Honda's new 10-speed is a slick shifter

Honda's 2018 Odyssey offers room for eight passengers and its all-new transaxle packs 10 forward gears. Developed in-house over a three-year period, the new automatic is the industry's first production 10-speed for front-drive vehicles. It is being produced at the company's Tallapoosa, GA, transmission plant.

Automotive Engineering spoke with Tom Sladek, principal engineer at Honda R&D in Raymond, OH, about the new gearbox during the Odyssey's media unveiling at the 2017 Detroit auto show. He said the transaxle's input torque rating is 370 N·m (275 lb·ft) “with some degree of headroom designed in.” While Honda has yet to announce the SAE-rated torque of the Odyssey's 3.5-L V6, it is expected to be greater than the 2017 engine's 250 lb·ft (338 N·m). SAE peak power for the 2018 engine is 280 hp-a 32-hp increase over the current engine's output.