[IMadeYouReadThis]

the king is dead all hail the king. But seriously if this is what keeps manual alive until I'm not I'm all for it sure as hell beats an Auto

[CCS71]

WOW!!!
I'm intrigued. A little disappointed that the article did not mention a projected year that GM hopes to start using this. Is this a pending patent or is it a done deal?

[NW-99SS]

Originally Posted by 97cavy22

Maybe I’m old fashioned but I’d prefer a true manual like every car I’ve owned. Then again if this type of setup is what will keep a manual alive than it’s better than no clutch pedal.

[FH212]

Originally Posted by CamaroFred

What fun would that be? How are you going to rev it up and pop the clutch. Or ride the clutch to keep the revs up as you hunt for traction? Where would your 4th to 2nd shift go? Could you start in 3rd just to mess with the ricer next to you?
Damn, the clutch is 2/3 the fun of a stick shift.
You aren't tied to a stall speed, every time you let out the clutch the driver determines the stall.

A manual driver shifts how he wants, when he wants. Smooth when mom is in the car, smack it and drop the clutch when dad wants to chirp the tires.

Recently I drove my mom into the city. We were in the car for ~30 minutes of stop and go. When stopped first in line at a red someone pulled up on my right in the bus lane, hoping to beat me off the line. I wasted him and my mom smiled and said, "Oh, you have a manual transmission." It made me proud that she hadn't noticed sooner.

And the point of this story is that with a manual every time you start, shift, stop, it is up to the driver to determine the driving characteristics. Not some computer programmed by a corporation. It is freedom.

BTW, you all can walk on my lawn, as long as you don't leave any trash.

Love it!

[Grumpy1]

Originally Posted by CamaroFred

What fun would that be? How are you going to rev it up and pop the clutch. Or ride the clutch to keep the revs up as you hunt for traction? Where would your 4th to 2nd shift go? Could you start in 3rd just to mess with the ricer next to you?
Damn, the clutch is 2/3 the fun of a stick shift.
You aren't tied to a stall speed, every time you let out the clutch the driver determines the stall.

A manual driver shifts how he wants, when he wants. Smooth when mom is in the car, smack it and drop the clutch when dad wants to chirp the tires.

Recently I drove my mom into the city. We were in the car for ~30 minutes of stop and go. When stopped first in line at a red someone pulled up on my right in the bus lane, hoping to beat me off the line. I wasted him and my mom smiled and said, "Oh, you have a manual transmission." It made me proud that she hadn't noticed sooner.

And the point of this story is that with a manual every time you start, shift, stop, it is up to the driver to determine the driving characteristics. Not some computer programmed by a corporation. It is freedom.

BTW, you all can walk on my lawn, as long as you don't leave any trash.

GM read this response......

[Frankie18SS]

Originally Posted by motorhead

How about a compromise? We keep the third pedal and have a min of three modes. Full manual(this allows for everything in your reply), semimanual(allows for manual shifting without the clutch including from a stop), then full automatic.

Wouldn't that be cool?

That's exactly what I could see happening! A lot of people still want options and this system could be very flexible.

[Need4Camaro]

honestly I've been expecting this, regardless how cool manuals are to drive we have to accept the reality, only a handful of people in comparison to the entire populous in the USA actually drive them / commute with them today. Manual's just don't have enough demand and in the long run are beginning to just add to the cost of production rather than profit. GM is looking for ways to save money. In the eye of corporate America, this is a VERY lenient response to a dying trend.

[ctrlz]

This an electrically controlled clutch system. Nothing here about automatic shifting of the transmission.
So you still have the advantages of the manual transmission such as lower weight, lower overall cost, and no power loss due to slip in the torque converter.
You gain a bit of convenience in implementation as there is no need for full mechanical or hydraulic linkage mechanisms.
You can potentially activate by hand, finger, or foot.
You can tailor engagement so it is on/off (with engagement rate controlled by computer) or modulated by the driver (like throttle by wire).
You can build in algorithms which compensate for clutch wear, so the "feel" does not change over time.

[torqueaddict]

Originally Posted by ctrlz

This an electrically controlled clutch system. Nothing here about automatic shifting of the transmission.
So you still have the advantages of the manual transmission such as lower weight, lower overall cost, and no power loss due to slip in the torque converter.
You gain a bit of convenience in implementation as there is no need for full mechanical or hydraulic linkage mechanisms.
You can potentially activate by hand, finger, or foot.
You can tailor engagement so it is on/off (with engagement rate controlled by computer) or modulated by the driver (like throttle by wire).
You can build in algorithms which compensate for clutch wear, so the "feel" does not change over time.

This would be a nice feature as well as being able to control the location of the bite point. Also, with the motor technology out there now, mimicking the traditional clutch pedal feel should not pose a big challenge.

[ctrlz]

Originally Posted by torqueaddict

This would be a nice feature as well as being able to control the location of the bite point.

there are designs out there already which can locate and track the bite point. Interesting stuff.
https://patents.google.com/patent/US9416874