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Selespeed is name of electrohydraulic manual transmission used in
Alfa Romeo cars and it is developed by Magneti Marelli. The
Selespeed is robotized manual gearbox with electronic clutch, it
can be operated via paddle shifters from steering wheel or via
"joystick" like real sequential manual gearbox. With right hand
side paddle shifter the driver can shift upwards and from left side
downwards. The gearbox also has a city-mode which allows using the
gearbox like traditional automatic gearbox.
Selespeed was first introduced in 1999 in the Alfa Romeo 156.[1] At
that time it was the first car in its class with such a robotized
gearbox. This first version had buttons on the steering wheel for
changing gear. With the facelift of the 156 in 2002 these buttons
were replaced by paddle shifters.
During normal driving it is possible to use either paddles or
joystick but if the driver tries to use paddles during joystick
mode the joystick has higher priority. Speed of gear change depends
on used engine revs, if the engine has more than 5000 rpm and
throttle is pressed more than 60% the change is faster. System has
also rev limiter to avoid over revving, in GTA models this
behaviour is removed. This gearbox is made for sportive driving but
the city-mode allows using it like automatic gearbox in city
driving.
Newest generation of Selespeed has 'Sport' mode for both manual
shifting and automatic operating.[2]
System is produced by Italian company Magneti Marelli. Other cars
using similar gearbox is eg. Ferrari F355 F1 and Aston Martin
Vanquish.[3] Base system is similar in all cars but the speed of
operation is usually faster in higher priced cars. BMW's first
generation SMG was also partly Magneti Marelli system.[4]
It's like the Formula 1 gearshift, using paddles behind the
steering wheel, no clutch pedal. Since it uses a "robotized" clutch
system it is just like a manual car unlike most auto transmission
cars which use a torque converter.
