ZF celebrates the production of 100 thousand 6S480 transmissions in Brazil

ZF has just reached the production mark of 100 six-speed 6S480 transmissions. Production takes place at the ZF assembly line in Sorocaba, SP, opened in September 2016. Since then, the technology has been equipping, for the most part, passenger and cargo vans in use in Brazil.

In the opinion of Silvio Furtado, Vice-President of Solutions for Commercial Vehicles and Industrial Technology ZF South America, “the achievement of this brand is mainly due to the high levels of transmission quality and due to its application profile, currently aimed at a segment which is growing every day in Brazil, as is the case of urban transport and delivery in large cities. This segment brought an accelerated dynamic to production, which exceeds 100 units/day at ZF”, he assesses.

Alexandre Brito, operations director at ZF South America, adds that “the 6S480 is the result of operational excellence achieved through the involvement of the production team, technical staff and ZF's own commitment to producing the transmission with excellence throughout this period. The 6S480 has received improvements over the years to meet market needs and has become a reference in quality. Today we have completed a sequence of more than 32 thousand transmissions produced without failure, which is a differentiating mark for any production line”, he highlights.

The Brazilian unit has become the largest production site for this type of transmission in the world, followed by Hungary, which holds 30% of global transmission production. “Among the younger transmission families produced by ZF in Brazil, the 6S480 was undoubtedly the one that achieved the highest production number for the company in recent years”, adds Alexandre Brito.

Considering an average of its currently available versions and applications, its nationalization rate exceeds 50%, with the other components coming from Europe, Argentina and other countries.

Ideal technical qualities for the light commercial segment

The 6S480 is used in the truck and minibus sector weighing up to seven tons and for pickup trucks and vans weighing up to 3,5 tons. It has six speeds, mechanical and synchronized, input torque capacity of up to 480 Nm. The transmission features functions such as Hill Assist (ramp assistant) and gear identification. “The 6S480 offers the transporter a series of benefits related to fuel economy, driving comfort and better productivity. The smoothness and precision when changing gears is another attribute that strengthened this successful history of the transmission in Brazil”, highlighted Silvio Furtado.

It is a lighter transmission with a synchronization package and optimized shifting system that allows greater precision when changing gears. This means the engine can operate in a lower speed range, in sixth gear, optimizing fuel consumption.