[humyum]

If this transmission starts coming in the Swift/Dzire Diesel, It will kill every car in the 7 to 10 lakh range in the market. COMMON MARUTI, GET THIS THING IN A DIESEL SWIFT PRETTY PLEASE.

[RSR]

The engine on the Celerio seems to be a tweaked K10B which Maruti are calling the K-next. According to ACI, the tweaks have improved the low-end torque and drivability, and this would be welcomed by those who found the K10B to be lacking in low-end grunt. ACI's preliminary acceleration numbers also show the Celerio to be the fastest car that sports the K10B engine.

The AMT equipped car seems to lose less than a second in the dash to the ton, which is welcome. The claimed ARAI test figures for fuel efficiency are the same, which is unsurprising as it is a manual transmission that is automated. The AMT seems to do the job for the most part, except for slow and jerky shifts, according to the reviews. I hope this kind of gearbox proves to be reliable and low-maintenance in the long run.

[TSIched'Out]

And there you go. Suzuki has made the same mistake. Not offering Auto box on top end variant. Worse, Automatic variant is not getting even ABS which is a standard on Dzire AT, Ritz AT and A-Star AT. Suzuki might as well consider offering AT box as optional package on Zxi like they are offering ABS and Passenger Air Bag. Anyone listening?

[Sarvodaya]

Another Automatic Car Launch without safety features. Very Nice. So if one wants Automatic Car with basic safety features (ABS, 2 air bags), Brio, New Micra, Ecosport (Pricewise). Of all the three the New Micra seems to be the VFM among Automatic Cars with safety features.

[Rahul Rao]

Years ago some thing called sequential shift gearbox was developed, but DSG which came a bit later eclipsed it. VOLVO i-shift in buses is something similar, a automatically shifting regular gearbox where you do notice a fraction of a seconds drop in torque. I have driven a VOLVO with a 12 speed i-shift, and starting on flat surface with a light throttle it usually starts in 4th.
normal upshift pattern sceen on a scanner attached while driving is 4-7-10-11-12. Starting on lite grades is 3-6-9-11-12. 1st is engaged only while starting on heavy grades.

Rahul

[ahmad.007]

I am having a hard time understanding this "AMT". Isn't it the same as driving an automatic car in triptronic mode? What is so different about it?

[Rajeevraj]

I think this strategy makes sense. Typically I have noticed through casual observation that the number of lxi and vxi model far out number zxi on the road. The highest volumes would probably be the vxi. Maruti's aim seems to be to introduce this population to the AT world. Having a zxi amt would probably result in a price tag very close to the likes of Micra, i10 and brio. So customers looking for an AT in this range would probably opt for one of these. Of course it would have done no harm to have an option for the top variant also.

[audioholic]

Originally Posted by ahmad.007

I am having a hard time understanding this "AMT". Isn't it the same as driving an automatic car in triptronic mode? What is so different about it?

The difference is in the gearbox technology. You are getting a normal transmission in automatic mode compared to the torque convertor + Planetary gearbox combo.

And this is a five speed transmission, compared to the four speed offered by hyundai.

[Guna]

Originally Posted by ahmad.007

I am having a hard time understanding this "AMT". Isn't it the same as driving an automatic car in triptronic mode? What is so different about it?

Originally Posted by audioholic

The difference is in the gearbox technology. You are getting a normal transmission in automatic mode compared to the torque convertor + Planetary gearbox combo.

And this is a five speed transmission, compared to the four speed offered by hyundai.

Other possible difference would be, the AMT will not offer the torque build up at low speeds which enhances the drivability of the traditional automatics.

[akshay87kumar]

Originally Posted by Guna

Other possible difference would be, the AMT will not offer the torque build up at low speeds which enhances the drivability of the traditional automatics.

I might be wrong, but isn't drivability in city a function of power and torque curve of the engine, rather than the gearbox being automated or full manual? A tall gear ratio will make a difference, but in this case, it remains the same for both manual and automated manual..

[Guna]

Originally Posted by akshay87kumar

I might be wrong, but isn't drivability in city a function of power and torque curve of the engine, rather than the gearbox being automated or full manual? A tall gear ratio will make a difference, but in this case, it remains the same for both manual and automated manual..

