How An Automatic Transmission Works

G'day everyone,

Over the past few videos I have tried to make a working automatic transmission, and in this video I can finally show you how it works. This is a basic recreation of a 3 speed plus reverse automatic gearbox that you may find in many American cars from the mid to late 20th century. These feature 2 planetary gearboxes and 4 clutches/brakes which will allow you to make the 4 different gear ratios.

The great thing is that once you understand how a 3 speed transmission works, understanding how a 5 or 6 speed works becomes far easier, because they work using the same principles, but have extra banks of planetary gearsets connected to the housing of the first planetary gearset.

I also think that having a physical model will be easier to follow than a 2D drawing/diagram, or a 3D animation.

I hope you enjoy this video, and have enjoyed the video series. I had a lot of fun making it and I greatly enjoyed the challenge. Cheers

Timestamps
0:00 - Intro
2:32 - The 3 Speed + Reverse Automatic Gearbox
4:29 - The Planetary Gearset
6:43 - 1st Gear
7:50 - 2nd Gear
9:27 - 3rd Gear
10:12 - Reverse Gear