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#396149
When shopping for cars recently I test drove a few Japanese cars with CVT (Continuously variable transmission), which basically has no physical gear change. I'd prefer to have a full manual gearbox but my wife can't drive a stick shift so I had to go for an auto box, which is fine, lazy but fine... but I really didn't like the CVT transmissions, it felt like driving an electric motored car.

What do y'all think of this type of transmission?

Also, driving aids, you know the type of thing, basically it won't allow you to have an accident. In theory it's a great idea but I feel that too much control is being taken away from the driver. If you can't drive without crashing, stay the hell away from a car. It really isn't that difficult to drive a car; plus these auto driving aids can cause accidents by doing something unexpected!

I'd be interested to hear everyone's thoughts?
#396151
My mate had an audi with CVT and he loved it.

On the driver aid front. I think it makes car designers lazy. They do not tune the suspension etc for best performance they hide if behind the electronics.

also it kills the feeling of how close to the edge you are, I am sure in the winter or even bad weather people who have never driven cars without electronic aids do not understand or appreciate how close to the envelope they drive and the weather change causes the envelope to be exceeded.

I used to have a Mitsubishi Evo V and the moment I decided to sell the car was when I came around a corner doing almost twice the legal speed limit and it did not excite me as I knew the car could do it without a problem. However I could have a lot more fun wrestling a normal car without stability control, and skinny tyres at a speed that would not be an instant license looser.

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#396219
...Also, driving aids, you know the type of thing, basically it won't allow you to have an accident. In theory it's a great idea but I feel that too much control is being taken away from the driver. If you can't drive without crashing, stay the hell away from a car. It really isn't that difficult to drive a car; plus these auto driving aids can cause accidents by doing something unexpected!

I'd be interested to hear everyone's thoughts?


Agree with you, on this one!! I'm a bit of a "control freak" when it comes to driving!!
I do NOT want my car telling me what to do!! And, no, I don't have a GPS, either!
#396264
...Also, driving aids, you know the type of thing, basically it won't allow you to have an accident. In theory it's a great idea but I feel that too much control is being taken away from the driver. If you can't drive without crashing, stay the hell away from a car. It really isn't that difficult to drive a car; plus these auto driving aids can cause accidents by doing something unexpected!

Agree with you, on this one!! I'm a bit of a "control freak" when it comes to driving!!
I do NOT want my car telling me what to do!! And, no, I don't have a GPS, either!

Don't get me wrong, I like navigation, I like systems that alert me to hazards like blind spot detection, back up cameras/sensors; what I dislike is aids that actively take control of my vehicle!
#400657
I do dream of mastering a stick shift. (I like to challenge myself with stuff that chaps think they're unbeatable at)
Problem (or not) is Kampala, Uganda is blessed with so many hills and the traffic is madness (seriously, if you can drive in this city, you can drive ANYWHERE) so the whole balancing and shifting up to 3rd gear at most pretty much grinds my gears.
#400660
I do dream of mastering a stick shift. (I like to challenge myself with stuff that chaps think they're unbeatable at)
Problem (or not) is Kampala, Uganda is blessed with so many hills and the traffic is madness (seriously, if you can drive in this city, you can drive ANYWHERE) so the whole balancing and shifting up to 3rd gear at most pretty much grinds my gears.

Learning to drive stick takes 15 minutes, mastering it takes a lifetime. :hehe:
#400689
Here in the US it's more common to drive an automatic transmission car than in Europe. Most drivers in Europe can drive a "stick shift" because manual transmission is much more common so that first driving lesson will more than likely take place with a clutch and manual H pattern shifter. In the US the reverse is true, most first driving experiences will take place in an automatic, so naturally most US drivers will buy an automatic because that's what they are used to. Here in the US, it seems like only driving "enthusiasts" drive a manual transmission car!
#401021
When shopping for cars recently I test drove a few Japanese cars with CVT (Continuously variable transmission), which basically has no physical gear change. I'd prefer to have a full manual gearbox but my wife can't drive a stick shift so I had to go for an auto box, which is fine, lazy but fine... but I really didn't like the CVT transmissions, it felt like driving an electric motored car.

