i've been thinking about this for quite awhile now and was wondering if anybody out there knows what i'm talking about

on dirtbikes and motorcycles they make an "automatic" clutch that engages at a certain rpm. it just replaces the stock pressure plate. the normal clutch lever and stuff can still be used, but you can idle while in gear and it makes hill climbs alot easier. heres an example

http://shop.thumpertalk.com/product_...use_zstart.htm

now heres the reason i posted this... I WANT THIS ON MY CAR!!! i live in southern california and traffic is a biatch, and to tell you the truth i'm getting lazy.

anybody know of anything like this? i've been looking around and can't find any info. maybe i just don't know what its called. i think jeep may have installed this on some of their trucks. i don't know

 

Never heard of them for cars, If you really don't want to shift sell the manual and get an auto. I wouldn't think that would be as dependable as a normal clutch, plus on dirt bikes a pressure plate isn't handling alot of torque or strain from pushing around a heavy truck.

 

They're called centrifugal clutches and they were used on cars back in the beginning, up until 1930 or so. Don't know if they could handle the torque of a modern motor.

 

my dads old (80's)honda had something like that, just like pushing the auto lever between 1-2-3-4.
required a manual downshift too, no clutch at all

 

My dad's Audi TT has an automatic manual transmission. You can shift manually with the shifter and the clutch automatically disengages/engages for shifting, or you can go with fully automatic shifting. It is a little rough in the lower gears and I would think the control for low speed wheeling would not be all that good.

For heavy traffic, I find low range makes a big difference. Also, learn how to shift without the clutch and you can save some wear and tear that way.

 

My parents had an automatic manual transmission in their 1969 Volkswagen beetle. You could shift the stick from 1st to 3rd (don't remember a 4th gear) without a clutch pedal.

 

are any of these do-able on a 4runner?

 

If you get the rpm's at the right at the right amount you can shift without the clutch.

My mech told me it wears the syncros out though, I would rather do a clutch then a tranny rebuild

 

The audi has a dsg (direct shift gearbox). Basically its two sets of gears each set having there own clutch pack. 1-3-5 has a clutch pack, and 2-4-6 has a clutch pack. The shifting is so quick because a different clutch is handling the next gear. The computer controls when the gears switch and so while one set is disengaging the other is engaging. They don't use torque converters so no power loss that way. Basically super smart computer controlled manual transmission, ie expensive

 

I only shifted w/o the clutch when I broke my leg. For six weeks I drove a F*in stick with a broke leg. Only had to clutch it to take off. I rented a car to learn how to drive a stick, and how to shift w/o clutch.

Personally, I'd like to see this kind of setup. Slush-o-matic minus the slush. So I guess I could call this one an automatic.

 

thats amazing.