| The shiftless motorcycle |
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| Tuesday, 25 October 2005 | |
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The automatic transmision has been with us in the automotive world for over 50 years now yet the motorcyle industry seemingly has passed this technology by. Most scooters have had constantly variable belt drive systems for 30 plus years. Honda and Suzuki had an automatic of sorts in the early 80s that consisted of an automotive type torque converter coupled to a two speed transmision but it lacked in almost every area. Very slow with its limited gear ratios and very inefecient with the lack of a lock up on the fluid torque converter. The torque senseing variable belt drive as developed by the snowmobile industry has more recently been adopted by the ATV makers as a popular option on four wheeled ATVs . The ever increasing size and power of these machines has pinpointed flaws in the durability of these systems for vehicles expected to operate a lot of miles and under constant load such as a long range crising motorcycle. Enter the latest phase of development. The Honda HMT (hydraulic mechanical transmission) being offered on Hondas Rubicon series of four wheelers. Read on for an exerpt from the Honda web site .... The HMT (hydraulic mechanical transmission) was born from the research and development of high performance automatic transmission for motorcycles. Honda has continued the research and development of the infinitely variable transmission HMT that fills the requirements such as durability, responsiveness, compactness, etc. for application to large motorcycles. Coupled with the electronic control system, the infinitely variable automatic transmission “Hondamatic” has been realized. As for the first practical application, Hondamatic has been applied to the ATV in the North American market, where the working conditions are severest. The research and development of HMT is still going on to make the system suitable for motorcycles The “Hondamatic” consists of the piston-type hydraulic pump driven by the engine power (torque and revolutions) and the piston-type hydraulic motor located in the opposite side on the same axis. It is a hydraulic mechanical, infinitely variable transmission (HMT) using the coaxial layout, with the output shaft taking out the power from both “the hydraulic power transmission in that the torque from the produced hydraulic pressure is increased in the motor side” and “the mechanical transmission from the direct spinning drive from the pump”. Honda applied an electronic control system to the HMT developed over a long period of time, and thus realized the compact, infinitely variable automatic transmission. The “Hondamatic” features high performance under various working conditions through the precise control of the reduction ratio depending on the running conditions, in addition to the inherent high transmission efficiency of HMT. For a blow up of the Hondamatic go to http://world.honda.com/motorcycle-technology/hondamatic/image1.html So in conclusion I have to say the wonders of a modern constantly variable automatic transmision are coming to a HONDA shop near you most likely on the GOLDWING first but my bet is soon!! Related Articles:SGI provides rebate and applies to reduce ratesNitrogen in your tires: an inflated idea? How-To: Clean Up Motorcycle Brake Calipers Get Your Motor Running Exhaust Sampling Tool The BIG Spring checklist Test rides calm fears of Boss Hoss |
