wrote:

> Well, it's not exactly the same, because you can, by increasing the
> pressure, increase the speed of the wheels, but how can you, by
> reducing the pressure, slow it down? won't it just "ignore" the change?
> for example (I know it's not the same) - in a bicycle - you can
> accelerate by the pedals, but you can't slow down by turning them
> slower...

Right. That is what the torque converter does. You can think of the
torque converter as a thing that slips... the speed of the input and
the output don't have to be the same. Unlike a slipping belt, though,
it transmits the full amount of power across.

It's not like a direct chain connection like you might have in a bicycle.
If you slow the input down, the output doesn't necessarily follow in
speed, but if you reduce the input POWER, the output power is reduced.

I know this is a weird idea to wrap your head around.
--scott
--
"C'est un Nagra. C'est suisse, et tres, tres precis."