More Automatic Gearboxes for Vans

Update: Just to prove that I’m not making up stories about the growing popularity of automated manual transmission, here’s a link to a recent article from the RoadTransport.com website.

Iveco are reporting steady growth in sales of ‘two-pedal’ vans – those with automatic transmission. I must confess to feeling especially smug that Iveco’s UK marketing director Andrea Bucci shares my expectation that automatic gearboxes will become the norm in 10 years.

I recently mentioned that the new Citroen Nemo / Peugeot Bipper van will come with the option of automated manual transmission (AMT). This is basically a manual gearbox that operates automatically – just stick it in drive and go.

AMT is fast becoming the standard choice in larger commercial vehicles and combines most of the benefits of manual and traditional automatic gearboxes without really having any of their weaknesses.

Such is its rapid growth in popularity that eager not to be left behind, Vauxhall have now announced that they are making an AMT gearbox available on the Vauxhall Combo and Vauxhall Vivaro vans – two of their biggest sellers.

You can see more details here, but I have little doubt that this will become the standard technology in pretty much all vehicles over the next 5-10 years (including cars)

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