WABCO Holdings Inc has introduced OptiDrive as the brand name for the company's new modular automated manual transmission system.
This new system's high degree of modularity significantly reduces the development time required for application to transmission and vehicle platforms, enabling faster time to market for manufacturers of trucks, buses, and transmissions. The OptiDrive system can also be easily adapted to an existing manual transmission without changing it.
Depending on the driver's preference, OptiDrive can change gears in full automatic mode or as initiated by the driver. By optimizing the gear shifting process, this new system improves vehicle control and enhances comfort. It also significantly contributes to lower average fuel consumption by shifting at the most effective speed, a major cost saving over a vehicle's lifetime.
China National Heavy Truck Corporation (CNHTC) began equipping its new flagship truck series with WABCO's OptiDrive system in December 2008. The largest producer of heavy-duty trucks in China, CNHTC is the world's first original equipment manufacturer to adopt the OptiDrive system in volume production.
Access www.wabco-auto.com for more details.