The 6L 50 (and similar 6L 45) is a 6-speed longitudinally-mounted automatic transmission produced by General Motors. It is very similar in design to the larger GM 6L 80 and 6L 90, and is produced at GM Powertrain plants in Toledo, Ohio; Silao, Guanajuato, Mexico; and by the independent Punch Powerglide company in Strasbourg, France.

This transmission features clutch to clutch shifting, eliminating the bands used on older transmission designs. The 6L 50 debuted for the 2007 model year on the V8-powered versions of the Cadillac STS sedan and Cadillac SRX crossover, and replaces the 5L40-E and 5L50 in GM's lineup. The 6L 45 version is used in certain BMW vehicles and the Cadillac ATS, as part of either rear-wheel drive and all-wheel drive powertrains.

The 6L 80 (and similar 6L 90) is a 6-speed automatic transmission built by General Motors at its Willow Run Transmission plant in Ypsilanti, MI. It was introduced in late 2005, and is very similar in design to the smaller 6L 45 and 6L 50, produced at GM Powertrain in Strasbourg, France.

It features clutch to clutch shifting, eliminating the one-way clutches used on older transmission designs. In February 2006 GM announced that it would invest $500 million to expand the Toledo Transmission plant in Toledo, Ohio to produce the 6L 80 in 2008. 6L 80 and 6L 90 are adaptable to rear-wheel drive and all-wheel drive applications.

Specifications

Technical Data

Progress Gearset Concept

Main Objectives

The main objective in replacing the predecessor model was to improve vehicle fuel economy with extra speeds and a wider gear span to allow the engine speed level to be lowered (downspeeding). The layout brings the ability to shift in a non-sequential manner – going from gear 6 to gear 2 in extreme situations simply by changing one shift element (actuating clutch E and releasing brake A).

Extent

In order to increase the number of ratios, ZF has abandoned the conventional design method of limiting themselves to pure in-line epicyclic gearing and extended it to a combination with parallel epicyclic gearing. This was only possible thanks to computer-aided design and has resulted in a globally patent for this gearset concept. The 6L is based on the 6HP from ZF, which was the first transmission designed according to this new paradigm. After gaining additional gear ratios only with additional components, this time the number of components has to decrease while the number of ratios still increase. The progress is reflected in a much better ratio of the number of gears to the number of components used compared to existing layouts.

Quality Gearset Concept

The ratios of the 6 gears are nicely evenly distributed in all versions. Exceptions are the large step from 1st to 2nd gear and the almost geometric steps from 3rd to 4th to 5th gear. They cannot be eliminated without affecting all other gears. As the large step is shifted due to the large span to a lower speed range than with conventional gearboxes, it is less significant. As the gear steps are smaller overall due to the additional gear(s), the geometric gear steps are still smaller than the corresponding gear steps of conventional gearboxes. Overall, therefore, the weaknesses are not overly significant. As the selected gearset concept saves up to 2 components compared to 5-speed transmissions, the advantages clearly outweigh the disadvantages.

It has a torque converter lock-up for all 6 forward gears, which can be fully disengage when stationary, largely closing the fuel efficiency gap between vehicles with automatic and manual transmissions.

In a Lepelletier gearset, a conventional planetary gearset and a composite Ravigneaux gearset are combined to reduce both the size and weight as well as the manufacturing costs. Like all transmissions realized with Lepelletier transmissions, the 6L also dispenses with the use of the direct gear ratio and is thus one of the very few automatic transmission concepts without such a ratio.

Applications

6L 45 · MYA

  • 2007–2010: BMW X3 - 3.0si / 2.5si / 3.0i
  • 2007–2013: BMW 3 series - 330(x)i / 328(x)i / 325(x)i / 323i / 320i / 318i / 316i
  • 2007–2019: BMW 1 series - 130i / 128i / 125i / 120i / 118i / 116i
  • 2009–2015: BMW X1 (E84) - 2.8i xDrive / 2.5i xDrive / 1.8i sDrive
  • 2013–2015: Cadillac ATS
  • 2010–2013: Cadillac SLS
  • 2012–2017: Chevrolet Caprice PPV V6
  • 2011–2013: Holden VE Commodore, Calais, SV6
  • 2013–2017: Holden VF Commodore, Calais, SV6

