VN Gear Ratios
Cujo
I've heard that you can change the gear ratios on an auto VN commodore,
because its gearbox is electric. Has anyone done this / know how to do
it?
SOmeone told me there were dials under the the central pannel where the
cigarette lighter is, but when we removed that we couldn't see anything.
--------------------------------------------------------------
Caleb Joliffe (C(u)J(o))
Datsun 180B-SSS-DE
E-Mail:- * u95...@student.canberra.edu.au
* cu...@blitzen.canberra.edu.au
Cronulla Sharks Homepage:
http://blitzen.canberra.edu.au/~cujo/home.html
"Don't be afraid to go for what you want, or what you want to
be, but don't be afraid to pay the price." --Lane Frost
--------------------------------------------------------------
Peter McMillan
Cujo <u95...@student.canberra.edu.au> wrote:
>I've heard that you can change the gear ratios on an auto VN commodore,
>because its gearbox is electric. Has anyone done this / know how to do
>it?
>
>SOmeone told me there were dials under the the central pannel where the
>cigarette lighter is, but when we removed that we couldn't see anything.
Hi Caleb,
I think someone is just pulling your leg. Sounds like a bit of a yarn
to me.
Cheers,
Peter.
To email me, change .com in my address to .au
Ben Wilson
Cujo wrote:
>
> I've heard that you can change the gear ratios on an auto VN commodore,
> because its gearbox is electric. Has anyone done this / know how to do
> it?
>
> SOmeone told me there were dials under the the central pannel where the
> cigarette lighter is, but when we removed that we couldn't see anything.
>
Umm, the gearbox is not electric (which is a very strange definition
indeed). It is, however, electronically controlled.
Arnie
Ben Wilson wrote :
>Cujo wrote:
>>
>> I've heard that you can change the gear ratios on an auto VN commodore,
>> because its gearbox is electric. Has anyone done this / know how to do
>> it?
It's got four discrete gear ratios and it's totally mechanical.
>> SOmeone told me there were dials under the the central pannel where the
>> cigarette lighter is, but when we removed that we couldn't see anything.
I have come across things like Smarties(TM), coins, hairclips in there, but so
far, no dials (I've always wondered how stuff like these get there? I can
understand coke/cocaine stains, but solid objects? ;-)
>Umm, the gearbox is not electric (which is a very strange definition
>indeed). It is, however, electronically controlled.
In the VN/VP/VQ, the TH700 auto is controlled hydraulically not electronically.
The torque converter lockup is controlled by the ECU though. VR onwards got the
ECU controlled auto.
Arnie
Ben Wilson
Ooops! Sorry, Arnie is quite right. I forgot that we were talking
about the VN here! The VR was the first Commy with "electronic"
control. Wouldn't say it rates with the sophistication of some of the
Mitsubishi trannies though.
I don't know what you can do to modify the VN auto tranny much though.
The SV3800 had a bit of work done on it to make the changes a bit
sharper and they also might have modified the change up points too. As
to what they ACTUALLY did to it to produce these effects, I don't know.
Maybe Arnie does?
Arnie
Ben Wilson wrote :
[snip]
>I don't know what you can do to modify the VN auto tranny much though.
>The SV3800 had a bit of work done on it to make the changes a bit
>sharper and they also might have modified the change up points too. As
>to what they ACTUALLY did to it to produce these effects, I don't know.
>Maybe Arnie does?
From the short ride I had in an SV3800 once, I don't remember the auto being
significantly different to normal. They may have modified the hydraulic pump &
valves ??? What they actually did I have no idea.
Arnie
Forg
Yeah, HSV have definitely fiddled with the shift points on most (if not
all) of their auto boxes, especially in the earlier ones. It was
generally setting whatever you set in an auto tranny to make the car
change gears more aggressively (they probably superglued the power
switch down...)
--
Forg! -=DUH#6=- (Y1)
"To Err is Human. To Flame is Divine."
Pete!
