Maruti Suzuki To Launch A Car Without Clutch… No, It Is Not Automatic Transmission!

A car without a clutch is not a big thing. Traditional Automatic Transmission cars do not have them, but still majority of car drivers prefer manual transmission cars with gears.

The reason why Manual transmission cars are preferred is because they give much higher mileage, and secondly (and this case with seasoned drivers) the drivers can control the drive very well.

Maruti Suzuki is now introducing a revolutionary new technology, which according to reports, will combine the best of both the worlds. Yes, the new “Clutch-less technology” will allow car drivers to use gears in the car as in case of manual transmission, however there will be no clutch involved while changing gears. These cars without clutch pedal, are based on the hydraulic system that will enable the driver to shift gears without using the clutch, either sequentially or fully automatically.

What this also means is that being a manual geared car, the mileage on the car will not suffer at the same time it will offer convenience of a Automatic Transmission car.

The technology is called “Automatic Manual Transmission” or AMT, and Maruti will be first company in India to introduce this technology

There is another interesting aspect – Automatic cars are generally priced much higher than manual cars, but the new clutch-less technology will not increase the price of the car as well.

Maruti is expected to show case this clutch-less car, a hatchback code-named TL7 at the upcoming New Delhi Auto Expo 2014. Many experts have speculated that the name of the hatchback will be Celerio. It is also expected that this car will replace their existing economy hatchback “Alto”.

AMT as a technology is currently used in Formula one racing cars, where the drivers change gears at a push of a button – you may have noticed it if you follow formula one racing. But introducing this same technology to passenger car has potential to revolutionize the passenger car segment.

If you are technically inclined to know more about Automatic Manual Transmission, you can read this whitepaper published by Zeroshift.

I am really looking forward to Maruti Suzuki’s first AMT car – If it really becomes a reality, I am sure other manufacturers too will soon need to look at this technology sooner rather than later!

What is your opinion on this?