Car companies may love DCTs, but double clutch transmissions also have disadvantages

Automatic transmissions with double clutch have exploded in popularity in the last two decades. They are used in all types of performance, from the Volkswagen GTI and Hyundai Elantra N to the BMW M2 and McLaren 720S. But double clutch transmissions have also found houses in normal cars. Hyundai and Kia are large users of transmissions with double clutch in models such as the Kia Seltos Crossover and the N-Line versions of the Hyundai Sonata and Elantra.

Automakers use double clutch transmissions for good reasons. Compared to a normal automatically, a double clutch has more than a few advantages, mainly increased gear, faster gear changes and better fuel consumption. However, it took a while before car manufacturers warmed up for the idea of ​​the double clutch. The transmission with double clutch was invented more than 80 years ago by the French engineer Adolphe Kegresse, and it would only be in the early 1920s that the double coupling would start with traction with car manufacturers.

Volkswagen was one of the first car manufacturers to market a double clutch transmission with the Mark 4 Golf R32. This was followed by other performance models in the late ’00s such as the R35 Nissan GT-R, Bugatti Veyron and Mitsubishi Evolution X. Despite this use in powerful vehicles and the obvious performance benefits, transmissions with dual clutch also have a few disadvantages.

You can see how complicated transmissions with double clutch are only of the name. In a conventional manual transmission, a driver serves the clutch pedal to change gear. When they are pressed, the clutch pedal connects the gearbox engine and causes a short power outlet while the driver selects the next gear with the shifter. When this happens, a tooth collar moves from one gear wheel to the next gear wheel, which is another size. To prevent the gears from sharpening, synchronizations correspond to the gears up. Once the clutch pedal has been released and the change in gear is completed, the motor is reconnected with the driver’s axis and the power of the engine is sent to the wheels.

A double clutch transmission basically does that everything automatically without a clutch pedal, but it is much more complicated. As the name suggests, there are two couplings: one coupling controls the odd gears while the other controls even numbered. Assisted by a set of electronics and hydraulics, the gears can change as an automatic transmission, but without the interruption of the power that happens in a normal manual transmission. Things become more complicated when you take into account things such as wet transmissions with double clutch, which cover parts of the inner effect of the transmission in lubrication to reduce heat and friction. So there is more to go wrong, and more money from your pocket if something needs to be solved or replaced. Ford owners know this firsthand thanks to the nightmare that the Powershift transmission was reported to get repair bills of a few thousand dollars to replace the coupling.

DCTs are usually not independent options in themselves, except for a few exceptions. The F87 BMW M2 offered buyers the choice of a standard six -speed gearbox or an optional seven -speed gearbox with double clutch. However, it was not cheap and cost $ 2,900. Other car manufacturers only take into account the price of the transmission with the total costs of the car, but it will still be a little more than cars that do not come to the transmission. Take the Hyundai Elantra n-line, for example. This Honda Civic Si competitor comes with a TurboTadermotor with 201 hp and a wet transmission with seven gears with double clutch. Although it is positioned as one of the top-of-the-line Elantra Limited, the Elantra N-Line is the most expensive trim in the line-up. There is a price difference of $ 2,200 between the N-Line and Limited; That difference grows up to $ 3,150 if you compare the N-line with the Elantra SEL-ease.

One of the biggest disadvantages of a DCT is the smoothness of the gearboxes. You can shift the lightning in your heart all day, especially if you really like the performance consumption of the car. As soon as things weaken and become normal again, it can feel like you are kicked in the back by services. Some people may even think that something is wrong with their car. Others can experience more shocks when the car is cold. However, it is not worried to worry, because this is just a normal part of the DCT operation and a disadvantage of those fast shifts. At higher speeds, the computer can expect that you need that next gear as quickly as possible, but low speeds can stumble the computer up, causing a delay and shock because it cannot anticipate which equipment you need afterwards.

Even with these disadvantages, DCTs are still fantastic transmissions. And unless you drive something that the manufacturer just did not get straight from the gate, this should not scare this off in order to own one. Just like any other part of a vehicle, treat it well and service regularly and you should not experience any problems.