How a car's gears works

The manual gearbox is an often misunderstood beast. Few of us actually understand how it works but most of us think we do. Here's what really happens. Between the engine and the road wheels there are two major mechanical devices: the clutch and the gearbox. The purpose of the gearbox is to allow the engine to provide power to the wheels without having to turn as often as the wheels do. To provide a wide …

…of movement. It happens to have a similar ratio to first because it is used at the same road speeds. The clutch is used to introduce a break between the gearbox and the engine. This is done by using friction plates, which are slowly applied and quickly removed to allow smooth introduction of the engines power to the gearbox. They are either operated by a cable/lever arrangement or via hydraulics, much like the brakes.