AMTs may be all the rage right now, especially in the lower segments, but Ford is one company not keen on introducing this technology in any of their products for our market.
Speaking to Autocar India, Ford officials said that, considering the jerky performance AMTs are known for, using them would ruin the fun-to-drive character Ford cars are set-up for.
Moreover, given that there are very few AMT suppliers, the process of fine-tuning the units and differentiating the performance from others becomes very difficult. Thus, for now, the carmaker will stick with torque converters.
Ford offers a torque converter in the EcoSport, mated to the new 1.5-litre Dragon petrol engine, and is keen on introducing it on the Figo line-up with the 1.2-litre Dragon petrol as well. To do this, though, prices will have to be kept low, and so, Ford is looking at localising the gearbox.
However, the market debut of the 1.2-litre engine mated to an auto gearbox isn’t likely this year, as it requires testing and vendor development as well.