As part of its powertrain revitalization strategy, GM’s European subsidiary Opel is rolling out a host of new transmissions that will join the all-new 1.6 liter turbocharged gasoline– and diesel-powered four-cylinder engines.
All-New Five- And Six-Speed Transmissions
The next-generation five- and six-speed gearboxes feature numerous revisions to internals and the shifter mechanism. According to Opel, the gearboxes have been benchmarked against competitor offerings and deliver smoother shift quality; they are currently being rolled out in the ADAM, Corsa, Meriva, Mokka, Astra, Antara, Zafira and Insignia models with engines exceeding 130 Nm (95 lb.-ft.) of torque.
For small and sub-compact vehicles powered by engines with up to 235 Nm (173 lb.-ft.) of torque, an all-new six-speed gearbox has been developed that is significantly lighter than similar transmissions while incorporating many of the “modifications from the next-generation units”.
All-New Automated Manual Transmission
For the ADAM and Corsa, GM-Opel is developing a new automated manual transmission. The new unit offers sequential-style gear shifting, supports start/stop functionality, and has five-speed automatic operation.
Currently, these are the only details released about the unit.
All-New Eight-Speed Transmission
In the long term, the new five- and six-speed traditional transmissions, and the new automated manual will be followed by an all-new eight-speed gearbox. The wider gear spread, according to Opel, will result in an average fuel economy improvement of more than three percent.
The GM Authority Take
These are welcome transmission developments to complement the new range of class-leading engines. Outside of the eight-speed gearbox that we’ve known about for a while now, what has us most intrigued is the new automated manual unit. If it is at all like a VW DSG/dual-clutch, then it signifies that GM has elected to follow VW, Ford, Mazda, and others into the dual-clutch automated-manual realm — which would be a first for The General.
We’ve reached out to Opel for more details about the automated manual gearbox, and will update this page as soon as we hear back with more details.
Comments
Alex, don’t you think that the ZO6, ZR-1 and CTS-V should have automated manuals as and option to improve their performance?
A DSG would shift faster and (more often than not) has less driveline energy loss than traditional automatics do — thus resulting in more direct power delivery and better fuel economy.
In that regard, they would really benefit any and all GM car lines — from the low end (Spark, Sonic) to the very high end (Corvette, Cadillac V models, etc.). Heck, VW is adding them to the Polo and Jetta/Golf (as margins allow in some trims) and Ford has a dual clutch in the Focus and Fiesta (in some trim levels).
But I’m not sure that the automated manual seen here is actually a dual clutch. Let’s see what Opel says.
Hopefully , it`s better than the Ford PowerTurd.
I had a brand new 2010 GTI and the DSG it uses is the gold-standard.
Article in paper today regarding GM and Ford collaborating on new transmissions that will be manufactured separately. Another said there will be a new mid-sized truck replacing Colorado and Canyon that will do 95% of what Silverado and Sierra can do.
@thehofinator Ford and GM are developing 9- and 10-speed transmissions… Like this:
http://gmauthority.com/blog/2013/04/general-motors-ford-officially-announce-partnership-to-build-nine-and-ten-speed-transmissions/
It’s not that far a stretch to say that the new Colorado will be able to do most of what the low-end (4.3 Ecotec3 V6) 2014 Silverado is/will be capable of doing… But as we move up the Silverado powertrain lineup, that will become more and more difficult for the Colorado to do.
Those new transmissions will soon set the bar for manufacturers
Hmmm, new transmissions, new engines and not far off new platforms. The future is looking bright. Hopefully less-bland styling on Chevy’s basic cars will happen too.
Alex, thanks for the article.
@VeranoHatch my pleasure! Haven’t heard back from Opel (yet) as to what kind of gearbox the automated manual really is.