6L 50 · MYB

  • 2007–2011: Cadillac SLS
  • 2007–2011: Cadillac STS
  • 2007–2009: Cadillac SRX
  • 2008–2015: Cadillac CTS
  • 2010–2015: Camaro LS/LT (V6 Models)
  • 2009–2011: Holden VE Commodore / Holden VE Berlina / Holden VE Calais / Chevrolet Lumina / Chevrolet Omega
  • 2009–2011: Holden WM Statesman/Caprice / Daewoo Veritas
  • 2015–2022: Chevrolet Colorado
  • 2017–2020: Tata Hexa
  • 2019–present: UAZ Patriot
  • 2022–present: Bremach

6L 80 · MYC

  • 2006–2009 Cadillac XLR-V
  • 2006–2013 Chevrolet Corvette
  • 2006 Holden VE Commodore/2008-2009 Pontiac G8
  • 2006–2013 Holden/Chevrolet WM Statesman/Caprice
  • 2014–2017 Holden/Chevrolet WN Statesman/Caprice
  • 2007–2013 GMC Sierra Denali
  • 2009–2013 Chevrolet Silverado 1500 5.3 (ext. & crew cab), 6.2
  • 2009–2013 GMC Sierra 1500 5.3 (ext. & crew cab), 6.2
  • 2010–2013 Chevrolet Silverado 1500 5.3 (reg. cab)
  • 2010–2013 GMC Sierra 1500 5.3 (reg. cab)
  • 2006–2009 Cadillac STS-V
  • 2007–2015 Cadillac Escalade
  • 2007–2015 Cadillac Escalade ESV
  • 2007–2013 Cadillac Escalade EXT
  • 2007–2015 GMC Yukon Denali
  • 2009–2020 Chevrolet Tahoe
  • 2009–2020 GMC Yukon
  • 2009–2020 Chevrolet Suburban 1500
  • 2009–2020 GMC Yukon XL
  • 2008–2009 Hummer H2
  • 2014–2019 (K2XX) Chevrolet Silverado/GMC Sierra 1500
  • 2010–2015 Chevrolet Camaro
  • 2011–2017 Chevrolet Caprice PPV
  • 2011(September)–2013 Holden VE Commodore Series 2(MY 2012)
  • 2014–2017 Holden VF Commodore / Chevrolet SS
  • 2009–2013 Chevrolet Avalanche
  • 2019–2021 (T1XX) Chevrolet Silverado/GMC Sierra 1500

6L 90 · MYD

  • 2007–2014 Chevrolet Silverado 2500HD/3500 HD 6.0
  • 2007–2014 GMC Sierra 2500HD/3500HD 6.0
  • 2010–present Chevrolet Express 2500–3500
  • 2010–present GMC Savana 2500–3500
  • 2008–2019 Chevrolet Suburban 2500
  • 2009–2013 Cadillac CTS-V
  • 2012–2015 Chevrolet Camaro ZL1
  • 2015–2019 Chevrolet Silverado 2500HD/3500 HD 6.0
  • 2015–2019 GMC Sierra 2500HD/3500HD 6.0
  • 2020–2023 Chevrolet Silverado 2500HD/3500 HD 6.6 L8T
  • 2020–2023 GMC Sierra 2500HD/3500HD 6.6 L8T

See also

  • List of GM transmissions
  • "GM Launches More Fuel-Saving Six-Speed Automatic Transmissions". GM Media Online. Retrieved June 18, 2006.
  • Cadillac PDF info on 6L 80-E Transmission: http://www.cadillacfaq.com/stsfaq/tsb/data/tsb/05-07-30-023.pdf
  • "GM Ypsilanti Begins 6-Speed Production". Automotive Design and Production. Archived from the original on March 3, 2006. Retrieved January 3, 2006.

References

External links

  • General Motors Powertrain Division
  • https://gmauthority.com/blog/gm/gm-transmissions/mya/
  • https://gmauthority.com/blog/gm/gm-transmissions/myb/
  • https://gmauthority.com/blog/gm/gm-transmissions/myc/
  • https://gmauthority.com/blog/gm/gm-transmissions/myd/

GM 6L90 RWD 6 SPD Automatic Transmission Assembly (8212AJMBF)

Lookup Pontiac Transmissions By Model Year

GMC 6 Cylinder to Chevy V8 Style Automatic Transmission.

Dealing with GM 6L series rebuild issues

GM 6L80 Stage 1 HD Transmission TR6L80ESTK42