Who Makes Allison Transmission – (History & Heritage Explained)

The company that makes Allison Transmission is Allison Transmission Inc., an American manufacturer specializing in commercial duty automatic transmissions for medium- and heavy-duty commercial vehicles. Founded in 1915, the company is headquartered in Indianapolis, Indiana.

The company was established by James Allison, who mainly focused on aviation tools for the military. Later, GM acquired the company and manufactured the first transmission, called CD-850, for military trucks. It currently has transmissions spanning from gen-1 to gen-5.

Learning about your vehicle is the first step in the maintenance process. If your car or truck is equipped with an Allison Transmission, you must be curious about its specialty and why it’s so famous in this industry. Keep reading to find all the answers.

Who Makes Allison Transmission- A Brief History

James Allison was the mastermind behind Allison’s automatic transmissions. However, when he started the company in 1909, it was merely a racing components manufacturing company. 

And, more interestingly, the company wasn’t even called Allison. It was known as Indianapolis Motor Speedway Ind.

 If you are wondering why “Indianapolis” was chosen, it’s because the company’s headquarters was located in Indianapolis, Indiana. 

However, things started to change when the first world war overtook everything. Founder James Allison decided to participate in the war by manufacturing aviation tools for military trucks and tractors. 

Not to mention, it was a huge success. General Motors noticed how brilliant Allison’s technology was and decided to buy the ownership after James Allison left the world.

1928 was a remarkable year for Allison because the ownership finally changed. In 1934, GM created the Allison Engine section, and in 1945, the Allison transmission Engineering section was born. There was no looking back after that. 

Allison has given us five generations of transmission spanning from 1991 till now. Even though the earlier models were more focused on heavy-duty military trucks and tanks, the modern versions are suitable for passenger cars.

In 2007, GM decided to sell its ownership of Allison transmission to Onyx and the Carlyle Group. The purchase reportedly cost around $5.6B.

What Are The Different Allison Transmission Models?

We can categorize Allison’s transmissions into five generations. The first two generations dominated from 1991 to 1998. 

After that, third-generation transmissions replaced and sometimes supplemented the previous models. Let’s take a look at them.

Series (1000- 2000)

Before the 1000 series, Allison used to produce the 500, 600, and 700 series successfully. An AT-540 can provide an input of 235 HP, while the 700 series has a capacity of 440 HP. 

Of course, if you want to drive off-highway, 300+ HP is a must. All models within the 1000-2000 series have a minimum capacity of 300HP. 

Quick Tip: If you are looking for a solution for your Allison transmission shift selector problems, check the fluid level first. Most of the time, the transmission runs on low or deteriorated fluid causing all such problems.

Series (3000-4000)

None of the previous series transmissions were suitable for oil field pumping. For that, you have to rely on the series after 2000. 

General Motors decided to break the WT series from the second generation into two lines. 

One was MD (for medium-duty trucks), and another one was HD (for heavy-duty vehicles). Both parts later turned into the 3000 and 4000 series accordingly. 

Apart from the TCM going into limp mode (sometimes), there are few Allison 3000 transmission problems to worry about. However, with proper maintenance and care you can avoid these issues and get most out of this transmission.

Series (5000-8000)

Every model starting from series 5000 belongs to the generation 4-5 family. If your vehicle is used for heavy-duty tasks that require up to 1050HP, you should check out these series. 

Apart from the 8000 series, Allison Transmission also has a series 9000 specially designed for off-road vehicles. 

You can get a maximum output of 1750HP from that. If you noticed, we haven’t mentioned which transmission unit would yield the best results under a tractor.

 The truth is, none of the units from the 1000-9000 series could do that job. Allison transmission engineers designed a separate model called TC10 only for commercial tractors. Its output range is as much as 1750 to 1850 HP. That’s a lot.

Which Vehicles Use Allison Transmission?

There are hardly any heavy-duty military garbage trucks that don’t use Allison transmissions. But some important mentions are Chevrolet Silverado, Kodiak, GMC Topkick, GMC Sierra, and Chevrolet B-series. 

It makes sense because General Motors manufactures all these vehicles. Almost 70% of class-3, class-6, and class-8 trucks use Allison transmission series 1000-2000, 3000-4000, and 5000-8000 accordingly. 

Allison Transmission started the movement for hybrid automatic transmission. 

Previously, only electric or automated manual transmissions were used. Allison Transmission decided to bring a balance. 

The hybrid technology ensures better fuel management and higher torque. Thanks to the torque converter, you don’t have to rely on a manual dry clutch anymore. 

However, you still need to keep an eye on the signs of Allison transmission going out (grinding sound, black smoke from the ECU and so on). 

Final Words

No doubt, Allison Transmission is the most reputed brand when it comes to commercial transmission systems. After a century-long experience in this field, it has covered almost every feature, including torque and horsepower, to a wide gear ratio. 

If you are not looking to take the vehicle off-road, you stick with the 2000 series. 2300 is the specific model number if you want the highest power within this series.

However, if your requirement for power exceeds 1050 HP, vehicles with transmission from the series-8000 or 9000 would be required. You only need to keep that in mind.

Video References

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Rasel

Certification: BSc in Mechanical Engineering

Education: Mechanical  engineer

Lives In: 539 W Commerce St, Dallas, TX 75208, USA

Rasel is an auto mechanic student and writer with over half a decade of experience in the automotive field. He has worked with top automotive brands such as Lexus, Quantum, and also owns two automotive blogs autocarneed.com and taxiwiz.com.