[2] The Turboglide was modeled along the lines of the concurrently-geared (as opposed to sequentially-geared) Buick Flight Pitch Dynaflow transmission,[citation needed] and operated very similarly.
The stator element of the torque converter has two blade positions, controlled by the driver via the accelerator pedal to offer a 'passing gear' and extra response at any speed from heavy throttle application.
In normal driving the stator blades are arranged at 'cruise' angle which offers improved efficiency and response at light throttle.
Flooring the accelerator pedal changes the angle of the stator vanes hydraulically to 'performance angle' which permits the converter to achieve stall about 1000 rpm higher than in 'cruise' as well as redirecting oil to strike the next-lower drive turbine which effectively lowers the drive ratio of the transmission and allows engine speed to rise for greater output.
In the normal light traffic driving, the Turboglide automatically selects the highest (the lowest numerically) practical ratio, and the engine speeds run in the 1000-2500 rpm range, saving fuel and improving the throttle response of the car to the small pedal motions.
The 'Grade Retarder' range was to provide engine braking when necessary, a driving condition which could absorb close to 200 hp (150 kW) of power above to what was available via the engine compression, by counter-rotating the turbines in the converter and soaking up the vehicle energy by agitating the oil inside the converter housing.
Continuously variable transmissions (CVT) offer similar performance characteristics, though with a completely different mechanical principle.
The Turboglide was designed under the supervision of Frank Winchell, Ed Cole and Robert P. Benzinger at Chevrolet engineering.
The 1959 Turboglide incorporated very significant changes intended to improve its durability, some of which were possible to retrofit to earlier versions.
reported that Turboglide had better reliability when coupled with the smaller 283 cubic-inch Turbo-Fire V8, than with the big-block 348 Turbo-Thrust engine.
Chevrolet did not have the benefit of Detroit Division's experience in aluminum case casting, and engineering errors were made, exacerbated by a lack of pre-production testing.