I guess a relatively cheap car has to have a weak spot somewhere,I’ve noticed over the years a lot of Merchants only want you bragging on a durable product if they can sale you another one(service calls are wanted and expected)but on the premium construction equipment(with a 65% markup)they dont care if you think the product is durable,when these things hit the pocketbook,they hit hard,brand loyalty goes a long way.
At my company we have had several Nissan Altimas with CVT’s blow up their transmissions at just over 100,000 miles. We have had zero transmission failures in cars with conventional gearboxes (automatic or standard). This is anecdotal evidence but it sure doesn’t look good for Nissan CVT’s.
@triedaq, you are describing a semi automatic. With an automated manual, you simply put it in drive and go. The computer decides how and when to actuate the clutch and shift forks of a conventional manual transmission. If you take a California CDL driving test with one of these, you’re restricted to an automatic on your license
Regarding Honda, I’d understand if they missed a detail such as an oxidizing rubber seal, wrong torque spec on certain bolts, spring stiffness, etc. The drive pulley is a major part of the transmission. Its design should have been triple checked and thoroughly tested in all sorts of conceivable situations before mass production. There’s no excuse for getting that part wrong
@chunkyazian Thanks for the information. The Hudson Drivemaster was almost an automated manual. The Hudson had a,manual transmission that had a vacuum cylinder that operated the clutch. This was called Vacuomatic. One step up was another vacuum cylinder that operated the shift rod from second to high gear. The driver could select manual mode, Vacuomatic mode where clutching was automatic or Drivemaster mode where the clutching and the shift from second to high was automatic. There was one more step up called Superdrive which combined the Drivemaster with the Borg-Warner overdrive. To make the shift from second to high and then to overdrive, one had to let up on the accelerator for the shifts to occur. I have no idea how the downshift was made from high to second. The,automated manual sounds somewhat similar except that the computer makes the shifts rather than the driver letting up on the accelerator. In both cases, it is an automatic or semi-automatic shifting of a manual transmission. It’s interesting how some of these old ideas come back in a new form.
Lots of semi-automatics:
I have never driven a CVT but think it would take some getting used to. I remember my first time driving a hybrid. I was starting out on a hill and it must have been in electric mode so there was a significant delay. It wasn’t going so I pressed the gas harder. It finally kicked in and burned rubber so I had to get used to how this operated and just wait, not keep pressing the gas harder.
I have also read that they are probably fine for daily drivers but not OK for long haul type stuff. If course many people just use their case to commute and this would probably be fine. I remember reading that some Japanese companies underestimated the number of miles driven in the US when the early CVTs were introduced and they experienced failures.
I think I would either prefer a traditional manual (what I have now) or an automated manual for reliability and economy. I have a friend with a recent model Ford Focus with an automated manual that has been nothing but a nightmare for him. Obviously there is a flaw in the implementation in this model of Focus as it doesn’t seem to be an issue in other makes. A relative of his worked for Ford and several other family members took advantage of the discount offered. While many bought trucks/SUVs, some also bought a Focus with the same transmission. All have had issues. What seems to be happening is that the input and output shaft seals seem to have a life of maybe 30,000 miles and the clutches start to slip once they get oiled up by the fluid. It looks like the 2013 and 14 models are bad with transmission. http://www.carcomplaints.com/Ford/Focus/2013/ I didn’t look up other years but he isn’t the only one by any means.
CVTs are probably great for the daily commuter but not cross country travelers and heavy duty commercial trucks.
CVTs today aren’t that different in how they drive. The one thing you’ll notice is how the revs rise right as you push the gas. They’re fine for cross country drives.
The reason I say “not for cross country driving” is the amount of miles you rack up on them. It seems that a traditional automatic or manual gets in one gear and stays there, putting a lot less wear and tear on them. I know people who buy retired police cars/taxis with 500,000 miles on them with the original engine and transmission still in them. I doubt you would see that with a CVT.
I am sure they would be fine on long drives but you might not want to use them in something that is going to go 100,000 miles in 3 years. That is more what I meant.
“It seems that a traditional automatic or manual gets in one gear and stays there, putting a lot less wear and tear on them.”
That used to be true, but not any more. You will find that most of the 6 speed automatics have the same gear ratios for gears 1-4 as the old 4 speed autos had. 5th and 6th gears are higher. In a 4 cylinder sedan with an A4 transmission, you would have the engine turning at around 2400 rpm @60 mph. Today the same sedan with an A6 transmission would still turn 2400 rpm in 4th, but in 6th it is only turning about 1800 rpm. For that reason, the A6 will downshift on hills that the A4 would not have, but it may only downshift to 5th or 4th. So overall there is a gain in efficiency.
Gotcha! I saw this discussion come up before and that explained why a 5 or 6 speed automatic can get better mileage than 5-6 speed manual where the gear ratios remained the same as they were before.
Thought y’all might enjoy a browse through the history of the automatic tranny.
In my youth, two and three speeds were the standards. My son’s new Audi has an eight speed, and I’ve read of nine speed automatics. My car has a four speed automatic, and I’d welcome a fifth gear (six speeds are standard in the new tC’s).
It seems to me that with manufacturers apparently capable of cost-efficiently manufacturing trannys with lots of gears, CVTs are somewhat superfluous. I’d much rather have a six, seven, or eight speed automatic backed by its well established decades of design evolution and high reliability and longevity than a CVT.