Ford-O-Matic was the first automatic transmission widely used by Ford Motor Company. It was designed by the Warner Gear division of Borg-Warner Corporation and introduced in 1951 model year cars, and was called the Merc-O-Matic-named when installed in Mercury-branded cars and Turbo-Drive when installed in Lincoln-branded cars. transmissions in 1968. This line continued in production until 1980, when the AOD was introduced. Like Ford, variations of this same Borg-Warner design were used by other automobile manufacturers, as well, such as AMC, International Harvester, Studebaker, Volvo, and Jaguar, each of them having the necessary unique adaptations required for the individual applications.
Ford-O-Matic
In 1948, Ford realized it was late in introducing a fully automatic transmission to its automobile lineup. Ford initially approached Studebaker to purchase rights to use the DG-series automatic developed by the Detroit Gear division of Borg-Warner. The Studebaker board of directors was agreeable, but stipulated that Studebaker would have one-year exclusive use of the design before Ford could use it. Since the DG was available in Studebaker cars in mid-1950, this meant that Ford would have to wait until mid-1951 to introduce an automatic. The wait was unacceptable, so Ford went a different direction.
Ford Engineering Vice President Harold Youngren, recently hired away from Borg-Warner, recommended that Ford license and build a transmission using a design he was working on at his previous employer. Ford and the Warner Gear division of Borg-Warner signed a contract in 1948 which entered B-W into a supply agreement wherein they would build half of Ford's transmissions for five years, with the other half either being built by Ford or by a different supplier. Because of this agreement, Ford licensed the design and broke ground immediately on an assembly plant to build the remaining transmissions. The new Fairfax Transmission Plant was dedicated in 1950.
The original Ford-O-Matic accomplished two things that Ford's two previous automatic transmissions failed to do: Through the use of an integrated torque converter and planetary gearset, Ford's automatic shifted smoothly without an interruption in torque from the engine. The other was the shifting pattern, revised from PNDLR to PRNDL, which served to reduce "shift shock" when changing gears and reduce "torque shock" when trying to rock a stuck car back and forth.
The original Ford-O-Matic, while capable of three forward speeds, started out in second and shifted to third, with first only being used when selecting L on the gear shift column. However, if floored from a standing start, it would immediately shift from second to low, then shift back to second and then third as the vehicle accelerated.
The Ford-O-Matic was manufactured from 1951 until it was replaced by the C4 in 1964.
GAZ copy
thumb|GAZ-14 Transmission
Despite the Cold War, the Soviet Union, in developing its automotive industry, often based its products on western technology, from whom it would either purchase a full license (the GAZ factory was designed by the Ford Motor Company, later the Lada factory was built by Fiat etc.) or make an indigenous copy by reverse engineering. In the 1950s, as the GAZ plant was preparing to launch its new generation of cars, that comprised the mid-sized GAZ-21 Volga sedan and the full-sized GAZ-13 Chaika limousine, both vehicles were specified to feature the automatic transmission. Having evaluated many models, Borg-Warner's Ford-O-Matic and Cruise-O-Matic were selected.
Despite very closely resembling the American transmissions, GAZ's copies did have distinctive differences. The casing was cast from aluminium, components adopted to metric units, and gear ratios adjusted. Both cars' handbrake actuated a central drum between the housing and the drive shaft, instead of the rear wheels. Thus, a parking pawl was deemed redundant. Volga's transmission, based on the Ford-O-Matic, required additional adaptation to the air-cooled torque converter, as it was driven by a 65 hp, four-cylinder engine. Controlled by a steering column-mounted lever, it had four selections: Зх-Н-Д-П (R-N-D-L). In Drive, the car would start in second and automatically shift to third depending on throttle position (the valve was regulated by a lever linked to the accelerator pedal). A kick-down feature was also present. First gear could only be engaged manually in Low (though it could be selected when the car was in motion, and would shift only when the speed dropped accordingly to prevent over-reving the motor) and was used for engine braking or rapid starts. Gear ratios were 2.4:1 for the torque converter, 2.84:1 for first gear, 1.68:1 for second, third was direct (1:1), and reverse was 1.72:1.
