How many DIYer’s out there rebuild there own transmissions??? And I bet probably no DIYer ever built a 6 plus speed in his driveway, and probably not a CVT… lol
A friend of mine years ago while building trans for Ford Dealer, had to do a transmission tools parts inventory and they had &25,000.00 worth of special tools just for Fords alone… That does not include presses and normal tools anyone can buy…
On an old Mopar 3 speed (A904/727) vs 4 speed (A500) RWD transmission, that the main difference is a seperate added OD unit in the tail housing, takes about $500 (on the cheap, plus a shop press) more special tools then the standard 3 speed, and the $500 is just for the OD unit alone…
So again, how many DIYer’s are really building CVT transmissions at home???
I am not talking about minor VB repairs and stuff cause CVT’s still have those…
Have a Corolla Cross with the CVT. It has a launch/1st gear to help. It feels adequate. The engine is a bit underpowered for the car but that is an engine and size issue.
Have a Nissan Rogue Sort, changed the CVT fluid at 30K miles and plan on doing it every 30K miles. Will see.
Currently on a road trip with a rental Nissan Altima. Wouldn’t have known it is a CVT if I wasn’t a gearhead. It drives just fine. I remember the ~ 2016 model I had rented once had a horrible droning noise when taking off. This one is just fine.
If any of these go to 150K miles, I think whatever transmission they have, if it needs a rebuilt, then odds are the owner will scarp the car.
There are a couple of Youtube videos on repairing Nissan CVT transmissions. It seems that there were a couple of parts that needed replacing with newer upgraded parts used in the latest generation Nissan CVTs. The belts were not one of them and were always reused.
The plusses and minuses of a CVT are well known and manufacturers are still improving the design but I don’t care for them, at least the ones I’ve driven. When new car shopping 5 years ago I ruled them out and bought a manual transmission car but on many car models a CVT is the only option. I’ll consider a CVT after I see them lasting 300,000 miles.
The debate between a CVT and a multi-speed automatic transmission takes me back to the 1950s. The Buick Dynaflow used a torque converter and depended on torque multiplication when starting out in drive. The Oldsmobile, Pontiac, and Cadillac had Hydramatic, a 4 speed automatic transmission with a fluid coupling (unlike a torque converter, the fluid coupling doesn’t multiply the torque. The torque converter has infinite gear ratios).
I remember my parents road testing a 1959 Buick Dynaflow and a 1959 Oldsmobile Hydramatic. They preferred the Oldsmobile.
To answer your question, I just did. 2014 Subaru Legacy with 104K miles a complete dealer service record. Just completed 20K miles of my own. So far, so good. Might be hard to find a newer small car without one. For what it’s worth, my CVT is exceptionally smooth, without the noticeable shift. Followed the advice of many to just replace whatever fluid can be drained and not to flush without a good reason for it. Subaru CVT fluid change is a bit tricky as they want you to have the car level with all four wheels off the ground and to check fluid level when it comes to operating termp. Just a little more involved than replacing MT fluid. I think Honda and Toyota have good reviews for their CVTs. Just do your homework and you should be fine.
What are you trying to say here, you are not very clear. Who exactly are you responding too. BTW, I have a 2014 Legacy with just over 130k. The transmission had a defective solenoid in it and the valve body had to be replaced at around 57k. Only one quart of new ATF was put in after the service. The 2014 Legacy’s have an extended warranty on the CVT for this issue.
The Mazda3 is a great vehicle with a fairly bulletproof drivetrain. The six speed automatic is a tried and true stalwart and the 2.0 and 2.5 liter NA engines are extremely reliable. I own or have owned 3 of the 2.5 liter turbos and they have also been very reliable (one is at 120,000 miles and does not burn any oil).
I think the 2.5 turbo would be fun in a Mazda 3, but wholly unnecessary. If you get a 2.5 liter NA it should be very peppy for everyday driving and get very nice fuel economy. My son has my old Mazda 6 (2014) with the 2.5 liter NA and it has close to 200,000 miles. It does not burn or leak any oil.
Try driving the different versions of the Mazda 3 and I think you will find the turbo is probably overkill. Now, in my CX-5 which is MUCH heavier and has more wind resistance, the turbo is quite nice.
Not difficult but fussy if you follow the Subaru shop manual. All wheels have to be jacked up and the car level. I made the mistake of opening the check drain first. A surprising amount of fluid came out, about 5 quarts. Another 1.5 drained when I opened the main drain. The fill plug washer is an odd size. Pretty heavy duty and I reused it as I could not find one to fit at the time.
Original refill was about 5 quarts. The procedure then is to run the engine to warm up the fluid to a curiously precise specified range–96-113F–, shift through the gears and to add fluid until it drains from the check drain. I could only get a little under 7 quarts back in. Was worried at first but never any issues and now that was more than 5K miles ago.
Two notes: First be sure to get the right fluid for your CVT. There are variants and the transmissions have a reputation for needing the correct fluid. Second, search Mr. Subaru on the web. He has a range of videos that are very informative.
A bit darker than new, but not horrible. Also smelled ok. As mentioned, I know the car received dealer service in the past but Subaru considers the CVT to have “lifetime” fluid so I doubt they would have touched it. I got the car just past the drivetrain warranty, including the extended CVT warranty of 100K. It just makes sense to me that no hydraulic fluid is forever. A simple drain and refill replaces about 1/3 of the CVT fluid. Having gone through it once, I expect that I will repeat the process every 30K, or 2-3 years for me.
That will probably work. Another way is to follow the Honda AT procedure. I used to drain, fill, and repeat three times. That’s the procedure in the owners manual IIRC. I did that every 30,000 miles and my 2005 EX V6 auto transmission still was excellent after 187,000 miles when I sold it. It was probably overkill, but it filled an afternoon every few years. I suspect that doing it your way would work well too.