In February, unearth patent filings indicates that Toyota may be working on a manual transmission for tram. It seems pretty far-fetched and as we know, many patented ideas never actually made it to production. However, Toyota – or rather the Lexus luxury performance division – is taking this seriously, as the company confirmed during a conference in Europe.
The system uses a physical gear lever, tachometer and a third pedal. We hesitate to call it the clutch pedal because it’s not actually connected to the clutch. Of course, the EV won’t have a gearbox with actual gears and synchronizers. Everything is simulated through software.
Takashi Watanabe, chief engineer for Lexus Electrified, describes it as a “simulated powertrain force map with pedal and gearshift positions to recreate the feel of a manual transmission.” However, it is so realistic that the driver even faces the possibility of the car stalling or rolling backwards when starting uphill. And since the system is adjusted by 1s and 0s, each driver can choose his or her preferred “number” without having to swap gears of different ratios.
“This new project started with some Lexus engineers thinking about what they like about the tradition [internal combustion] means and what they missed with Electric Car“Wannabe said.”[The] manual transmission is something they particularly like.”
Ironically, Watanabe revealed this technology in front of him Lexus electrified sport conceptcar rumor to become the successor to the electric Lexus LFA. In fact, the gearbox was installed on the Lexus UX300e for testing. In a short video (we can’t embed it, so click here and reaches the 13:27 mark in “Lexus Deep Dive”), the prototype weaves its way through a parking lot complete with simulated engine revs.
Watanabe says the prototype is “very exciting so the project is currently in serious development and it could actually be on future BEVs.” Indeed, when the driver shifts gears, the handheld camera even jerks a bit, confirming that it behaves like an ICE car with a stick shifter.
It certainly looks a bit more alive than the CVT-equipped UX, raising the question of what it would look like in a real version. sport car like Electrified Sport. Fortunately, Watanabe has had some positive news about the sleek concept that is said to be able to accelerate from 0 to 100 km/h in around 2 seconds. “I can’t tell you when we’ll launch a production car based on the Electrified Sport. But I can confirm that we’re working on it.” He also confirmed that the manual transmission along with all-wheel drive, wire steering and wire braking were all developed for the production version. “This is not just a design concept. It’s meant to come true.”
