[wild child]

People !

What a timing for this thread !

As I type this post, my Alto is being fitted with an AMT system. Fine tuning will happen at day break.

Keep a watch out at this space for a detailed review of the AMT Alto !



Mods: If this is not the right place for this post, please move it accordingly.
Thanks

[wild child]

Ha, so this is how an AMT gearbox feels like!!

BEAU-TI-FUL ! (Just like Jim Carrey said in some movie)

I went to the mechanic shed without any expectation on how the new system would feel like.
At around 7 pm, I slipped behind the wheels of my "mutated" alto.
The mechanic gave some detailing on the DOs and DON'Ts of the system and then off we went for our maiden spin.
Boy oh boy, this is the first time I'm driving an AMT car and I landed up pressing the brake every time while changing gears, mistaking it for the clutch pedal ! I am sure that the mechanic would have thought whether I ever knew the basic ABC pedals itself or not !
But I gained control of the alto pretty soon and was able to harness it as I used to earlier, without any issue.
I drove for 50 kms this evening in vehicles infested areas and I'm learning the party trick as and when to change gears!
If magneti marelli's offering for the Celerio is somewhere close to my home made AMT, I am sure MSIL has a winner in its hand!
However, coming to my new found technology, I am compiling a full scale report with photos and videos which would be a feast for our ever hungry "automobilo-vores".
Kindly bear with me for a couple of days.
Cheers

[wild child]

Originally Posted by Rehaan

Can you please mention what brand it is? Also - does it shift gears for you, or only operate the clutch?

Thanks,
R

Hi Rehaan

There is no brand name stamped anywhere nor is it mentioned in the bill. All I was told is that this piece is from Gujarat.
No. The shifter is still 100% manual. The clutch is only automated. The clutch pedal is still retained. Only the actuation portion is mechanised.
The existing gear knob is replaced with a customized one with a small red button on the side facing the driver. This button when pressed actuates a motor (placed beneath the driver seat) which applies the clutch pedal. When the button is released, the motor releases the clutch pedal.
In short, the small red button replaces your action of applying and releasing the clutch pedal.

[Rehaan]

Originally Posted by wild child

No. The shifter is still 100% manual. The clutch is only automated. The clutch pedal is still retained. Only the actuation portion is mechanised.

Okay, so what you have is NOT an AMT (since the gears are not shifted on their own).

It's just a electrically operated clutch. Something more like this : http://www.team-bhp.com/forum/techni...ml#post3239891

Here's another question : If you're in first gear driving along, and you press ONLY the brake and come to a complete stop, will:
a) The car automatically press the clutch
b) The car [will] stall


cya
R

[honeybee]

Originally Posted by Rehaan

Here's another question : If you're in first gear driving along, and you press ONLY the brake and come to a complete stop, will:
a) The car automatically press the clutch
b) The car [will] stall

In this case the car should stall since there's no intelligent mechanism to detect the car has stopped and engage the clutch.

This is the same system the Maruti dealera offered as after market fitment years ago. I think it was also reviewed by another member here.

Must say even if it's not automatic it will still be good enough to appeal to the manual transmission drivers, specially if it can be fitted as after market.

[Mpower]

WildChild, This is very interesting product and I recall seeing ads for it in magazines like ACI, OD as far back as 10 years ago. Would love to see pics and a drive report (and cost info?)

I have created a new thread since this is more of an auto-clutch rather than an auto transmission.

[wild child]

Originally Posted by Rehaan

Here's another question : If you're in first gear driving along, and you press ONLY the brake and come to a complete stop, will:
a) The car automatically press the clutch
b) The car [will] stall

Hi Rehaan

I will first try to list down the driving procedure with this system installed.

1. Before cranking the vehicle, turn ON the toggle switch (this switch is porovided to toggle between auto and manual clutch). The clutch pedal automatically gets actuated and stays at a preset home position ( something similar to a CNC machine's tool holder motion when the machine is first switched on)

2. Apply the brake and fire up the engine. During this, the vehicle may be in neutral or slotted in first gear, it does not matter.

