Dual Clutch Gearboxes: For More Than Just Sports Cars

In perhaps the single largest argument for the trickle-down effect, Mitsubishi has just debuted their new six-speed, dual clutch transmission destined for duty in their Fuso line of heavy trucks. The M038S6 "Duonic transmission" has six forward gears and of course, a reverse gear. Featuring a non-wearing wet clutch, the gearbox lowers maintenance costs by eliminating the need to replace worn clutch discs; a boon on the commercial market. Furthermore, a creep function has been added to the wet clutch, as is usual for automatic transmission with a torque converter. This enables the vehicle's speed to be easily controlled when moving slowly , as most commercial trucks are forced to do for hours on end.

The first of such an application, the Duonic gearbox will most assuredly not be the last. Although plenty of commercial trucks may remain saddled with their burly manual gearboxes for years to come, the advent of the dual clutch system in commercial applications comes as no surprise to those familiar with the fuel and maintenance costs of a commercial fleet.