Opel Karl, Adam, Corsa and Astra with Easytronic
3.0 Automated Manual Gearbox
Coming to support drivers
who cannot afford the luxury of a fully automatic transmission, Opel has added
the more affordable option of an automated manual gearbox on several models.
Named Easytronic 3.0, the
new automated manual transmission is now offered on the Karl, Adam and Corsa
family of small cars as well as the new Astra, which was recently crowned the
2016 European Car of the Year.
Opel justifies its decision
to add the new gearbox due to numerous hours spent in traffic jams, during
which the constant shifting between first and second gears and decoupling would
often make drivers wish they spent a little extra on the "luxury of an
automatic transmission". However, this luxury, most of the times, means
thousands of euros difference in price between manuals and automatics, and this
is where the firm's newest automated manual comes in.
The gearbox is based on a
manual and it comes with an automated gear-shifting system, billed as
"affordable [and] efficient alternative to a conventional automatic
transmission for small or compact cars". Compared to the previous
automated manual transmissions, the Easytronic 3.0 is said to "impress
with smoother gear shifts and reduced reaction times".
It also offers manual gear
shifting, a wide spread of the five gear ratios that reduce engine speeds for
pleasant noise levels and it benefits from a "Creep" mode, for
slow-speed maneuvers. On top of that, its start/stop function reduces fuel
consumption, as Opel claims the new Astra 1.0 ecoFLEX, combined with the
Easytronic 3.0, burns just 4.2 lt/100 km (56 mpg US) in the NEDC combined
cycle.