FROM: Ben Wilson <ben.w...@xxx.mailbox.uq.edu.au>
>Cujo wrote:
>>
>> I've heard that you can change the gear ratios on an auto VN commodore,
>> because its gearbox is electric. Has anyone done this / know how to do
>> it?
>>
>> SOmeone told me there were dials under the the central pannel where the
>> cigarette lighter is, but when we removed that we couldn't see anything.
>>
>Umm, the gearbox is not electric (which is a very strange definition
>indeed). It is, however, electronically controlled.
The VN is a non electronic box - the VRs had the electronic - the VN uses the
ECU to control torque converter lockup only.
BTW I was recently told (by an auto specialist) that these boxes where used by
BMW in mid 90s 5 series.
This Community Service Announcement by
Pete! -=DUH#1=- (FM)
"On the first Day of XMAS my true flame gave to me,
A partrige in Flame tree"
Pete!
FROM: Ben Wilson <ben.w...@xxx.mailbox.uq.edu.au>
>> >Umm, the gearbox is not electric (which is a very strange definition
>> >indeed). It is, however, electronically controlled.
>>
>> In the VN/VP/VQ, the TH700 auto is controlled hydraulically not
electronically.
>> The torque converter lockup is controlled by the ECU though. VR onwards got
the
>> ECU controlled auto.
>>
>> Arnie
>
>Ooops! Sorry, Arnie is quite right. I forgot that we were talking
>about the VN here! The VR was the first Commy with "electronic"
>control. Wouldn't say it rates with the sophistication of some of the
>Mitsubishi trannies though.
The new sport tranny for the Magna is excellent, a little wanky, but still a
nice thing.
>I don't know what you can do to modify the VN auto tranny much though.
>The SV3800 had a bit of work done on it to make the changes a bit
>sharper and they also might have modified the change up points too. As
>to what they ACTUALLY did to it to produce these effects, I don't know.
>Maybe Arnie does?
The SV3800 was essentially stock mechanically, although it claimed a few kW
more - the TH700 is a tough box but unfortunately slushed up by GMH to make
the car more user friendly - a mild shift kit (a power valve out of V8 box)
will give very crisp shifts under power and generally chirps the rears on a
1/2 shift.
The box can't be that bad as BMW used it for a few years in the 5 series.
Richard Fay
Pete! wrote:
>
> BTW I was recently told (by an auto specialist) that these boxes where used by
> BMW in mid 90s 5 series.
>
I thought BMW used ZF gearboxes.
I don't remember GM producing a 5 speed auto. That's what BMW have been
using for a few years now.
Richard
Sean Slater
On 8 Dec 1997 02:48:33 GMT, pete!@duh.com.! (Pete!) wrote:
>The new sport tranny for the Magna is excellent, a little wanky, but still a
>nice thing.
Have you actually driven it? I am interested to know what differance
it is to just holding the car in gear, i.e shifting down into 2nd or
low.
Sean
--
Sean Slater
Melbourne, Australia
ssl...@axis.jeack.com.au
http://www.jeack.com.au/~sslater/
Pete!
FROM: ssl...@axis.jeack.com.au (Sean Slater)
>On 8 Dec 1997 02:48:33 GMT, pete!@duh.com.! (Pete!) wrote:
>>The new sport tranny for the Magna is excellent, a little wanky, but still a
>>nice thing.
>Have you actually driven it? I am interested to know what differance
>it is to just holding the car in gear, i.e shifting down into 2nd or
>low.
Haven't driven it - it looks like fun though - as for the internals, I think
is just like the B&M/Hurst "slam"/ratchet shifters then let you change up or
down one gear at a time - just a fancy set of mechanical gates, I don't think
its a true sequential/tiptronic type box - hence selecting 1st at 130kph just
won't happen.
>Sean
Richard Fay
Pete! wrote:
> Haven't driven it - it looks like fun though - as for the internals, I think
> is just like the B&M/Hurst "slam"/ratchet shifters then let you change up or
> down one gear at a time - just a fancy set of mechanical gates, I don't think
> its a true sequential/tiptronic type box - hence selecting 1st at 130kph just
> won't happen.
>
Mechanical gates ?????
