BorgWarner has just opened up a second plant at their facility in Amstadt, Germany to produce dual clutch transmission modules. BorgWarner and other suppliers like Getrag have been experiencing huge growth in demand for dual clutch transmissions as demand for increased fuel efficiency and reduced CO₂ emissions drives adoption. BorgWarner is the supplier of dual clutch systems to Volkswagen Group for their DSG transmissions. VW recently sold their one millionth DSG-equipped vehicle. By the time all of BorgWarner's currently announced programs reach full production they expect to be producing 2.3 million units a year. The dual clutch transmissions can provide a 10-15 percent improvement in efficiency compared to a conventional automatic.

[Source: BorgWarner]

With internal combustion engines set to continue playing a major role in automotive drivetrains for some time to come, technologies that can help improve efficiency are growing in demand. Two of the most popular at the moment are turbochargers and dual clutch transmissions (DCT). Both are seen as means to achieve significant improvements in efficiency at much lower cost than alternatives like hybrids. One of the chief suppliers of both of these components is BorgWarner.

BorgWarner has been the supplier of DSG transmissions to Volkswagen, which just recently passed the one million installation mark. With Ford set to produce upwards of 500,000 turbocharged direct injection engines annually within the next few years and many manufacturers looking to follow a similar path BorgWarner is well positioned to benefit from the shift. The company expects revenues to rise by 10 percent this year in spite of falling U.S. sales.

[Source: Detroit Free Press]

Fiat is joining the race to dual clutch gearboxes with a range of new transmissions that will be debuting in June 2009. The lineup of six-speed gearboxes will kick off with a manual transmission followed by a dual clutch unit in September of 2009. In 2010 they will round out the range with an automated manual version.

Fiat Powertrain Technologies will have a capacity of 800,000 units of the new C635 transmissions by 2010. Unlike the first-generation DSG gearboxes from Volkswagen which use wet clutches, the Fiat transmission uses dry clutch plates. The dry clutch version is less expensive to manufacture and more efficient. Fiat is planning to install the new transmissions in the small to mid-size cars like the Punto and Bravo, and similar Lancia and Alfa Romeo models.

[Source: Automotive News - Sub. req'd]

Dual clutch transmissions are all the rage these days because they combine the mechanical efficiency of a manual transmission with the ability of automatic transmissions to self-shift. Volkswagen was the first to introduce them to production cars under the DSG name a few years ago. Now they are starting to appear in vehicles from other manufacturers such as Volvo, Ford and Mitsubishi. Earlier this year, Chrysler announced they were building a joint venture transmission plant to build DCTs with Getrag. Volkswagen produced a video that explains some of the history of the DCT and how it works. Watch it after the jump.

[Source: German Car Blog]

Click the sketch for a high-res gallery

Mitsubishi has just released sketches of the concept coupe they will be showing at the January's Detroit Auto Show that looks set to take the best of the original Eclipse, the Audi R10 and the latest Evo X. Like so many other cars, the Eclipse has grown progressively larger and heavier with each generation. The Concept-RA looks set to return to its more sprightly roots with a lightweight aluminum space frame and plastic resin body panels.

Under the hood, the Concept-RA will feature a new 2.2L turbodiesel four cylinder that meets Tier2 Bin5 standards while generating 204 hp and 310 lb-ft of torque. Transmitting all that force to ground will be a torque vectoring all-wheel-drive system sourced from the latest Evo X that debuted at the Tokyo Motor Show including the dual clutch transmission. More details are in the Mitsubishi press release after the jump.

[Source: Mitsubishi]

Along with seemingly every other automaker in the European market, Volvo is set to expand the special branding that indicates the most efficient models in each of their lines. While Volkswagen has chosen to go with the more abstract BlueMotion label and Ford is mashing up words to create ecoNetic, Volvo is keeping it simple with Efficiency. The C30 Efficiency drops into the UK market in 2008 with a CO2 emissions rating of 119 g/km and 52.2 mpg (US) from its 1.6L diesel engine. Helping the new C30 achieve these numbers will be the the usual aerodynamic tweaks and a new dual clutch transmission that will also see duty in other Ford models soon. Other Efficiency models will be getting a new 2.0L diesel along with direct-injected gas engines when they hit the streets in the near future.

[Source: Motor Authority]

Volkswagen and Audi are pioneers in the commercialization of dual clutch transmissions under the DSG brand. The TT is offered with either a DSG or manual transmission. The beauty of a DSG is that it has the mechanical efficiency of a manual with lightning fast shifts that help performance and reduce the losses during shifts to provide even better mileage than a manual. It can also provide seamless automatic operation for those who prefer two pedal operation with 10-15 percent better mileage. Vicki Butler-Henderson of Fifth Gear in the UK got a chance to take lap a racetrack in two near-identical TTs where the only difference was the gearboxes. The DSG-equipped car managed to go four-tenths of a second faster and gets better mileage from the same engine. Check out the video after the jump.

[Source: Fifth Gear]

The burgeoning interest in dual clutch gearboxes should be big business for Getrag over the next few years. Because a dual clutch transmission (DCT) combines the greater efficiency of a manual with full automatic shift capability they are being installed in more vehicles all the time. The first widespread use of DCTs was on Volkswagen and Audi models in the last few years with their Borg-Warner-built DSG units.

For 2008, Volvo is adding a DCT to the S40 and V50 while Ford is also adding one to the Focus equipped with a new 2.0L turbodiesel. Chrysler is also installing a DCT in European-spec models of the new Dodge Journey CUV. By 2010 Getrag expects to sell 500,000 DCTs a year growing to 2 million by 2014. That doesn't include the 700,000 units that will come from the Chrysler-Getrag joint venture starting in 2009.

[Source: Automotive News - Sub. req'd]