What’s the difference between a 6 and 10 speed ?

I've seen Allison Automatic 6 speeds in Freightliner Cascadias.

 

6 Speed on a 18 wheeler? That's gotta be one of the most backwards things I've seen this year.

What do drivers think of them?

 

Depends on the engine and gearing. I drove an older FL112 extended cab that pulled like a champ, I swear you could take that thing racing. I don't remember what engine it had though. The Cascadia I drove was so, so. It definitely would have benefited from a few more gears. My biggest complaint about the Allison 6 speeds is they shift like an automatic, whereas the new 12spd autos shift like automated manuals.

 

A man I new who is now passed, he had a 6 speed day cab. He used to haul his own explosives. But he never left VA.

 

The 6 speed is most likley synchronized, so the the newbies can get the automatic restriction removed without having to double clutch or float the gears .

 

My first job had a 6-speed “flat nose” international it was awful. If you were not first at a red light you were waiting an entire cycle again.

i wanna say it was a 5-spd with a low gear that you had to use every time from a stop.

 

@petefan4000
I had a 6-psd auto on a kenworth best transmission ever. I believe it was an Allison if I came up to say the sky bridge in Tampa I could click 3/6 and the truck would maintain 3rd gear until I manually told it to shift up. I never had to use the brakes. If I saw a yellow in the distance just coast and click 4 gear the truck would slow down and get into 4th and I could then tell it 3-2-1 and wait for it to eventually hit around 5mph and then brake.

 

I drove coach buses with that 6-speed auto, it was seriously sweet. I just checked and a fully loaded coach weighs around 60k, so there’s no reason it wouldn’t work on a semi.