| Re: Saturday Chat 04.14.12 |
Subject: Re: Saturday Chat 04.14.12 by BillH on 2012/4/14 22:21:38 Quote:
Actually at one point in time they were full automatics (not sure when they changed back, I don't get deeply involved in any of the pro series anymore). They may have changed back because the fans bitched, I know it pissed me off. Anyway, Ferrari changed to the semi-auto in 1988, it took some years for all the teams to make the change over. No clutch, yea but clutchless shifting has been in racecars since the late 1960's. These transmissions (like the one in my car) use dog rings instead of synchronizers. I only use the clutch in my 1977 Ford to pull out of the pits. One of the "resaons" for the F1's paddle shifters is to keep the drivers hands on the wheel for control at F1 speeds and at 19,000 rpm it's safer to have the computer shift the motor. Note: the "clutch" isn't a pedal, there are usually 4 paddles on the wheel, 2 for left or right hand declutch with a button on the wheel that sets the parameters for launch control. Now, if you want to see a really amazing transmission, look at the Bugatti Vyron trans. It has 2 input shafts and 2 clotches. As this trans gets ready to shift, one clutch is engaged in say, 3rd and the trans is already in 4th on the other gearset with the it's clutch disengaged. So when the shift is made, the electronics just swap clutches, the gear change takes a couple miliseconds - cool Huh?  |