Chaika's Cruise-O-Matic copy required fewer adaptations, as it was matched to a 195 hp V8 engine. The transmission was controlled by a dial-button panel with four selections: Зх, Н, Д, Т corresponding to Reverse, Neutral, Drive, and "Braking". In Drive, the car would start in first, and sequentially shift to third and back. In "Braking" (i.e. engine braking), third gear would be locked out, and the first gear would be engaged by the rear band immobilising the planetary carrier, rather than allowing freewheeling from the one-way sprag clutch (absent on Volga's transmission). The more powerful engine and thus torque required a liquid cooling system. Gear ratios were identical to GAZ-21, except for the torque converter, which had a maximum multiplication of 2.5:1.
These transmissions debuted in 1958 and 1959, respectively. Initially, all of the privately owned Volgas were planned to be produced with the automatic, whilst a more spartan-trimmed taxi version featured the three-speed manual. However, most of these cars were given as prizes to workers of distant regions for excellent results, instead of being kept in large cities, where they would be most appreciated. The "lucky" customers had great difficulty in obtaining adequate spare parts, qualified service, and most of all, transmission fluid. As a result, many chose to simply convert their transmission to the common three-speed manual (which was a common universal model used in the GAZ-69 jeep and Volga's predecessor, the GAZ-M20 Pobeda). Although the option was formally discontinued in 1964, most of the 700 cars were produced in the 1958 model year. As of 2017, only six such survivors were known to exist.
Chaikas, were available only with this transmission, and in 1962, it received a slight upgrade in number of friction clutch pairs and the pistons. Never available for private ownership, the car was produced in small scale all the way until 1981. In 1963, GAZ introduced the Soviet type of a KGB Q-car, the GAZ-23, by transplanting the large V8 engine and the powertrain of the Chaika into the unibody Volga. This car was used as a motorcade escort by the KGB's ninth directive (responsible for personal security of the party leadership), as well as surveillance teams of the 7th directorate.
In 1970, GAZ-21 Volga was replaced by GAZ-24, and the V8 adoption followed soon, dubbed GAZ-24-24. As the sedan's standard gearbox was now a four-on-the-floor manual, the selector lever was accordingly moved to the floor. Unofficially, these cars were called "Chasers", and despite their novelty, the engine torque was disproportional to the chassis ability. This meant a low service life and also required very professional driving. For concealment reasons, the select indicator externally resembled a manual-transmission gearshift lever, and the cars even lacked a single brake pedal, instead having the "clutch"/brake pedal layout that dubbed each other. The GAZ-24 had the common cord-actuated parking brakes, thus the central shaft brake was removed and replaced by an extension housing to fit the shorter driveshaft of the GAZ-24. The GAZ-24-24 was produced alongside the standard GAZ-24 until 1985. That year, the car got a major facelift and internal modernization, with engine and chassis elements from the GAZ-3102 Volga, resulting in the GAZ-24-10 model. The Chaser became GAZ-24-34 and was produced until 1993.
In 1977, GAZ launched its successor to the GAZ-13, the GAZ-14 Chaika. The new limousine had a more powerful engine, 220 hp, and its transmission was revised. Like for the GAZ-24, the central transmission brake was removed, but unlike the sedan, it now had a parking pin. The floor-mounted selector got an international P-R-N-D-2-1 lettering. Selection "1" now operated first gear only, via the rear band for engine braking, while "2" locked out the first and third gears, allowing both reduced wheelspin starts and manual down shifting, when desired. Despite the upgrade being reminiscent to the FMX, some of the features like the rear fuel pump and brass-lined clutches remained. Gear ratios were now 2.35:1 for torque converter, 2.64:1 for first gear, 1.55:1 for second, third remained direct, and reverse became 2.0:1. The car was produced from 1977 until 1989.
In 1981, GAZ launched what was to be a successor to the GAZ-24, but separated into a separate model and built alongside it, the GAZ-3102 Volga. It, too, gained a "chaser" modification – GAZ-31013 with the 220 hp engine from the GAZ-14, and its transmission, adapted to Volga's body. This model was built until 1996 in tiny numbers, for the VIP security detail only.
As only partial statistics have been published, counting the total number of transmissions built (including replacements) is difficult. What is known is that 3,189 GAZ-13 Chaikas, 1,120 GAZ-14 Chaikas, and 608 GAZ-23 Chasers were built, in addition to the roughly 700 original GAZ-21 Volgas. Between 2,000 and 2,500 GAZ-24-24, 24-34, and Chasers can be added. Thus, about 8,000 vehicles were manufactured by the plant from 1958 to 1996 featuring a Cruise-O-Matic-based transmission.
See also
- List of Ford transmissions