August 23, 2017 Vol. 14 No. 17

Must say I like the sound of Paccar’s new automated transmission, released in concert with the Eaton Cummins Automated Transmission Technologies joint venture. Eaton designed and will manufacture the transmission at its San Luis Potosi, Mexico facility, but the calibrations and features are proprietary to Paccar. It’s a 12-speed, twin-countershaft design introduced just this week, after three years of design and development work.

I believe it’s the first time Eaton has produced a 12-speed gearbox.

Formally — and simply — called the Paccar Automated Transmission, it gives Kenworth and Peterbilt a complete proprietary and integrated powertrain. Mated to the company’s own MX engine and the new 40,000-lb drive axles unveiled in October 2016, it was designed from the ground up as an AMT. At just 657 lb, it’s claimed to be the lightest heavy-duty transmission on the market for on-highway commercial vehicles and nearly 200 lb lighter than Eaton’s Advantage AMT.

Production is set to begin in October, and both Kenworth and Peterbilt will begin offering the new AMT to North American customers in that same month. The transmission is available for order immediately on MX-13-equipped Peterbilt Models 579 and 567 scheduled for production after October 16. Availability of the new AMT with the 10.9-liter Paccar MX-11 Engine is scheduled for early 2018.

The new transmission is designed for linehaul applications up to 110,000 lb GVW. It’s available for engine ratings up to 510 hp and 1850 lb ft of torque and features tightly integrated electronic communications with the Paccar MX engine.

Company officials said the transmission offers the best overall gear ratio coverage available, providing “excellent” low-speed maneuverability.

Kyle Quinn, general manager at Peterbilt, noted that altogether the Paccar integrated powertrain offers customers 399 lb of total vehicle weight savings and 7% total fuel economy savings.

The transmission will hit the street with many features that Eaton customers are already familiar with, like Urge to Move, Creep Mode, and Blended Pedal. These offer better low-speed maneuverability in low and reverse gears, while the latter allows the driver to ‘slip’ the clutch by varying foot pressure on the brake pedal.