mcoomer

Just finished reading up on the new Mustang GT500 on Jalopnik and have to say that thing sounds incredible. Love that body style too. Ford is really on a roll with the current Mustangs.

Article mentions that Tremec built a 7 speed DCT for this car, that will handle the 700+ HP it's going to put down. I know folks don't like DCT's for daily driving, and the wife's Audi has one so I do understand some of that, but man oh man...I'd swap the A8 for a good DCT in about half a heartbeat. The A8 is no slouch when you hammer on it, but it can't keep up with the shift speeds of the Audi, and I'm guessing the shifts this Mustang will have. Be interesting to see what the feedback is once that car comes out.

GhostBluZ06

Im pissed...i wanted it to have the 18 GT front lights and rear lights lol. Also not feeling that fugly rear wing

Warp Factor

A DCT can do very well at shifting faster and more reliably than a manual, while still maintaining that "sporty" sound long associated with high-performance cars.

But more and more of the high-power market is being taken over by planetary transmissions with a torque-converter, since they can shift with no interruption in power, and can offer a softer shift, which can do better at maintaining traction at high power levels.

Eventually, the Continuously Variable Transmissions would probably reign supreme, had they not been outlawed in Formula 1 racing because the cars using them were too fast, and because they didn't give the "shifting sounds" that fans liked.

Anyone who thinks they can say what transmission architecture is best, or what will eventually prevail, just hasn't been paying attention.

Toddiesel

I just saw that article today and I was fuming! The SVT Mustang, since its inception in 93, has always come in ONLY a manual and now not only do they offer it in an automatic, but ONLY an auto?? Ford can take a long walk on a short pier.

The article, in case anyone wants to read it - https://www.cnet.com/google-amp/news...oit-auto-show/

RedZ4me

Let's see how the new 'tranny' holds up. 3rd year is the magic number to buy. Ford is still fixing those Focus DCT trannys LOL.

fleming23

Felt the same way about the Z06, but so many owners (the majority in fact, IIRC over 75%) here have autos in their Corvettes. The general population simply does not feel the same. Ironically, had the C7Z only come in manual, much of the negative publicity regarding overheating would have never seen the light of day.

While I very much appreciate my manual, hearing a Porsche Cup car banging through the gears with PDK is really quite a sight/sound. With the right combination, I have no issue with a DCT trans. I think a GT3 is pretty damn close to perfect in that regard. Will be interesting to see if Ford gets it right.

Carnut12

Bill Dearborn

From a performance standpoint the lack of a DCT probably isn't hurting the Corvette that much. Both the LT1 and LT4 have fairly high and flat torque levels from the low end to mid range to mitigate the lack of a DCT. Shifting a DCT takes .2 of a second which is longer than not needing to shift at all when the engine can drive the car through a broad rpm range without losing performance. Where a DCT comes into play is on the downshifts and the C7s rev match has helped mitigate that advantage as well.

Bill

Toddiesel

Oh did the Z06 used to come in only manual? If so, I didn't know that, but that's pretty cool. While I don't think sports/muscle/performance cars should come in autos, I understand not everyone loves yanking a shifter around so it's not the end of the world when a car like ours comes AVAILABLE in auto, but to ONLY come in auto?? That's just a dick move to the purists/enthusiasts/whatever you want to call us.

fleming23

Enter Porsche GT3. It's the way of the future.

Warp Factor

Yup.

Oneslackr

Lol.

I & a few others are looking forward to/hoping that the C8 comes with a proper DCT. I might end up being wrong but since the beginning of the C8 I've thought that GM isn't going to offer a manual in the C8 at all, just a DCT. I can't wait to see what direction GM actually ends up going. If the C8 ends up being DCT only I can certainly live with that.

Toddiesel

I don't see automatic transmissions being "the way of the future". Automatic stuff REPLACING manual stuff should only happen as a convenience. Example: No one wants to manually roll down a window, so 99.999% of all cars come with power windows. TONS of people enjoy manually shifting their gear box. Paddle shifters aren't even close to being the same thing. I sure hope the manual tranny isn't a "thing of the past". I loathe driving an auto. Completely takes away from the driving experience for me. IMO, if you're driving an auto, you're no longer driving, you're commuting.

Toddiesel

I don't have a problem (ok, not MUCH of a problem) with the C8 coming with any kind of auto, DCT, constant variable, ******* magic ju-ju, whatever. I would just have a problem with it not ALSO coming in a manual. They're spending all this money trying to make auto trans better. Well how about investing in making better clutches? Clutches with like 3 inches of engagement instead of like 8. Shift levers that you can rock with just a flick of the wrist instead of a full arm movement. Remember syncromesh? Let's get some clutchless, full throttle upshift capability! A manual could be just a good as an auto with the right R&D and a skilled driver. And i think that's part of why I hate autos. To use a gaming term, you can just faceroll an auto and be fast. It takes a little skill to be fast in a manual.

CaddyRacer

Ford hype up machine will be huge, dealer ADM's even bigger, and performance numbers not released.....just like the GT350. Randy P GT350 Laguna Seca laptimes will not released when he ran the GT350. This will be a limited production car to force Ford dealers to buy more Ford trucks. Ford cured me from buying Ford "performance" cars. Question, why put on super expensive light weight carbon wheels on a 4200lbs car?

Warp Factor

No longer having a manual spark advance/retard lever on the steering column ruins the driving experience too. LOL

Same with no longer having a manual fuel/air mixture control on the steering column or dash.

If a manual transmission is the only thing from the past that you are interested in retaining, you might be a sissy.

Toddiesel

You know what? Removing the horse from that carriage ruined it first!

Come on dude, let's not be obtuse

Warp Factor

Why shouldn't I, since you are?

Oneslackr

Parcival

And they went to cross-plane crank supercharged engine so at least the car won't fall apart this time!

I like the front fascia!

Funny thing is they're carrying B&O sound...like pairing YoYo MA with a Stratacaster!

Hope it makes the used GT350's cheaper too.