Here’s Why We Can Love Automatics – But Not Single-Speeders

In a world where the manual gearbox is dying and the choice of automatic transmission types is growing, there’s just one type we still can’t love
Here’s Why We Can Love Automatics – But Not Single-Speeders

It’s true that automatic gearboxes have technical advantages over manuals. Increases in efficiency and performance are now de rigueur for the technology. The one thing they lack is physical driver engagement – an argument we don’t need to recount, but we do perhaps need to add something about gears themselves.

Where an engine is as overwhelming as a Lamborghini V12, for example, flappy paddles are a good thing. You want both hands on the wheel unless you fancy a visit to the hospital. In ordinary cars, or grand tourers like Lewis Kingston’s automatic Supra, we simply appreciate the speed of shifts, the ease of use and the relaxation that any given modern automatic offers.

Automatic shifts are common in hot hatchbacks
Automatic shifts are common in hot hatchbacks

If you had to choose either automatic or manual gearboxes for the rest of your life, you’d almost certainly have to choose auto because it’s more convenient, more effective more of the time and it could help keep you behind the wheel longer in old age. Choosing manual when you have kids, and all you ever do is sit in traffic taking them to football practice after commuting home in the same jam, is a choice we can relate to… but it’s still bloody-minded.

As such we can love the smoothness and crispness of a good auto. Sit back and everyday traffic becomes much less of a bother. Admittedly the modern era of dual-clutch automatic transmissions still presents problems with clutch wear – they’re effectively cleverly automated manuals, after all – but damn, they’re good at their jobs.

The Alfa Romeo TCT dual-clutch transmission
The Alfa Romeo TCT dual-clutch transmission

They make a car feel relaxed, easy-going and tractable. They make it feel fast, even eager in some cars. They can be frustrating, too, especially when they’re tuned to shift up at the first point physically possible and you end up doing 1200rpm in sixth at 38mph, thus forcing two or three down-shifts when you try to accelerate at all, but overall we can see why people – us included – like and choose them.

So why, then, when smoothness and simplicity are key reasons why we engage with automatics, do we hate single-speed transmissions? They’re even smoother, even simpler, even less fuss and have way less to go wrong, so these are surely the golden geese of gearboxes. But no: they’re horrible things, as cold and scientific as a test tube and as likeable as a mouthful of live ants.

Add gears to an electric hatchback and it takes a leap in enjoyment
Add gears to an electric hatchback and it takes a leap in enjoyment

Found on electric cars, they’re fundamentally boring. It’s a problem only partially remedied by the high torque outputs EVs can muster. Forcing the electric motor to spin faster than it’s fully comfortable with creates a high-pitched and often deeply annoying whine. A higher gear would drop that down to a more sensible pitch.

A single gear also reminds you of the limitations of the car you’re driving. By the time you’re up to 60mph most EVs feel and sound like they’re stretched. They don’t fill you with that sense that there’s much more excitement to come. The thing is, a single-speed transmission robs a car of the phases of speed and dynamic behaviour that a manual or geared automatic offers. Gearing itself constitutes a large part of a car’s character for good or ill.

The 981 Porsche Cayman had an 80mph second gear
The 981 Porsche Cayman had an 80mph second gear

You must have read criticism of the old Porsche Cayman’s weirdly tall second gear, or the first turbo-era Renault Clio 200’s gaping chasm between a short, diesel-esque second cog and a comparatively tall third. On the other hand the ND Mazda MX-5’s ratios are perfect for making it feel light, nimble and quick enough.

Raw acceleration can only entertain for so long. That addictive and instant hit of torque from electric motors only goes so far towards making you like a car, and the missing ingredient is the humble multi-speed transmission. Efficiency and simplicity be damned: if manufacturers want us to desire their electric cars, a proper gearbox would pay dividends.

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Comments

Zubayer Rezoan

Reminds me of an old meme from Formula E . . . .

