Hyundai on July 3rd 2020, announces that their sub-four meter compact SUV Venue’s 1.0 Litre T-GDi variant will come equipped with an all-new 6-speed iMT (Intelligent Manual Transmission) technology in July. This is a completely new-age transmission technology for the Indian Auto Market and the Hyundai Venue is the first car in India the new tech will be serving to. The new transmission will bring the best of both the worlds together having the benefits of both manual and automatic.
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What is iMT (Intelligent Manual Transmission) Technology?
The fusion of manual and automatic gearboxes is what you can call the new iMT i.e the iMT technology will allow the drivers to change gears sans Clutch. It will be a two-pedal setup for the new Venue and there will be no need for the manual clutch for shifting through the gears.
How will this be possible you ask? The intelligent Manual Transmission will feature an intention sensor attached to the shift lever. When the gear is being shifted by the driver, the shift lever intention sensor will transmit a signal to the Transmission Control Unit (TCU), which will further send a signal to the hydraulic actuators which a yet another new feature for the new setup. This signal will engage the hydraulic actuators to actuate pressure on the clutch and pressure plates for undertaking the action of engaging and disengaging. Hence Eliminating the need for a mechanical clutch engagement action.
But why the need for iMT, when we already have AMT?
The new technology with its manual-automatic amalgamation attribute will have a significant utility for the Indian market. The clutch-less technology means that the new Hyundai Venue will make commuting in the start/stop city traffic a breeze and depressing the clutch every now and then won’t be a matter of worry.
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This convenience was also provided with the help with of AMTs, DCTs or CVTs earlier. However, these transmissions only allowed sequential shifting, but the iMT technology having the same shift lever as the manual, the driver will have the freedom of shifting gears as they please without the hassle of depressing the clutch i.e the driver engagement still persists and Hyundai says that the shifts will be as seamless as in a full-blown manual transmission.
SS Kim, MD and CEO, Hyundai Motor India Ltd, on the New Hyundai Venue iMT
“Hyundai has been driving the adoption of new and innovative technologies at scale. With our ‘Future Ready’ business strategy, we have been continuously striving for customer delight with Human-centric technologies that present our innate understanding of what our customers’ desire. iMT is one such technology that accounts for the pleasure of driving and also the convenience needed to ease the hectic burden of daily commutes. This unparalleled drive experience on Hyundai Venue – India’s First Connected SUV has been curated through a constant pursuit of innovation for Customer Delight.”
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DCT and MT to still continue alongside
Hyundai Venue’s 1.0 T-GDi diesel currently comes mated to a 6-speed manual and a 7-speed DCT automatic transmissions and with the introduction of the new iMT technology, these two transmissions won’t be chucked out and the iMT variant will be sold alongside the DCT (Dual Clutch Transmission) and MT (Manual Transmission) variants.
As per the prices, Hyundai is yet to reveal them and will do that probably around the variant’s launch, scheduled for July 2020. The iMT variant is likely to be stacked between the MT and DCT variant. The Manual version is priced around Rs. 8.46 Lakhs- Rs. 10.95 Lakhs Ex-showroom across all trims levels and the DCT version is priced between Rs. 9.60 Lakhs- Rs. 11.51 Lakhs Ex-showroom across all trim levels. Venue iMT is likely to be priced between the range of the MT and the DCT. Hence the 1.0 T-GDi engine will have a total of three transmission options for you to choose from.
Hyundai has probably made this decision to offer all three transmission options alongside each other in order to cater to all varied preferences of the Indian car buyer. The iMT is surely a leap forth in transmission technology but will it be as responsive as a proper manual is something one can’t say before the new powertrain gets down to business in a comprehensive road test. But if you are looking for sheer ease of driving along with the confidence of a manual gearbox, then the new Hyundai Venue iMT could turn out to be a pretty sweet deal.
