Standard Transmissions

[Faye Fox]

Here is an article on your Accord's [lack of a] transmission. link

You don't feel it shift because it doesn't. There is no transmission, just 2 electric motors providing propulsion.

So it isn't a real hybrid, since the gas engine works only to drive a generator. What will be nice is when they get rid of the battery and use the gas engine to drive the generator continuously with a capacitor as the regulator. Locomotives have long used this method.

 

[Jacob Petersheim]

So it isn't a real hybrid, since the gas engine works only to drive a generator. What will be nice is when they get rid of the battery and use the gas engine to drive the generator continuously with a capacitor as the regulator. Locomotives have long used this method.

Actually that system works using the two electric motor-generators as both motors and generators depending on the current more in use, but the gasoline motor can also be clutch-linked to drive the wheels directly under proper cruising conditions. That bypasses the electric motors for higher efficiency within the gasoline motor's optimal range of RPM.

Toyota's clunky planetary gear transmission sorta kinda tries to do the same thing.

I'm not sure what "real hybrid" is meant to designate. Diesel-electric locos have always been considered hybrid combustion-electric drive trains.

In the past 30 years there has been a lot of evolution in the engineering. I suspect this will continue many years yet. There is no single "best" approach. Toyota's has been very stable, but it has weak regen braking and severe scalability and torque limits and is hard on batteries. And when that transmission fails it gets very expensive to replace. It gets excellent mileage out of the fuel the system burns though, which has made it a winner. Just don't try pulling even a little red wagon with a Prius or P Prime (PHEV).

Most "domestic" and South Korean attempts have been a joke.

 

[Tony Nathanson]

Here is an article on your Accord's [lack of a] transmission. link

You don't feel it shift because it doesn't. There is no transmission, just 2 electric motors providing propulsion.

Thanks for the link. That answered questions I had - especially why I don't feel any gears shifting. I didn't think much of those paddle shifters but when I learned how to use them, I don't want any car without them.

 

[John Brunner]

Thanks for the link. That answered questions I had - especially why I don't feel any gears shifting. I didn't think much of those paddle shifters but when I learned how to use them, I don't want any car without them.

I live in a very rural area and have begun to enjoy driving again. For the first time in many decades I would go for a drive on a nice summer evening rather than just sit and watch tv. I had a 1990 Volvo 740 with a floor shift when I moved here and really enjoyed driving it. My CX5 is an automatic, and I often have it in Manual Mode as I navigate these hilly, windy central Virginia roads ("paved goat paths" is how one DJ from the west describes them.) I really miss a standard shift, and have thought of installing aftermarket paddles as a poor substitute.

Regarding your transmission: I had no idea there were so many variations on a theme out there. Beth's 10 speed CV transmission is truly a transmission in the classic sense, it's just that the range between gears is less than 1/2 of a 4 speed tranny, so you don't even feel it. I wonder if there are many transmission shops left. The labor on something that complex might exceed the replacement cost.

 

[Faye Fox]

Actually that system works using the two electric motor-generators as both motors and generators depending on the current more in use, but the gasoline motor can also be clutch-linked to drive the wheels directly under proper cruising conditions. That bypasses the electric motors for higher efficiency within the gasoline motor's optimal range of RPM.

Toyota's clunky planetary gear transmission sorta kinda tries to do the same thing.

I'm not sure what "real hybrid" is meant to designate. Diesel-electric locos have always been considered hybrid combustion-electric drive trains.

In the past 30 years there has been a lot of evolution in the engineering. I suspect this will continue many years yet. There is no single "best" approach. Toyota's has been very stable, but it has weak regen braking and severe scalability and torque limits and is hard on batteries. And when that transmission fails it gets very expensive to replace. It gets excellent mileage out of the fuel the system burns though, which has made it a winner. Just don't try pulling even a little red wagon with a Prius or P Prime (PHEV).

Most "domestic" and South Korean attempts have been a joke.

Wrong! I was referring to a series hybrid. A series hybrid differs from the traditional parallel hybrid.

A series hybrid works a bit differently from a parallel setup. In this case, the gasoline engine never drives the wheels directly—instead, it acts like a generator that produces electricity for the battery, while the electric motors handle all the actual propulsion.

This idea isn’t new; diesel-electric locomotives have used a similar system for decades. In cars, the design works best when the engine runs at its most efficient speed, which is why series hybrids usually carry a larger battery than parallel hybrids, though still smaller than what you’d find in a plug-in hybrid.

 

[Beth Gallagher]

This has nothing to do with anything, but when I got the hybrid CRV it weirded me out that when I started it up I could not "rev" the engine. No matter how much I tapped the accelerator... no revving.

 

[Beth Gallagher]

There are regular hybrids and there are PHEV... plug-in hybrids. I don't know anything about the plug ins because my CRV was a regular hybrid. Different car makers use different hybrid technology.

Also, hybrids have changed a bit since the "originals" back in the early 2000's.

 

[Faye Fox]

This has nothing to do with anything, but when I got the hybrid CRV it weirded me out that when I started it up I could not "rev" the engine. No matter how much I tapped the accelerator... no revving.

This is because the CRV is a parallel system that allows one to connect the gas engine direct once the car is up to a certain speed. Once that speed is achieved, the accelerator controls the gas engine. This allows for higher highway speeds. Starting out or at low speeds the accelerator operates the electric motors only. No revving or gunning the engine allowed. It is an advanced parallel system compared to the old parallel hybrids.

In a series system, the accelerator never controls the gas engine. It speeds up automatically if more electricity is needed by the electric direct drive. The accelerator operates the electric drive motor only.

A series is a hybrid in the sense it has both electric and gas motors, not that either can directly drive the wheels.

 

[Ken Anderson]

My first car was a Chrysler with a push-button transmission. I never could get it to run reliably, so I mostly played with the automatic windows.