12/30/2018 - 09:30 |
122 | 0
Anonymous

I could not dissagree more with everything you said. Single gear drivetrain is the best thing ever. At slow speeds its almost dead quiet, and at high speeds the whine gets lost in road/wind noise.

12/30/2018 - 10:41 |
24 | 4
Anonymous

In reply to by Anonymous (not verified)

Maybe the best thing ever for someone who wants a quiet car

12/30/2018 - 16:12 |
2 | 0
DeLeon

Seems like an article from the average electric car hater. You’re talking about electric cars in a time where there aren’t even 10 actual EVs built on an EV platform. Please, really, please wait until we’ve got the Taycan, the ID/Neo, some more actual EV sports cars before you judge. The topic of emotions hasn’t even been thought about by now. Most of the EVs at the moment are just swapped ICE cars.
Also you’re talking about an ‘annoying whine’ when small gas engines produce an annoying sound every single time you accelerate (not talking about sports cars here). Maybe rethink the whole thing again.

12/30/2018 - 10:47 |
30 | 12
Tomislav Celić

In reply to by DeLeon

Clarkson is one of the biggest EV haters, yet he said he completely enjoyed the Rimac Concept_One. There is that. All the proff you need.

Also Porsche is working with Rimac on the Taycan. I don’t see how Taycan will be anything but success.

12/30/2018 - 13:22 |
4 | 2
Anonymous

In reply to by DeLeon

I don’t know why you’re criticising someone for disliking EV’s. Its not like there have been any good EV’s made yet (although the Taycan may change that).

12/30/2018 - 13:23 |
10 | 4
TheMindGarage

I don’t see what the fuss is. The purpose of a gearbox is to keep the engine in its ideal rev range. If the ideal rev range is wide then a single speed is a good idea. Multi-speed gearboxes and multi-motor torque-vectoring/AWD setups are mutually exclusive since having multiple gearboxes is just plain stupid. I can see why CVTs may be considered strange because revs won’t be proportional to speed, but that argument doesn’t apply to single-speeds.

Perhaps a small FWD EV might benefit from a gearbox. But an AWD one probably doesn’t need it, especially not one that’s geared to reach triple digits.

12/30/2018 - 11:21 |
44 | 0

Rimac uses two gearboxes and they claim that two gears is all an EV needs. They also use them only in the back. In the future a CVT might be a component of a motor, so we will see them on all 4 engines, but until then gearboxes make very little and limited sense

12/30/2018 - 13:24 |
4 | 0
Anonymous

The Regera photo is pure clickbait. I read the whole article expecting to hear about how it feels to drive, only to be disappointed…

12/30/2018 - 11:47 |
30 | 0
Kenji (Oldsmobile Fan) (GoldWing Enthusiast) (wheel nut)

In reply to by Anonymous (not verified)

Exactly!

12/30/2018 - 11:51 |
2 | 0
Tomislav Celić

In reply to by Anonymous (not verified)

Regera has DD which simulates 3 gears

12/30/2018 - 13:25 |
2 | 0
Anonymous

“Save the manual, its more engaging that these fancy modern transmissions”
Nek minnit
“Save the auto, its engaging than these fancy modern transmissions”

People really do love get nostalgic awful quick

12/30/2018 - 13:18 |
16 | 0
Tomislav Celić

“spinning makes an annoying whine*

YOU GUYS LITERALLY HATE EVS FOR NOT MAKING NOISE AND PRAISE THE EP9 FOR IT’S AMAZING SOUND

12/30/2018 - 13:26 |
22 | 2

While jerking off to the sound of straight-cut gears.

12/30/2018 - 14:39 |
10 | 0
Pagz777

This article is backwards as hell, it’s a good thing no one takes anything on this site serious anymore

12/30/2018 - 13:54 |
12 | 0
TheCuttingboard

Another reason why nobody takes CT seriously anymore.

12/30/2018 - 14:08 |
8 | 2
Monty4248

I’ll take my go karts elsewhere

12/30/2018 - 16:38 |
2 | 0