8 are 2 too many?

[hmk123]

Read that the next LX will have an 8 speed automatic transmission. It's probably one way to meet CAFE numbers. I noticed when reading tests about cars that already have 8 speeds automatics that the testers are usually not impressed: too much shifting going on and the car never knowing in which gear it wants to be. Hopefully Chrysler can figure out how to make an enjoyable 8 speed transmission...

[eGo]

WoW... 8 huh? I thought 7 was a lot.. I just can't see 8... I already notice in my 5 Speed Auto that below 40mph if you shift it, it doesn't shift into 5th gear.. Would be interesting to see how 3 more gears are incorporated.

eGo

[MattRMagnum]

Sounds like something else stolen from Mercedes. :P Don't some of their cars have an 8 speed, or was that one of Italian manufacturers? I know somebody has an eight speed on the market...

[Sevenernine]

The ME Four Twelve had a seven speed. Granted that wasn't a production car (to my knowledge), but it shows Chrysler has created one before... Er, one close, at least.

[300CBlackBeast]

I hope it is good because my 08 Sebring with 6 speed automatic is just junk. The fricking thing can't figure out which gear to go when you put the pedal to the metal, and no kidding it takes up to 3sec to go to the right one....... just unbelievable, I can't describe how I hate it. Good thing the car is a lease.

[MidnightSXT]

An 8 speed huh? WTF happened to the days of a simple 2 speed powerglide 3 speed th350/c4/c6?

[CT-MSRT]

kinda ridiculous. It would be nice if they used the NAG1 and had a 6th gear that kept the big engines at 1300-1400rpm's on the highway. Kinda like the viper gearing; first 5 gears acceleration and 6th is geared to like 300+ or some crap just for fuel economy.

[Magnum P.I]

I think the mercedes GLK350 comes with a 7 speed, an 8 might be lil' bit too much...

[formerice]

I was looking at a GLK350 yesterday while having my Ram serviced, I think it only gets 1 more mpg than a Jeep GC but it's quite a lot smaller, and kinda fugly. I drove a Tundra with a 6 speed auto that kept shifting up and down, weird. Can't imagine what 8 speeds would feel like if it did the up and down shuffle. Personally, I like to see Chrysler use more aluminum in these cars, hemi block and replace some suspension components with aluminum ones, heck my 05 Ram has aluminum front end parts. A 6th gear would be ok as an overdrive as long as the driver had some manual over ride.

[rander]

So does the SLK55. I raced one of these little bastages recently at the track. Pretty quick. still took him, but dam i could see the car shifting a but load, while we were going down the track.

[ekaz]

Lexus has an 8 speed in the LS line I think

[hmk123]

Yes, the LS got one. And the IS-F has one and Clarkson on TopGear was complaining about it quite a bit... ZF is developing one to lower fuel consumption. The new BMW 760i will have one (I think the one from ZF). I almost hope that for the next SRT8 they will offer less gears than in the 5.7L V8 cars (if they really go to the 8 speeds).

[carchitect]

Do the LS and IS-F have dual clutch transmissions?

Part of me kinda wants to believe that this 8 speed might be a dual clutch, as shown here

http://www.allpar.com/corporate/auto...nsmission.html

it was nixed by Cerberus, but Fiat might have brought it back.

[Charg-um]

If they would just put a damn overdrive on our transmissions, it would be sick !!!
6 speed is perfect, plus that would push our cars near the 200mph mark on the top end....

[FL3JM]

There is nothing wrong with 8 spd as long as it is a dual clutch transmission. Then it is actually two manual gearboxes working together. One has gear 1, 3, 5, 7 and the other has gear 2, 4, 6, 8. Shifting between gears is almost instantaneous, making shifting paddles on the steering wheel allot more interesting and usable.
Its easier to always be in the right rpm range for maximum performance when you have allot of gears, not that the HEMI has any problems with a narrow power curve or anything, but still, its not useless.
If Mercedes uses it in AMG series, then its good stuff!