February 2012
Winter testing
This year seems to be busier than ever, with no signs of any down-turn in the motorsport economy, certainly not for Geartronics at least. Several new cars have already been commissioned by us this year, including the BMW V8 GTR of Richard Abra/Mark Poole. This car is using the E92 V8 engine mated to the excellent Tractive RD90 gearbox. As well as the Geartronics paddleshift controller, the electronics package also includes a MoTeC M800 ECU, DBW4 controller, SDL dashboard and PDM30 power distribution unit. Having such a powerful and versatile electronic installation at our disposal makes our job easier, as it allows us to very accurately control the drive-by-wire throttle blip, and also gives us access to high-resolution data acquisition, which is an essential requirement if the paddleshift system is to be calibrated to perfection.
Another interesting car that we commissioned a couple of weeks ago is the latest creation from Austrian hillclimb expert Georg Pacher.
Based on a Formula-BMW carbon tub, the car has been fitted with a turbocharged Suzuki Hayabusa engine and a unique drivetrain assembly,
allowing the engine to be fitted longitudinally in the chassis. Georg is well-known for his unique vehicles, and this one even has a pneumatically controlled
F1-style drag reduction rear wing! Such is Georg's confidence in the Geartronics paddleshift system, this is the fifth of his cars that we have equipped.
Software update
Version 45 software has now been released. Adding to our already highly sophisticated control strategy, this update gives an improved downshift auto-blip response, and is aimed specifically at vehicles using electronic (Drive-by-wire) throttles, or other slow throttle response applications such as turbocharged installations. Due to the delayed reaction and relatively slow throttle opening of DBW motors, the GCU requires a proper control strategy to counter these negative charachteristics. Unlike many other systems on the market, our strategy does not simply command the throttle blip ahead of the shift, as this often results in slow and aggressive downshifts. The new strategy has been developed from exhaustive track testing, data analysis and professional driver feedback. All new systems will be shipped with the latest software, and existing users can request an update free of charge.
January 2012
Autosports Exhibition
First of all, a very big thank you to all the people who took the time to visit our stand. As usual, we were aware that many people didn't get to speak to us because of the huge numbers of visitors that we had to deal with, so apologies to them.
For the 2012 exhibition, we once again had two working paddleshift systems on display. The first one was a demonstration our 'professional' system fitted to a Sadev SL75 sportscar transaxle. This featured our CAN-enabled GCU, with full 'Autosport' specification wiring harness and Goodridge braided hoses. New for this year is an updated valve block offering greater airflow and improved shift speed. Click on the photo above to see a full-sized image. A system like this is targeted towards the professional market, but is equally at home in a club level application should your budget permit. The second system was fitted to a Maktrak Mitsubishi Evo transmission. This demonstrated a more affordable system using push-fit hoses and a more basic specification wiring harness. However, the 'clubman' system still features the same renowned Geartronics shift strategies as the professional system, giving you the ultimate performance and peace of mind.