A sequential manual transmission (or sequential manual gearbox) is a type of manual transmission used on motorbikes and high-performance cars or auto racing, where gears are selected in order and random access to specific gears is not possible. A manual transmission (also known as a stick shift, straight drive, or standard transmission) is a type of transmission used in automotive applications. ... A motorcycle (or motorbike) is a two-wheeled vehicle powered by an engine. ... Racing cars redirects here. ... Spur gears found on a piece of farm equipment A gear is a wheel with teeth around its circumference, the purpose of the teeth being to mesh with similar teeth on another mechanical device -- possibly another gear wheel -- so that force can be transmitted between the two devices in a...

With traditional manual transmissions, the driver can move from any gear, to any gear, by moving the shifter to the appropriate position. A clutch pedal must be depressed before the new gear is selected, to disengage the running engine from the transmission. In auto racing, this process is inefficient and prone to human error; hence the development of the sequential transmission. For other uses, see Clutch (disambiguation). ... This article or section does not cite any references or sources. ...

Overview

Sequential manual transmissions work by providing the driver the ability to select the gear directly before or after the gear currently engaged, usually by pulling a "paddle" (rocker switch) or (in cases where paddle shifts are banned) moving a lever. For example, if the transmission is in 2nd gear, pulling on the "up" paddle or lever would up-shift, selecting 3rd gear. Conversely, using the "down" paddle or lever would cause the transmission to downshift from 2nd gear into 1st.

Sequential gearboxes are also used in all modern motorcycles as it is too cumbersome to have a manual shifter and would take up too much space in the confines of a motorcycle frame. Having control over the gear shifter with your left foot frees the rider's hands to operate both the clutch and brake without taking your hands off the handlebars. A variety of parked motorcycles A motorcycle or motorbike is a single-track, two-wheeled motor vehicle powered by an engine. ...

Sequential manual transmissions are true manual transmissions, and should not be confused with automatic transmissions that provide some degree of user shifting input. One commercial example of this type of automatic transmission is the Tiptronic transmission. User shifting through buttons or lever does not necessarily mean that the transmission is a manual transmission. An automatic transmission is an automobile gearbox that can change gear ratios automatically as the vehicle moves, thus freeing the driver from having to shift gears manually. ... Tiptronic is a type of discrete automatic transmission developed by Porsche and used in its vehicles and those of its licensees. ...

Benefits

Beyond the ease of use from a driver's standpoint, an additional benefit of sequential manual gearboxes is that use of the clutch via foot pedal or hand control can be minimized or completely obviated, especially after coming to speed in first gear. Formula One cars of the 1980's and 90's made the most high-profile debut of this technology in motor sports, and enhanced variations on this theme are still in use in many forms of road racing and drag racing today. Formula One - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia /**/ @import /skins-1. ...

Use in road cars

The most famous application of a sequential transmission on road-cars would be their use in Ferraris since the mid-nineties. Their system, the most current version of which is called "F1-Superfast," is designed to serve as a link to their Formula 1 efforts. This technology has also trickled down to the cars of their sister company, Maserati where it is known as "Cambiocorsa". Alfa Romeo's Selespeed was the first sequential transmission in a "normal" car. This transmission was derived from the Ferrari system. BMW also has a system simply called "SMG" (an acronym for sequential manual gearbox), but it is not a true sequential, as gears can be selected out of order. The 3rd generation Toyota MR2 uses Toyota's version, known as the Sequential Manual Transmission or SMT. Although it does not perform as well as the Ferrari Formula 1 based transmission, Toyota's SMT is the cheapest system, and the MR2 is the least expensive car to have a sequential gearbox. The Tesla Roadster also uses a sequential transmission. Ferrari is an Italian sports car manufacturer based in Maranello and Modena, Italy. ... Formula One, abbreviated to F1 and also known as Grand Prix racing, is the highest class of single-seat open-wheel auto racing. ... A 1957 Maserati 200SI at the Scarsdale Concours Maserati Birdcage 1959 Maserati 5000 GT Coupe Maserati Sebring This article is about the automobile manufacturer. ... Alfa Romeo is an Italian automobile manufacturing company, founded as Darracq Italiana by Cavaliere Ugo Stella, an aristocrat from Milan in partnership with the French automobile firm of Alexandre Darracq. ... Selespeed is name of electrohydraulic manual transmission used in Alfa Romeo cars and it is developed by Magneti Marelli. ... The acronym SMG may refer to An acronym for submachine gun A rap group featuring Ice T and others The actress Sarah Michelle Gellar BMWs name for its version of an electrohydraulic manual transmission Scottish media company SMG plc SMG, a property management company Shanghai Media Groups abbreviation. ... It has been suggested that this article or section be merged with Backronym and Apronym (Discuss) Acronyms and initialisms are abbreviations, such as NATO, laser, and ABC, written as the initial letter or letters of words, and pronounced on the basis of this abbreviated written form. ... The Toyota MR2 is a two-seat, mid-engined, rear wheel drive sports car produced by Toyota from 1984 until July 2007 when production stops in Japan, in three different design series. ... The Tesla Roadster is the first fully electric automobile to be produced by electric car firm Tesla Motors. ...

Examples

Toyota

Toyota's Sequential Manual Transmission is a computer controlled clutch mechanism on a manual transmission using hydraulic actuators, or electrohydraulic manual transmission. The car behaves just like shifting gears with a common manual gearbox while the clutch and the throttle work is computer controlled. It automatically shifts down to 1st gear when the car slows down to stop. The car will not start unless brake is applied while in neutral. The driver should be in a gear to avoid the car rolling when parked, just like a manual car. These features make driving easier with less chance of making a mistake.

Many owners of the MR2 SMT have been hoping for Toyota or its tuning wing TRD to deal with this issue through aftermarket support. It is certain that the SMT, and the MR2 would be much more popular among enthusiasts if it was more performance oriented. Currently, many people who would like an SMT initially, chose to settle with a conventional manual transmission due to performance reasons. Having been introduced in 2002 MR2 Spyder, SMT underwent updates in later model years (such as switching from a 5spd to a 6spd and updated firmware that improved shifting performance). Toyota Motor Corporation ), or Toyota is a Japanese multinational corporation and the worlds largest automaker by sales revenue as of 2007[3]. Together with its half-owned subsidiary Daihatsu, the company was the worlds second largest auto company by revenue of $179 billion and total vehicle production, most... Toyota Racing Development is the in-house tuning shop for all Toyota, Lexus, and Scion cars. ...

See also

• Semi-automatic transmission

Semi-automatic transmission, or also known as clutchless manual transmission, automated manual transmission, e-gear, or paddle shift gearbox is a system which uses electronic sensors, processors and actuators to do gear shifts on the command of the driver. ...

External links

• SMT Review