brake. i want to feel the car's reaction!!


the older i get, the faster i use to be

robin

 

[matchframe]

The new C5R did develope an Autostick, just not in use yet. They are thinking it will before the season is out though. No clutch pedal, but a computer activated clutch mechanism. Push the stick forward to up shift, pull back to down shift. Supposedly will be an option on the '05 Z06.

I will find where I read that and let you know so you can also read it.

Bill

 

[matchframe]

I found it; It is in the November 2003 issue of Corvette Fever, on page 18. the article is "C5R Corvette Tech-Spose'"


...It is the new Hewland magnesium-cased six speed gear box is one step away from the final move to a no-lift-shift-style transmission. There is no "H" pattern, the driver simply pushes forward to first gear and pulls back for second through sixth gears. ....the Bosche controller shuts down spark and fuel to make the shift, then immediately reapplies both once the shift has been made. Cadillac Racing has already used this on their teams....

Sounds pretty cool!

Bill

 

[singledad_9]

I'll never forget my high school prom...

I was driving my fathers 68 chevy c20 with a 4 sp for about a year. My sister was driving an nice condition Chrysler that she let me borrow for the prom. There was that one stop sign that I forgot what I was driving, honestly. Well I kind of shifted her knee into the radio.

Fortunately, I didn't break the skin, but she limped for the rest of the night. That was the last date I had with her.

The price of a standard vette is more than an automatic because of tradition (sports cars are supposed to be a standard). Yes a paddle shift could be rigged up and would work far better than the shifter we have. But I like the shifter I have, secondly, I would get in more trouble with a paddle than I already do.

 

[Robin7TFour]

Bill, sequential gear shifting, now you're talking my language. i can just picture it," comming in a corner hot, vrrrmmm, vrrrmm, vvvvrrrmmm. hit the apex. and start popping up gears.. oh yeah!
i can't print the feeling.

robin



drive it like ya' stole it!!

 

[XS650]

Bill, sequential gear shifting, now you're talking my language. i can just picture it," comming in a corner hot, vrrrmmm, vrrrmm, vvvvrrrmmm. hit the apex. and start popping up gears.. oh yeah!
i can't print the feeling.

robin

For a preview, ride most any motorcyle made in the past 50 years.


added for the humor impared

Dick

 

[JohnZ]

Sequential transmissions have been in common use for many years in the LMP prototype classes, WRC cars, Touring Sedans, CART, IRL, etc. - mostly from XTrac and Hewland, but they're not cheap - we paid about $45K each for the XTracs we used in the Dodge Stratus Touring Sedans five or six years ago.

Paddle-shifted manuals are a pretty complex system, and the computer-controlled high-pressure hydraulics for shifting and clutch management are particularly exotic and expensive; there's a reason it's a $10,000 option on Ferraris. Sounds like a simple thing to do, but it isn't.

 

[Ken]

Paddle shifters are available, just cost prohibitive.

Ain't that what I said John?

 

[RoadReady]

Or, you could buy a '46-48 Hudson! If my fading memory serves, Hudson in the late '30s or '40s had a pre-selection manual transmission: electric solenoids shifted the trans at preselected speeds chosen by buttons on a steering column stalk.

 

[JohnZ]

Yup, but you had to push in the clutch in order for the shift to take place - that was an adaptation of the old Wilson Pre-Selector gearbox introduced originally in the U.S. on the coffin-nosed Cord. You pre-selected the next gear you wanted with the toggle on the steering column stalk, and pushing in the clutch selected that gear; it faded away due to its cost, complexity, and weight.

 

[Robin7TFour]

DICK, i have owned and ridden motorcycles since 71 . and had 35 different bikes. and ridden so really wild ones. worst was a rotary shifter that once in top gear. it would shift next to 1st. you had to pay attn or you'd really tax that 2-stroke.


robin

p.s i commend you for owning an XS650. you know vetter used the same bike as a test mule for their products.