3. If the car was already in first gear, all you have to now do is lift your foot off the brake pedal and the car starts to creep forward. Then press the accelerator as per requirement.

4. In point no.2, if the car was in neutral, all you have to do after cranking the vehicle is to press the little red button and slot her into first gear. Release the button and the car starts creeping forward. then press the accelerator.

5. From this point on, you can shift gears as your driving style and traffic congestion calls for by just pressing the red button during up / downshifting.

6. Now, coming to your point Rehaan, if I were to apply a panic brake while travelling at, say 60 kmph, the vehicle decelerates depending upon the ramp rate and as soon as the speed drops below 20~25kmph, the Gujarati ECU kicks in and "intelligently" applies the clutch thereby preventing the engine from stalling. The engine continues to run what-so-ever be the braking ramp rate.

7. The same driving style applies while reversing the car as well.

8. At any point of time (vehicle in motion or in a stand still) if the driver wishes to exercise his left leg a bit, then he can switch of the system and the clutch pedal becomes 100% manual once again. The clutch assist system gets switched off when the key

9. At this point of the time, I am sure our fellow BHPians will have a doubt!
What will happen if my battery drains out?!
Well guys, to everybody with this nagging question, here's the answer. I disconnected the battery and the pedal came back to manual mode !

@Mpower
I'll try to post pictures and videos by the weekend. Thanks for creating an approprate thread so that our likeminded people can be benefitted out of it.

Cheers

[Guna]

I have few questions:

1. Can this system to installed on any MT cars irrespective of the power/weight etc?
2. In the crawling speed, does the car jerk?
3. Without the clutch, it is not possible to do rev matching. How smooth are the shifts?
4. Does the physical clutch pedal move up/down when the red button on the gear lever is operated?

[fiat_tarun]

I have driven a Logan diesel fitted with this auto clutch in Pune. There is a guy who does this there.

It works exactly like wild child has explained above.

How much did it cost you wid child ? IIRC, the Pune guy was charging around 25 - 30k for this.

Originally Posted by Guna

I have few questions:

1. Can this system to installed on any MT cars irrespective of the power/weight etc?
   ---- Yes, possible on any MT car
2. In the crawling speed, does the car jerk?
   ---- No jerks, it was quite smooth.
3. Without the clutch, it is not possible to do rev matching. How smooth are the shifts?
   ----Don't think of it as no clutch. There is a clutch, but it's activated by a sensor on the gear knob. The physical effort of pressing the clutch is eliminated.
4. Does the physical clutch pedal move up/down when the red button on the gear lever is operated?
   ---- Yes, you can see the clutch move up / down.

[selfdrive]

Sounds interesting. We wait for the pictures of this setup

The most important question. Kitna deti hai?!
Have you noted any changes in mileage?

[girimajiananth]

Really nice to know that the clutch can be automated . Any pictures ? DO post some videos if possible. This is quite interesting .

[ani_meher]

I am curious to know what happens when we require to ride the clutch. In diesel vehicles, the torque in any gear is good enough to speed up the vehicle without any need for accelerator. In fact for bumper to bumper traffic, all we need is to release the clutch a little bit to set the vehicle in motion. How would this setup perform in such condition?

[Rehaan]

I'm posting this link again for those who missed it. This system is made by BOSCH. In functionality it seems almost identical to the unbranded system that wild_child has, except that the standard clutch pedal is replaced by one that is more like an electronic switch : LINK

Watch the video from 3:55 onwards:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=NnDTN18dOts

cya
R

[Live To Jive]

How about posting some photos. Also what was the cost of this system?

[srishiva]

Why cant the manufacturers give a strong assisted clutch in the first place? (electric or hydraulic actuated). What is the purpose of having people suffer knee pain in our slow traffic?
It would not take away the manual control plus no pain.