# Opel now builds the Astra with the automatic transmission I wanted in my Cruze



## MP81 (Jul 20, 2015)

You don't want that transmission - it's an absolute pile of garbage. Pretty much _every_ use of it in the industry is met with negative comments.

The GM/Ford 9AT is far superior in every way.


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## TheNightFallsGray98 (Aug 4, 2020)

A Next-Generation Buick Encore Is In The Works: Exclusive


Here are our exclusive details.




gmauthority.com




The current Encore/Trax use the LE2. If by chance they continue using the LE2, in Gen 2, there’s a better chance they would pair the LE2 with the 9 speed auto. From there, I’m sure plenty of people would attempt and be able to swap the transmissions


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## Barry Allen (Apr 18, 2018)

MP81 said:


> You don't want that transmission - it's an absolute pile of garbage. Pretty much _every_ use of it in the industry is met with negative comments.


It's fine after software updates to fix teething problems. Yes, the initial releases had complaints. Yes, Jeep went through something like 3-4 software updates to fix complaints. It's fixed now.

I know three people (two family, one friend) who own newer 2019+ vehicles with the transmission: 1 Jeep Cherokee, 1 Chrysler Pacifica, and 1 Honda Pilot. All of them are fine.

GM's 9-speed was a $1,600 option for my Cruze. Hard pass. The ZF 9HP is harder to price since you can't get a manual transmission option in the Jeep Cherokee, so who knows what the cost is when it's included in the vehicle MSRP.


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## MP81 (Jul 20, 2015)

It's better now, but the transmission itself - and this comes from people I know who worked on it for years - is _not good_.

It's _better_ with higher-torque applications - the Pacifica is one where it's consistently been good since launch - but it still has it's issues, again, due to the actual design of the transmission.


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## jblackburn (Apr 14, 2012)

My dad and I drove a 2020 Ridgeline which now has the 9AT ZF in it...and it was a jerky mess. Not quite as terribly programmed as the Tacoma, but there are noticeable pauses, hiccups, and clunks all over the place in in-town driving or demands to drop a few gears to merge.

I'm really not sure why they didn't just use the Honda 10AT in it, unless they haven't adapted that to the J35 yet?

I do wish my 1.4T Cruze had the GM 9-speed in it, though. The gaps between gears in the 6 speed can be wide and aren't well suited to highway passing. The 8/9 speeds are quite smooth in most Ford/GM things I've driven them in.


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## Barry Allen (Apr 18, 2018)

jblackburn said:


> noticeable pauses


This article explains why the transmission feels different in certain shifts:









ZF's 9-Speed 9HP Transmission Puts Dog Clutches On The Leash


In a week we will post our first full review of the all-new and all-controversial 2014 Jeep Cherokee. The new Jeep isn’t just raising eyebrows for the love-it or hate-it styling. Or the resurrection of the Cherokee badge. Or the constant delays in production. Or the transverse mounted engine. Or...




www.thetruthaboutcars.com





It takes a moment to engage or disengage some dog clutches, and that's different than what people are used to with traditional friction clutches in transmissions.


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## jblackburn (Apr 14, 2012)

Barry Allen said:


> This article explains why the transmission feels different in certain shifts:
> 
> 
> 
> ...


It's annoying. Especially considering how good some of the 5 and 6 speed autos not that long ago were, and considering their own 8-speed that is pretty much the benchmark for everything. I mean, the Cruze's 6T35 is far from smooth, but the ZF in the Ridgeline feels like the badly-executed Hyundai or Ford dual clutches at times.

FWIW, I think the newer Aisin 8 speed isn't very good in Toyota/VW/Volvo products either. It's easy to catch between a shift in traffic or hesitates severely on a downshift, the 1-2 shift feels weird on almost all of them, and downshifts are usually delivered with a thump when it finally decides on a gear. The 6-speed Aisin in our Fusion is creamy smooth and is NEVER caught with any hesitation about what gear to pick.


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## MP81 (Jul 20, 2015)

jblackburn said:


> The 6-speed Aisin in our Fusion is creamy smooth and is NEVER caught with any hesitation about what gear to pick.


Which is funny, because that's the "same" AF40-6 used in the Cruze Diesel, and yet it doesn't seem to be known for the same garbage behavior of its application in the CTD.


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## Barry Allen (Apr 18, 2018)

MP81 said:


> The GM/Ford 9AT is far superior in every way.


I never drove one of those cars. When I was buying my Cruze I was averse to paying $1,600 for an automatic transmission (and getting worse fuel economy). At one point the local dealer offered to eat the cost of the automatic transmission by selling me one of the three cars on their lot with that cost as a discount, but all three cars were either: 1) White paint, which I told them I didn't want, or; 2) Leather interior, which I told them I didn't want.


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