automatic trans

You go AUTO, you wont go back..... If you do, put your coffee down and shift!

 

Autoshift automated manual transmission has a clutch. You use it to take off and stop. The Ultrashift (both from eaton fuller) does not have a clutch and is operated by centrifugal force to engage. Ultrashift take a little bit longer to take off from a stop than autoshifts. If you get an allison they are just like passenger vehicle transmissions. Every single automated and automatic transimission will let you manualy select the gears. Even Meritor has and automated maunal transmission. They are really not that hard to drive. I got thrown into a bunch of trucks that all had different transmissions. I had to learn it all. I would take a maunal trans truck for otr, but an automated for in city routes.

 

I tried one out and it was a little scary getting used to in the mountains. Great in traffic though. It definitely makes you feel like a glorified bus driver, not a big rig driver.

 

well I've driven pretty much every kinda tranny out there...... 8LL, 9,10, 13, 15 18.....so auto shift....(dont go there) an fully autos
There are many pros to automatic, especially in local dump truck, multi-lift setup. You can drive an operate pto at the same time, stop, while keep operatin an move forward more without effecting pto or anythin...... while liftin a bin you can reverse and pick a bin up somethin you can't to with a manual. great in downtown traffic stop an go

Big down fall with autos are u have to stand on the brake to keep it from movin forward while stopped.... I find it works hard to try an move forward. not bad in a midium truck, our triaxle dump with c-15 with auto (bought for a driver with a bad hip) if you dont push really hard on the brake it creeps forward.

 

Think it just depends on what the person is looking for 2. I never drove a clutch in my life before i got my class A, an i had the double clutching down pretty quick. Just depends if u really want to learn the clutching part. I love it i never want an auto but thats just my view. But auto would be nice for traffic jams an in town stop an go's

 

I hate my International Automatic. Right now I am in a busted up 6+ haha....but I just dont feel like a "truck driver" unless im driving one of our 9 or 10 speeds....I just feel like a "wheel holder".

I will say when I first got my CDL, I was more comfortable learning in an auto no doubt.

 

The company I trained with, taught us how to double clutch 10-speeds. When I went out with a trainer for a month, he had a Volvo with an auto-shift (with a clutch).
After that month was over, and I was left on the home terminal, I was tested on a 10-speed.
And, to top it off, all of the trucks I was assigned, were auto-shifts (with a clutch).
That company used Freightliners, International, Volvos, and Macks. I had Macks most of the time. Except for a newer Freightliner. For some reason, the cruise control on the Macks lacked the recovery that the other trucks had.
For example, I left East St. Louis with a Freightliner, and an International. When they reached the T/A in Stafford, Mo, I was 5 miles behind. We were all carrying the same kind of load. But, the cruise control on the Macks were just lazy. When you came down one hill, and started going up the next one, your speed would drop 10 miles per hour before it would power back up and try to make it up the next hill.
Where as the other trucks would take right off.

 

didn't feel like starting a new thread... how is it to drive a automatic with clutch? what is involved? what about backing,stoplights,stop signs,hills, winter weather. found a small company that has this kinda of truck any ideas thanks.

 

Even though I'm just starting out, we had a couple of "auto-shift" trucks with a clutch. They were set to take off in either 4th or 6th gear depending on how many total gears the "auto-shifter" had. I'm assuming if the truck had no clutch at all it would be an "automatic" and not an "auto-shift." Maybe some one will step in here and finish explaining it right to you. Sorry I can't be more help. The auto-shift trucks we drove, handled nice though. I still like the Eton 10 speed best of all, just something more comforting and "truck-like" about the manual, espically if you like picking your own gears.

 

I drove an auto-shift for a year an a half.It was the one with the clutch and was in an International 9400i with a 435 Cummins ISX. It was a great truck and did great in the snow.never got stuck once and I spent a LOT of time in the snow belt as the company was in Wisconsin and I live in Ohio and usually went from WI to NJ and back.When they are in working order they are fantastic but when they **** up they REALLY **** up like stopping at a stop sign,start goin and making a left on to a road where traffic doesn't have a stop sign and it hangs between gears and you just STOP and cuss and yell and mash the gas and the buttons and it FINALLY grabs a gear an goes all the while traffic is getting backed up lol ahhhh those were the days lol Too bad they canned 340 out of 400 drivers last year.