Torque converter which is a kind of a hydraulic coupling present in the traditional automatics, helps in instantly multiplying the torque when situation demands, apart from the torque characteristics (gear ratio) provided by the gearing.

[akshay87kumar]

Originally Posted by Guna

Torque converter which is a kind of a hydraulic coupling present in the traditional automatics, helps in instantly multiplying the torque when situation demands, apart from the torque characteristics (gear ratio) provided by the gearing.

My bad. I thought you were comparing between the manual and automated manual transmissions of celerio. I see, you are talking about traditional automatics vs automated manual. Thanks!

[Pacifica]

Originally Posted by volkman10

Attachment 1195880

Seats seem remarkably thin… is that just an illusion created by the camera angle? They seem thinner than Alto seats.

And it seems the new trend is to eliminate adjustable headrests. Bad.

[pgsagar]

Originally Posted by sandeepmohan

I hope this AMT sees success. We're a country that needs more auto boxes than manuals. Every manufacturer has been slow on this in the <20lac segment. The only reservations about auto boxes, so far, have been poor economy. Once a customer experiences the convenience of an automatic, there is no looking back. Manufacturers with auto box cars should have a little road show to demonstrate whatever automatic vehicles they have. Hyundai has an auto box in nearly every car they sell (Yes; they are relic boxes). Nissan has started advertising quite a bit for their CVT equipped cars. This isn't enough. When a customer walks in to a car show room, you give them a demonstration of an automatic vehicle even if their interest is not in the product at all. It is a different thing altogether on what the customer ends up buying. When I took a colleague to try out the VW GT TSI, more than power, it was the ease of driving that impressed him the most. Power was no longer the primary requirement.

To me, Maruti's EZdrive is their way of marketing automatics. We've had automatics for a long time now. No manufacturer has tried well to sell automatics.

I fully agree. But you will be surprised to know otherwise. When I dropped in at maruti to book my A-Star AT in 2011, I was dissuaded by the salesman. "Automatics no good for our country. Automatics gas-guzzlers etc.etc." he reasoned. Only seeing my resolve did he back out. Imagine his saying this to a fence-sitter. I thought of writing to MUL asking them to educate their salesmen who were scuttling their own products. It takes quite an effort to take that jump for an AT car in India ( everyone generally advises against ). I was in the same boat, too, and bought A-Star AT with lot of apprehensions ( which is why I rooted for the cheapest AT in India so that I do not loose much if I hated it post-purchase. And yes, not to mention the looks of the car which I just adore. ). But now I'm so much sold on ATs that I have decided not to touch a manual again. I don't care if it takes a second slower to the dash and returns a km less ( even that is being taken care of by modern ATs which in some cases are beating manuals ).

The misconception against ATs really piss me off. I mean if someone uses it for some time and then rejects it then that is understandable ( to each his own, as they say ). But I see guys who have never touched an AT in their lives spewing venom against it. I also see lot of elderly retirees and housewives struggling with a,b,c, pedals and stick-shift. Beats me why they do not consider an AT instead. My maternal uncle is one such. Post-retirement when he wanted to buy a car and learn to drive, i suggested him an AT. Any make. Now his US daughter ( of all the people ) calls up and tells him ATs are not good for Indian roads. I don't know whom they hear such stories from.

[audioholic]

Originally Posted by pgsagar

I
The misconception against ATs really piss me off. I mean if someone uses it for some time and then rejects it then that is understandable ( to each his own, as they say ). But I see guys who have never touched an AT in their lives spewing venom against it. I also see lot of elderly retirees and housewives struggling with a,b,c, pedals and stick-shift. Beats me why they do not consider an AT instead. My maternal uncle is one such. Post-retirement when he wanted to buy a car and learn to drive, i suggested him an AT. Any make. Now his US daughter ( of all the people ) calls up and tells him ATs are not good for Indian roads. I don't know whom they hear such stories from.

Unless MSIL does some serious marketing and awareness programme about how this transmission is different, people will still regard it as a conventional automatic, thus leading to not so good sales. Not sure how much awareness it may take to make the product stand out. But definitely some people are curious to know what this is. A person from the dealership told me that they received a lot of enquiries for the product and a few bookings are already made.