Hyundai Venue IMT Review: Clutchless Manual

Is it better than any manual gearbox? Yes because it gives you just the sensation of using a manual but in traffic you do find not using the clutch being a more relaxing element to the driving experience.

Necessity is the mother of invention and that is something which is also quite true when looking at the automotive sector today. The cars we are driving today are much different compared to merely a few years ago. More cramped cities, longer traffic jams and a changing customer preference has made a shift towards automatic cars. However automatic gearbox equipped cars are more expensive and drink more fuel in many cases plus might be heavier in maintenance too!

Factors like cost and efficiency matter for the sub Rs 15 lakh space.  Thus the first solution was an AMT gearbox or an Automated manual transmission. It gave an automatic gearbox but not at the price or at the cost of efficiency. However AMTs are slow, un-responsive and lack smoothness- factors which are also important for customers spending upwards of 10 lakh.

Thus one solution is the iMT or the intelligent manual transmission. This is basically a manual gearbox but without there being a clutch for you to operate. Which means you get manual control but also can rest your left foot. Hyundai have launched this first in its Venue while Kia is also readying its Sonet with an iMT for launch later next month.

So the iMT is basically a Transmission Gear Shift (TGS) Lever with an Intention Sensor, Hydraulic Actuator and Transmission Control Unit (TCU). All these three work so that the driver can shift gears just like any manual but without using a clutch! Does it work? Yes it does. You start the car and just like any manual you put it in 1st and get along. However this time there is no clutch which you also have to modulate. Start driving and you shift to 2nd and 3rd just like a manual gearbox. The shift is nice and easy plus while at first you seem to be looking for the clutch, you do soon get used to it.

Without using the clutch, this works like any manual and is not an automatic which means you have to shift up or down like any manual at speeds. Now you can also rev higher like any manual and shift late or downshift late like a manual. However the car does warn you to downshift so that you are in a higher gear but it will not do it for you being a proper manual gearbox. The system works like it is supposed to and there is no lag in shift or any jerks or anything faced during the time we drove it. It just was like a manual but with the added benefit of not using a clutch. After some time and driving it in traffic, we got used to this and found it is more relaxing than driving a manual plus you will get used to it easily. Is it better than any manual gearbox? Yes because it gives you just the sensation of using a manual but in traffic you do find not using the clutch being a more relaxing element to the driving experience. It is also tuned well to the 1.0 turbo 120 bhp petrol Venue and currently it is only offered with that. It is not like a proper automatic like an AMT where you do not need to shift at all but this is a lot more responsive and a better solution. Of course if you want the proper auto experience you can spend more and get the Venue with the dual clutch which is also offered or get the manual with the clutch too.

The point of the iMT is to offer the benefits of a manual which is control and fun but also the plus point of having an automatic- which is no clutch. In that way this system works. Plus there is no clutch wear and tear plus you cannot stall it too. An iMT is earlier to live with and drive on a daily basis plus it is more efficient over its DCT sibling or any automatic. Prices start at Rs 9.99 lakh for the SX 1.0 iMT while the top-end iMT SX (O) is Rs 11 lakh. That means it is roughly Rs 20,000 more over the manual 1.0 with the clutch and roughly Rs 50,000 less than a DCT.

Also the Venue gains a new Sport trim which we did not drive but it gets a few sporty changes. Back to the iMT and it is something we will choose over the manual with a clutch as it is simply more relaxing and easier to use. Now whether you spend more for the proper DCT auto is something you can decide based on your usage but iMT is here to stay and might get popular.

Pros- iMT gearbox works in traffic, ease of use, updated interiors

Cons- Not as seamless as manual, slightly more expensive over manual, long term reliability of this gearbox remains to be seen