Jeff Johnson Interview - Autoline After Hours #347 - 9/16/16

[wizard of ahs]

It's a good thing the Elio engine is so so torquey. I really don't like the idea of cruise control if I have to downshift all the time to keep the car at speed on a hilly chunk of interstate.And if I lived in Seattle or Pittsburgh, a standard tranny would be OUT for me -- my old knees couldn't take it.

So, assuming many, many of us SIL folks know how to drive a standard, even like driving standard shifts, the fact is -- we're far older than the general population (most of whom have no clue about the fun of winding the gears through mountains), and sanity says to us AMT!

Thing is, I almost got run over by a semi that was still a whole half mile down the road at the moment I pulled out for the test drive in the AT geo. I was ready to get out and run beside the vehicle and push! I DO NOT want to ever experience THAT again. Let's see if I can describe it a little better. It's like taking a 90cc scooter and trying to pass on the interstate compared to doing the same on a 883 sportster. THAT's how much difference there was. There wasn't anything wrong with the engine in the Geo I test drove, but coupled to that AT, it was a piece of Shhhhhht. I'd rather be able to have full control of my RPMs and shifting and be able to get out of the way with the Elio's slightly underpowered motor when needed for safety's sake. I want to be able to bring all of that available torque to bear at one time instead of having the tranny try to decide if we're in an emergency situation or not.

There have even been situations where I would have been happier having a standard in my Mustang V6 instead of the slight lag time of the Automatic.

As far as my knees, I can always slip it into neutral in stop-n-go traffic... and constant hills are far from the norm in most areas of the continent.

I get what you're saying. One my chevy service vans had an 80lb. clutch in it. I was almost happy when one of my employees hit a deer with it and cracked the frame. But the Elio's standard Tranny's clutch should be no-where near that. My Geo standard's clutches took almost no effort to push to the floor.

The AMT will accelerate just fine...
Hence....PADDLE SHIFTERS !
wind out them gears

 

[floydv]

The AMT will accelerate just fine...
Hence....PADDLE SHIFTERS !
wind out them gears

If the smart can have paddle shifters, so can the Elio! At least offer it as an option with the AMT.

 

[CrimsonEclipse]

Although the Geo Metro is commonly compared to the Elio, it really doesn't apply here.
It had a 3 speed automatic that was obsolete even then. It was also a conventional automatic with torque converter.

The Elio will have a Automatic Manual transmission option of the 5 speed manual, no torque converter.

There is no comparison to the old Geo Metro.

 

[wizard of ahs]

I w

If the smart can have paddle shifters, so can the Elio! At least offer it as an option with the AMT.

I was told at the Greenwood show that the steering wheel was from the Dodge viper and comes "standard" with paddle shifters !

 

[Coss]

Although the Geo Metro is commonly compared to the Elio, it really doesn't apply here.
It had a 3 speed automatic that was obsolete even then. It was also a conventional automatic with torque converter.
The Elio will have a Automatic Manual transmission option of the 5 speed manual, no torque converter.
There is no comparison to the old Geo Metro.

They use that comparison because the early prototypes (P2, P3 and P4) used the Geo Metro driveline.

 

[WilliamH]

The AMT will accelerate just fine...
Hence....PADDLE SHIFTERS !
wind out them gears

If the smart can have paddle shifters, so can the Elio! At least offer it as an option with the AMT.

---> http://www.digitaltrends.com/car-reviews/2016-smart-fortwo-review/ <---

Takes a different transmission. Dual clutch 6 speed.
From the article above............
"...At any trim level, the dual-clutch transmission will cost you an extra $990. Top trim levels get you a set of paddle shifters with the dual-clutch, but I don’t think they’re necessary."...

Hmmm! Elio does not have, nor offer a dual clutch six speed transmission.

 

[Jim H]

No mention of the 100 completed vehicles before New Years. Hmmm
He was very careful to give only specs for the manual trans. Maybe the automatic part was computer controlling of a manual transmission.
Maybe he was thinking in that realm.
Looks like we may be driving about this time next year if the money is right.
MK

Let's hope so. Been waiting a long time.

 

[wizard of ahs]

---> http://www.digitaltrends.com/car-reviews/2016-smart-fortwo-review/ <---

Takes a different transmission. Dual clutch 6 speed.
From the article above............
"...At any trim level, the dual-clutch transmission will cost you an extra $990. Top trim levels get you a set of paddle shifters with the dual-clutch, but I don’t think they’re necessary."...

Hmmm! Elio does not have, nor offer a dual clutch six speed transmission.

smart is a single clutch 5 speed ... paddle shifters work just fine... surprisingly actually☺

 

[floydv]

smart is a single clutch 5 speed ... paddle shifters work just fine... surprisingly actually☺

Just think how fast the Elio will be with paddle shifter, left side gas filler, and yellow paint!

 

[CrimsonEclipse]

They use that comparison because the early prototypes (P2, P3 and P4) used the Geo Metro driveline.

But the Metro automatic transmission certainly doesn't apply.