Originally Posted By: KrisZ
I've driven in a CVT equipped... 1945 crop combine
it was much cruder than whatever is used these days, but the principle is the same.
That's why I smile when someone claims that CVT's are the latest and greatest technology and everything else is just stone age. So while the technology is new to automotive world, it's old news everywhere else.
Well then, I suppose you should be similarly scoffing at overhead cam engine designs -- which actually predated what are now viewed as "antique" pushrod designs. . .
By indulging in this smugness, you miss the point entirely, on several levels. CVTs aren't even new to the car world. Back in the late 60s to early 70s, my Dad did several "research assignments" over in Europe. We would routinely spend stretches of time staying with a Dutch family who were friends. They had a small car, a DAF IIRC, it was old then, and it had a CVT. Of course, it was a tiny, wheezing little box that seemed allergic to acceleration -- even as an eleven year-old, I sensed its repulsiveness. So yes, wherever they are installed, CVTs have come a long way.
Second, it's no big deal at all that variations of the CVT have been present in smaller, low-power apps for decades. The concept is old, and relatively easy to implement in lower power, lower torque applications.
Moving to the present, it is a real credit to today's engineers that they have the concept working well bolted to engines vastly more powerful than those of cars of yesteryear, or those found in snowmobiles or whathaveyou. My hat is off especially to Nissan and JATCO for making the concept work when paired off with the gutsy VQ series V-6s.
As for the Toyota/Lex hybrids, keep in mind that this is a totally different design. An absolute purist will deny that the HSD cars have CVTs at all. They would argue that conceptually, it's actually a one speed "automatic" in which that one speed has the ability to vary its ratio infinitely. All it is is a very simply planetary gear set to which the motor-generators and engine are linked in such a way that they all "cooperate" in a productive fashion. EDIT: but at the end of the day, it drives like a very well refined CVT.
But yeah, smile smugly all you want, the end result is that both the Camry hybrid and Prius deliver smoother, shift-free power delivery as compared to even a high-end stepped automatic, like our Avalon, for example. I don't care if the CVT originally dates back to the ancient Egyptians -- as installed in the HSD cars, and others, it works better than ANY multi-speed auto I've ever driven. That would include 3, 4, 5, and 6 speed variations.
I've driven in a CVT equipped... 1945 crop combine
That's why I smile when someone claims that CVT's are the latest and greatest technology and everything else is just stone age. So while the technology is new to automotive world, it's old news everywhere else.
Well then, I suppose you should be similarly scoffing at overhead cam engine designs -- which actually predated what are now viewed as "antique" pushrod designs. . .
By indulging in this smugness, you miss the point entirely, on several levels. CVTs aren't even new to the car world. Back in the late 60s to early 70s, my Dad did several "research assignments" over in Europe. We would routinely spend stretches of time staying with a Dutch family who were friends. They had a small car, a DAF IIRC, it was old then, and it had a CVT. Of course, it was a tiny, wheezing little box that seemed allergic to acceleration -- even as an eleven year-old, I sensed its repulsiveness. So yes, wherever they are installed, CVTs have come a long way.
Second, it's no big deal at all that variations of the CVT have been present in smaller, low-power apps for decades. The concept is old, and relatively easy to implement in lower power, lower torque applications.
Moving to the present, it is a real credit to today's engineers that they have the concept working well bolted to engines vastly more powerful than those of cars of yesteryear, or those found in snowmobiles or whathaveyou. My hat is off especially to Nissan and JATCO for making the concept work when paired off with the gutsy VQ series V-6s.
As for the Toyota/Lex hybrids, keep in mind that this is a totally different design. An absolute purist will deny that the HSD cars have CVTs at all. They would argue that conceptually, it's actually a one speed "automatic" in which that one speed has the ability to vary its ratio infinitely. All it is is a very simply planetary gear set to which the motor-generators and engine are linked in such a way that they all "cooperate" in a productive fashion. EDIT: but at the end of the day, it drives like a very well refined CVT.
But yeah, smile smugly all you want, the end result is that both the Camry hybrid and Prius deliver smoother, shift-free power delivery as compared to even a high-end stepped automatic, like our Avalon, for example. I don't care if the CVT originally dates back to the ancient Egyptians -- as installed in the HSD cars, and others, it works better than ANY multi-speed auto I've ever driven. That would include 3, 4, 5, and 6 speed variations.
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