Patent ID: 6893378

Claim:
A vehicular transmission system comprising a prime mover, a transmission having at least one mode of operation where the transmission is selectively shifted into a lower gear ratio as vehicle speed decreases, a master friction clutch for drivingly connecting the prime mover to the transmission, and at least one control unit for receiving an input and processing the input according to logic rules to issue an output to system components including at least the transmission, the system further characterized by: the master friction clutch being a centrifugally operated clutch; the control unit, in the at least one mode of operation, selectively prohibits the transmission from being shifted into a lower gear ratio; at least one input corresponding to a system operating condition; the control unit including logic rules that control operation of the transmission in response to the system operating condition; and at least one output corresponding to a specific priority command to prohibit the transmission from being shifted into any lower gear ratio in response to the system operating condition.