TC's and manual trans (was: Re: Smooth strategy)

[Greg Hermann]

>Shannen Durphey wrote:
>>
>> If you have any chances to roll around some of the car shows with well
>> restored examples from the early 40's to late 50's, you'll see that
>> the upper scale cars were designed to be very smooth.  In the
>> transmissions, there were vacuum powered clutches, variable speed
>> transmissions, standard trans with torque converters. Even
>                 ^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^
>
>Oooh!, the magic words.  I was just about to ask about this.  Can
>anyone give me some info or point me to a source about torque convertors
>and how exactly they work.  Are these tightly interdependant on an
>automatic trans (because of the fluid used) or could they possibly be
>used independantly?  I.e., adapted for use on a manual trans.
>
>Forgetting for the moment about the specific machiningg, adapters, etc that
>would be required to physically hook it up, is it possible or feasible
>to make it work outside of an automatic trans?  Is it's hydraulic fluid
>supply sealed inside the convertor?  Could you fill the convertor and
>seal it and expect it to work for very long or does it need a continuous
>flow of fluid for cooling?  If so, would pressure need to be modulated
>for any reason or does it just need a continuous flow?
>
>thanks for any info
>--Dan

Don't recall whatinell they called it, but for a while Porsche used a fluid
coupling AND a vacuum operated clutch (which was triggered by a microswitch
on the manual shift lever) in front of a manual tranny in the 911's. The
fluid coupling ran in engine oil, IIRC. (A fluid coupling does not multiply
torque, has only two elements, called pump and turbine.)

Easiest way to think of how one works (at least for me) is to think of a
centrifugal pump driving a centrifugal turbine--and then eliminate the two
housings, and all the attendant weight and inefficiencies, by just wrapping
the impeller and turbine wheels into a taurus shape, and mounting them face
to face.

Regards, Greg