Audi and BMW to utilize 8-speed gearboxes to take on Lexus

[vabboud]

let us go back to the primary rule of engineering, it all depends on economies of scale
given enough money engineers can now deliver a 10000 cog gearbox, the smart aspect of the equation is to be able to build a system that can be reproduced in a cost effective manner and that offers some form of a advantage over its precursor, this might be on both ends of the chain, i.e. a producer might change the way it manufacturers good X because it will cost less but the same product will arrive to the store, much like it might redesign this product to make it more competitive vis a vis other similar products. in the first case cost is offset by higher profitability, in the second cost is offset by higher marketing and volume.

when it comes to gearboxes the story is the same, but we must not oversimplify it

let us assume that 5 years ago we could build a 7 speed autobox for $100, today a similar unit costs 80, but at the same time i can build an 8 speeder for 100.
a quick look tells me keep building cheaper 7 speeders, this will increase profit margins, BUT assuming that an 8 speeder will offer a gain of X% in terms of performance and/or consumption, assuming that competition might resort to it, and assuming that marketing a newer gizmo regardless of its real world effectiveness, it will turn out that a costlier 8 speeder will result in more sales

now we come back to the F1, F1 uses sequential seven speeders, and have been for a fairly static amount of time, sequential 7s apparently offer the right mix of durability/weight/performance. in the pinnacle of motorsport the priorities are different, the product is not designed to sell, it is designed to outclass, and with stringent rules and a very complex and compact package, there will be a certain balancing point between performance, consumption and race durability, the complexity of developping an 8 speeder with similar characteristics and weight but with higher performance and lower consumption might still be in the realm of "give me enough money" in F1, especially in the days of ecclestone and mosley

which means that theoretically it might be possible to build a better 8 speeder, but to be able to package it right, make it last several races, be light enough, and still be cost effective is still unattainable right now. if it costs $100000 to build a good F1 8 speeder, and yet $10000 to build the 7 speeder, teams will prefer to spend the extra 90000 on aerodynamics and engine, when the gap narrows to say 10000, you can expect a team to do it, which will push all of them to follow

[bum-man]

How about a performance car like the Veyron then? A car who's soul purpose to out accelerate and break the top speed record. Certainly it was not limited to the amount of engineering or amount of money it takes to engineer it, and yet all it's got is a lowly 7 gears...

[Sunny]

Originally Posted by bum-man

In case you didn't know F1 cars are already engineered under the weight limit and use ballast across the chassis to bring it back up to standard. So weight is hardly a concern.

Yeah, and may be having an extra cog doesn't out weigh the advantage of having extra ballast in a race car. You know there is a difference between adding 10lbs for an extra gear to a 4000lb luxury car and adding the same to a 1200lb race car.

Originally Posted by bum-man

And didn't they just recently bring the constraints of the engine from a 3.0 V10 to a 2.4 V8? That was a prime time to use a 8 speed 9 speed according to you...

When did I ever say that?

Anyway I have added all I have to this discussion.