What do y'all think of this type of transmission?

Also, driving aids, you know the type of thing, basically it won't allow you to have an accident. In theory it's a great idea but I feel that too much control is being taken away from the driver. If you can't drive without crashing, stay the hell away from a car. It really isn't that difficult to drive a car; plus these auto driving aids can cause accidents by doing something unexpected!

I'd be interested to hear everyone's thoughts?


Hi buddy, (i think) perhaps late notice on this one but useful info i hope regardless:
CVT cars are in theory more fuel efficient cause they just run at optimum revs, so if you wanna save on fuel costs (in the USA? like it matters there hehe) they would help a little. But i'd stick with the tried and tested in case of a breakage. Modern semi-autos are getting very good; drivable and increasingly reliable, although really quite sluggish in my experience of 'regular' Toyotas and the like. They are a great compromise though - in traffic jams they are the BEST cause they have no clutch! And anyone can drive them, i believe. If it's a family car who cares about performance, it's more about easy driving and comfort, but if proper DRIVING is important then get a manual. It seems like a semi auto would work for you here though, the best of both worlds in a sense.

That said, i can't said i know of any reputable CVT road car personally, although i am slightly out of the loop there (i do not really keep tabs on this kind of thing). I thought most of the tech was still pretty experimental. Maybe there is some genius advance that passed me by. In terms of pure mpg your driving style will be more effective than anything the car does, in pure terms.

With regard to driving 'aids' it's not like it's a racing car TC that lets people drive aggressively, cause it won't really change anything. Aids are always safer in terms of real life applications, especially anti-skid systems which really every single modern road car should have equipped as standard AFAIK. These systems may precipitate OTT driving from some but by the same token they can save your life in some situations, like on really wet roads or in sudden danger situations or whatever. I don't think we're really near the stage of self-driving cars... but regardless of car age and tech there's sensible and idiot drivers, nothing can be done to prevent the latter sadly.
#401033
Scotty, first of all; great to have you back, hopefully you'll stick around!

It wasn't a question as such from a point of view of buying, I had already chosen my car, which was a regular auto box with SST (Selectable Shift Transmission), basically a rocker on the side of the gear shift that allows you to shift manually; which in reality doesn't give you full control, it'll only let you change up at predetermined speeds and changes down automatically when braking. But performance wise, it's pretty good, the six speed box is responsive and will hit the redline if you mash your foot down and gets upto 60 in 6 1/2 seconds.

When it comes to TC or ABS, even visual/audio aids like blind spot monitoring and rear parking sensors, I like those, it's the ones that take active control of the vehicle that I don't like!
#401481
My son bought a car that has cvt, he's going back to a manual as too many expensive issues keep occuring.

That's something that I had heard a lot as well, CVT's being problematic; which is probably why so many car makers are sticking with standard auto boxes; manual's are fairly rare here in the US from what I've been able to gather!
#425951
A close friend of mine has a Honda City with this CVT crap. He was very proud of it since getting the car and loved pitching about the CVT function until about a year ago it developed a simple glitch, and he had to spend almost 3 months of his salary to get the thing overhauled. I don't think he fancies it as much anymore.
#425956
My son bought a car that has cvt, he's going back to a manual as too many expensive issues keep occuring.

That's something that I had heard a lot as well, CVT's being problematic; which is probably why so many car makers are sticking with standard auto boxes; manual's are fairly rare here in the US from what I've been able to gather!

Though not rare, here in Canada, most of the people I know have automatic transmissions in their vehicles.
Overall, it's those with pickups or the younger guys who prefer the manual stick shifts!
#425957
A close friend of mine has a Honda City with this CVT crap. He was very proud of it since getting the car and loved pitching about the CVT function until about a year ago it developed a simple glitch, and he had to spend almost 3 months of his salary to get the thing overhauled. I don't think he fancies it as much anymore.

And, that's why the option to lease makes more sense (cents, too)!

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