Extreme4x4 Posted January 21, 2009 Share Posted January 21, 2009 This is a little off topic, but does anyone know what type of transmission was put in the new SuperDuty? I remember reading an article that said they changed the tranmission a year after they redesigned it to increase fuel economy. Thanks. The SuperDuty still uses the 5R110, or Torqshift transmission. It is a very heavy duty 5 speed automatic that actually has 6 forward gears. It can use one of 2 different 2nd gears, depending on usage (towing or unladen). I believe that they will make it an official 6-speed in the near future. It will not take much to do it. I have heard of very few problems with the transmission, even in modified diesels. I have it in my '08, with the V10, and love it. Frankly, it seems to do pretty much everything right. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
theoldwizard Posted January 22, 2009 Share Posted January 22, 2009 Second, having parts reciprocating in oil inherently increases drag more than parts reciprocating in air. therefor, dry clutches are inherently more efficient, as they add less parasitic driveline drag. What do you think? "Reciprocating" means moving back and forth (or up and down), like pistons. Nothing in a transmission "reciprocates". Rotate, yes. Synthetic oils make parasitic drag almost non-existent. As long as you don't overheat the oil (and synthetics can take more heat than natural oils), a wet clutch is more durable than a dry one because it move the heat away from the contact point. I don't know of any motorcycles that use a dry clutch. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Swizco Posted January 22, 2009 Share Posted January 22, 2009 "Reciprocating" means moving back and forth (or up and down), like pistons. Nothing in a transmission "reciprocates". Rotate, yes. Synthetic oils make parasitic drag almost non-existent. As long as you don't overheat the oil (and synthetics can take more heat than natural oils), a wet clutch is more durable than a dry one because it move the heat away from the contact point. I don't know of any motorcycles that use a dry clutch. Wet clutches are far more durable, agreed. Hence their use in performance applications for auto and almost all motorcycles, with the exception of Ducati's, which until very recently had dry clutches, for their weight advantage. That's why Ducatis more than a few years old sound broken at idle. The uneven power pulses from the cylinders cause the dry clutch to chatter. Its all part of the experience. As for parasitic drag, you can drag a piece of paper across a tabletop with almost mo effort. Drag it across the same table with oil, synthetic or regular, and there's drag. Less for properly heated synthetic oils, but still more than air. The point is, dry clutches are still more fuel efficient. The trouble is features like hill-hold, or other features with sustained slip, which torque converters or wet clutch packs won't think twice about, will fry a dry clutch auto in no time. As for vocabulary, fair enough. :rolleyes: Swizco Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
rmc523 Posted January 23, 2009 Share Posted January 23, 2009 Good question ! For now, at least, I think both will be available. It will never be cheaper to build. Heck it has 2 clutches plus electronics ! Fuel Economy is EXCELLENT ! 2+ years ago the PowerShift was as good or BETTER than a manual in some phases of the EPA tests. I think he meant it'll be cheaper to offer 1 PowerShift tranny (that is essentially an auto+manual), rather than offering 2 or 3 trannies (1 auto, 1 manual, 1 PS). I don't think he was trying to say it'd be cheaper to build a PS than a conventional tranny. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
mike_in_va Posted January 23, 2009 Share Posted January 23, 2009 Yes that's what I meant. PowerShift trannies would be cheaper per unit if they were the only choice. Building them in volume would create economies of scale and speed adoption of the technology. If there was to be another transmission, what would it be? A conventional manual or a dinky 4-speed auto? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
theoldwizard Posted January 23, 2009 Share Posted January 23, 2009 (edited) Yes that's what I meant. PowerShift trannies would be cheaper per unit if they were the only choice. Building them in volume would create economies of scale and speed adoption of the technology. PowerShift will never be as cheap as a MT. It should be less expensive than a 6 speed conventional AT. Adding wet clutches ups the costs (more seals, etc) and weight. If there was to be another transmission, what would it be? A conventional manual or a dinky 4-speed auto? FNA Fiesta will have a MT as the base. No conventional AT. Same likely to be true on the next gen FNA Focus. The interesting question is, will Ford try to design a PowerShift transmission to replace the newly introduced 6F35 used in the non-EB 2.5L I4 Fusion/Milan ? My guess is yes, but don't look for it until 2014-15 Edited January 23, 2009 by theoldwizard Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
battyr Posted January 23, 2009 Share Posted January 23, 2009 (edited) IMHO dry clutches would be more fuel efficient, but the difference would be so small that you likely won't notice it. They are service free as long as they are as reliable as designed. Hope they don't fail for as long as you own the vehicle. I also have a concern of dust buildup as the clutches ware. The dry clutches also come with replacing the hydraulic actuators with electric actuators. This gets rid of the hydraulic pump and is where you really save fuel. If the electric actuators prove reliable, I can see a more powerfull version of this transmission with electric actuators and wet clutches. Edited January 23, 2009 by battyr Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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