The thing is a electronically controlled auto.
It is a tipronic style shift.
Richard
A. Bayliss
On 9 Dec 1997 03:03:30 GMT, pete!@duh.com.! (Pete!) wrote:
>FROM: ssl...@axis.jeack.com.au (Sean Slater)
>
>>On 8 Dec 1997 02:48:33 GMT, pete!@duh.com.! (Pete!) wrote:
>
>>>The new sport tranny for the Magna is excellent, a little wanky, but still a
>>>nice thing.
>
>>Have you actually driven it? I am interested to know what differance
>>it is to just holding the car in gear, i.e shifting down into 2nd or
>>low.
>
>Haven't driven it - it looks like fun though - as for the internals, I think
>is just like the B&M/Hurst "slam"/ratchet shifters then let you change up or
>down one gear at a time - just a fancy set of mechanical gates, I don't think
>its a true sequential/tiptronic type box - hence selecting 1st at 130kph just
>won't happen.
See in The Age last week that Ford are actually working on a 5 speed
auto with "tiptronic" control.
--------------------------------------------------------------------------
Andrew Bayliss
"SOME FEAR, because if you've got NO FEAR then your not going fast enough"
For email address delete "Anti-Spam" from address.
http://web.access.net.au/~abayliss
Pete!
FROM: Andrew...@access.net.au (A. Bayliss)
>>>The new sport tranny for the Magna is excellent, a little wanky, but still
a
>>>>nice thing.
>>
>>>Have you actually driven it? I am interested to know what differance
>>>it is to just holding the car in gear, i.e shifting down into 2nd or
>>>low.
>>
>>Haven't driven it - it looks like fun though - as for the internals, I think
>>is just like the B&M/Hurst "slam"/ratchet shifters then let you change up or
>>down one gear at a time - just a fancy set of mechanical gates, I don't
think
>>its a true sequential/tiptronic type box - hence selecting 1st at 130kph
just
>>won't happen.
>See in The Age last week that Ford are actually working on a 5 speed
>auto with "tiptronic" control.
It wouldn't be any good since it its not made in japan or europe.......
>--------------------------------------------------------------------------
>Andrew Bayliss
Pete!
FROM: Richard Fay <fa...@ozemail.com.au>
>Pete! wrote:
Thats what the guy told me - he works on 'em, I don't!
>Richard
Pete!
FROM: Richard Fay <fa...@ozemail.com.au>
>Pete! wrote:
>> Haven't driven it - it looks like fun though - as for the internals, I
think
>> is just like the B&M/Hurst "slam"/ratchet shifters then let you change up
or
>> down one gear at a time - just a fancy set of mechanical gates, I don't
think
>> its a true sequential/tiptronic type box - hence selecting 1st at 130kph
just
>> won't happen.
>>
>Mechanical gates ?????
Yep, a Hurst/B&M uses mechanical gates.
>The thing is a electronically controlled auto.
Sure.
>It is a tipronic style shift.
Such that putting the box into 1st at 130 will happen??
AFAIK its still an auto box, just with a fancy shift mechanism.
Out of interest, does it let you take off in 3rd for example?
Richard Fay
Pete! wrote:
>
> >It is a tipronic style shift.
>
> Such that putting the box into 1st at 130 will happen??
>
> AFAIK its still an auto box, just with a fancy shift mechanism.
I thought any gearbox where you didn't have to change gears was an auto.
>
> Out of interest, does it let you take off in 3rd for example?
>
No.
AFAIK the car will not upshift when it reaches redline when in tiptronic
mode. Therefore on acceleration it acts like a manual.
When down shifting it acts like a pre-selector box in that it won't
downshift to the selected gear until the safe. When it is it will
downshift.
AFAIK the car will shift into first when it reaches a stop. When
starting off again it will change back to gear selected asap.
The tiptronic tag was penned by Porsche. That was based on a 4 speed
auto. The current Boxster and 911 use a 5 speed auto.
The version used by BMW and Ferrari are based on a manual gearbox with
hydraulic actuation of a clutch and the gearchange.
Richard