New Volvo Automatic Transmission Returns Same Efficiency as a Manual

Fuel economy and low emissions are clearly important goals at Volvo right now. Volvo's new six-speed Powershift automatic transmission when mated with its 1.6 liter, diesel four-cylinder engine gives the same fuel economy and emissions found if the cars had a manual transmission. It has also improved efficiency for the 1.6 liter T3 petrol engine

The Powershift transmission is available on the Volvo S60, S80, V60 and V70, and the 1.6 liter diesel produces 115hp. The S60 with this powertrain uses 4.3l/100km of diesel and produces 114g/km of CO2. The V60, V70 and S80 all use 4.5l/100km and make 119g/km of CO2. 

The improvement comes as a result of Volvo reducing the friction between gearbox components and retuning the ECU. Volvo also changed the start/stop system to shut the vehicle's engine down while it is still moving below 5km/h

"For the first time ever, we have managed to bring the fuel consumption in variants with automatic gearbox down to the same level as in the manual versions. An impressive achievement by our powertrain experts," said Peter Mertens, Senior Vice President Research and Development at Volvo.

The T3 engine found in the S60 has also been improved by Volvo. It still produces 150hp but fuel consumption is down to 5.8l/100km and emissions down to 135g/km of CO2 or 7.1l/100km and 164g/km with the Powershift automatic. That is compared to 6.6l/100km and 152g/km in the previous version of the engine with a manual.