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Hyundai Genesis sedan to get 8-speed automatic
Hyundai is making a serious run at such stalwart luxury marques as Lexus, Mercedes-Benz and BMW with the Genesis sedan. The Korean automaker is already competing directly with those established players using its current range of engines and transmissions, with the 4.6-liter V8 being mated to the same 6-speed ZF automatic tranny that sees duty in various Bimmers and Jaguars. Sometime around 2010, Hyundai will have a new 8-speed automatic ready for public consumption that being developing in-house, and it will surely see the light of day in the Genesis mated up to Hyundai's latest V8 engine. That development will trump Mercedes by one gear and match the number of ratios offered by Lexus. BMW is expected to rely on a new unit from ZF, its longtime supplier, that should also feature eight forward gears. In the never-ending quest for increased performance and fuel efficiency, plus a bit of one-upmanship, expect more automakers to pair their largest powerplants with an ever-increasing number of cogs.
Gallery: First Drive: 2009 Hyundai Genesis
[Source: Green Car Advisor via AutoblogGreen]
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Reader Comments (Page 1 of 3)
Richard 1:08PM (11/07/2008)
Gears of War 2 is sweet!
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Pokey 1:12PM (11/07/2008)
I couldn't agree more, best game of the year!
Oh, and why the hell would anyone need/want more than 6 gears?
The Luigiian 1:13PM (11/07/2008)
More like Gears of War 2 ³
Or, if that doesn't work, Gears of War 2, cubed.
Torrent 1:38PM (11/07/2008)
It is? really? I want it so bad!
Torrent 1:07PM (11/07/2008)
DAMN!
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MikeW 2:45PM (11/07/2008)
I hope that this transmission trumps the ZF & AW 8 speed autos in ratio spread.
7.35-ish : 1 sounds real nice.
Flashpoint 10:43PM (11/07/2008)
If the GENESIS gets an 8-speed automatic and the price doesn't increase past $45,000, then the Genesis will be the EQUIVALENT of the Lexus LS460, minus a couple electronic gadgets and real wood grain.
For HYUNDAI, THIS IS A BIG THING !
LMBVette 1:11PM (11/07/2008)
Anything over 6 speeds is overkill.
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ElPyroDude 1:40PM (11/07/2008)
Based on what? This isn't a manual with H pattern shifting. This is automatic, and in a luxury 7-Series sized car, that's what nearly everyone wants. If the transmission can increase performance by offering deeper gears and more closely spaced ratios AND decrease fuel consumption by offering higher ratios to cruise I don't see the downside... As long as the programming doesn't have it constantly hunting and searching for the proper ratios all the time
refugee7 2:21PM (11/07/2008)
The only other downsides are increased weight, complexity, and costs but these shouldn't be much of an issue.
Yea, automatics should have more gears, helps much more than it hurts. IMO, anything less than 6 gears should be banned in the USA. That one thing should hopefully get CAFE from riding our asses. Along with people properly inflating their damn tires.
akboss 1:11PM (11/07/2008)
A waste of time and engineering. Get your people to work on stuff that makes sense - this 'my transmission has more gears than yours does' is pure stupidity. 3 and 4 speeds used to do the trick, I make do with 5 just fine in the car I drive now. Do I need a 6th? Not really. Why don't they just go CVT and get 'unlimited' gears? Pretty soon we'll see headlines for 'The new Lexus LS, featuring the 18-speed shiftlogic transmission!'
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tankd0g 10:02PM (11/07/2008)
More gears equals better acceleration and economy. CVT? On a V8? Ya right. Suitable for ride on lawn mowers and go karts maybe, but not a V8.
Joseff 12:04AM (11/08/2008)
The LS600h already does have CVT and 4wd.
MONTE 1:13PM (11/07/2008)
What a worthless pursuit of having the most gears. Put that money and brainpower into making a CVT that doesn't suck and you will be ahead of the game. A CVT tranny doesn't have to be a dog, and if you've ever ridden a snowmobile you would know that for a fact.
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Axis 5:05PM (11/07/2008)
Take a look at Nissan's multitude of cvt transmission problems. I know a few techs who don't want to ever hear the word cvt again.
Ligor 5:38PM (11/07/2008)
@ Axis
I call BS - the CVT in my wifes Murano has not skipped one beat. and she loves it for not having that head jurking associated with a lot of auto tranies.
I say oif CVT had the 50+ years of continuous improvements that automatics have head it would be the most reliable of any type since it has much fewer and less stranious situations. there is no bank an dhit to shift like in automatics and you can't burn th eclutch like in a manual.
tankd0g 10:02PM (11/07/2008)
Snowmobiles have about as much torque as my arse.
XJ 1:23PM (11/07/2008)
Not to bring down the Genesis sedan (far from it, as I own 2 Hyundais myself), but why is this car considered a "success" so far, yet the Pontiac G8 is considered a "sales flop"? Sales show 1,121 Genesis sedans sold vs. 1,087 G8s sold for the month of October. Not that big a difference, and the G8 has been out longer. Was the G8 expected to sell in far greater numbers? Was Hyundai's sales expectations cautiously low? Is the comparison between the two no longer valid?
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Russell 1:31PM (11/07/2008)
Simple, Import infatuation.
Neil 2:45PM (11/07/2008)
It is a success because even in this horrible auto market with no discounts or incentives the Genesis is one of the few cars that sold more vehicles this month than last. Hyundai is actually having trouble getting them to the dealers in time, most of the dealers around here only have 1 or 2 in stock at most and no V8s. Also with a car costing $35-40K you aren't going to have large sales numbers compared to cars in the 20-30K range. The Genesis needs time to lure buyers away from other manufacturers with it's reviews (if you visit the Genesis forum you can see that the majority of Genesis owners have switched from MB, BMW, Infiniti, and Lexus.
It is also a success because unlike the G8 it really is competing with cars in the 50-80K range. The same can't be said for the G8 which while fast and big has never been mentioned as an equal alternative to Luxury cars.
Another reason could be that the G8 is more of a rebranded vehicle than a new model, it is essentially a holden whereas the Genesis is a new model from Hyundai and pretty much the start of a new brand segment for them, much like Lexus did years ago.