A South Otago engineer believes he has done what the world's
automotive giants couldn't, building a revolutionary gearbox that
could change the way people drive.
And with the prototype installed and working, Paul Goatley is now
ready to sell his design overseas.
Balclutha has a population of just 4,000. And on the hill
above, there's a modest tin shed, and some very big dreams.
"I wanted to have a sequential change transmission whereby you just flicked the gear lever and it would change gears," says Goatley.
A rallying enthusiast and automotive engineer by trade, Goatley dreamed of making his car faster, smoother, more efficient. A decade and thousands of hours and dollars later he's done it.
Along the way he has used good old Kiwi ingenuity to build a dynamometer worth tens of thousands of dollars for next to nothing, and been joined by an enthusiastic Tauranga based investor, Maurice O'Reilly is CEO of Goatley Technology.
"I liked the idea of someone in the South Island of New Zealand doing what the world's greatest engineers couldn't," says O'Reilly.
The prototype is installed and working with a vital feature - the ability to flick a switch from manual to automatic.
"Mum can drive it as an auto and dad can have fun changing gears," says Goatley.
The gearbox is also smaller, more fuel efficient and potentially cheaper to produce than standard transmissions.
They have taken out patents in 18 countries. The marketing push to sell the concept and design begins soon. They expect to make just one sale and it promises to be a big one.
