Mazda says "no" to CVTs

banjos-n-beer said:
"They don't drive like a Mazda"

More info on Mazdas future...,

http://www.roadandtrack.com/new-cars/car-technology/amp14105487/mazda-skyactiv-x-la-auto-show/
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Great news.

Puyapim said:
One of the biggest reasons I picked the CX-5 was the transmission. Its the best Ive ever driven.
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Agreed. I immediately crossed off all the CVT vehicles I test drove before I bought this and for very good reason. So soulless, and nowadays they are having to make CVTs mimic regular auto transmission gear shifts!

Moonlighter said:
Manufacturers who fit a CVT to a car sends me a very clear message: their car is soul-less and they are selling an appliance, not a driving experience to be enjoyed.

Not for this little wood duck, thanks very much.
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Couldn't agree more.
 
After owning Nissans for 25 years I dumped the brand when they shifted to CVTs. I had a 2016 Altima for a rental car while traveling and it was god awful. The drone and the acceleration noise was so loud when pushing the 4 cylinder it felt like it was going to blow up.
 
yrwei52 said:
Totally agree! Additional 1 or 2 gears for its SkyActiv-Drive automatic transmission is long over-due. This’s not only good to improve EPA fuel economy ratings, but also good for marketing to match most others especially in luxury vehicle segment.
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It would also make it faster "for free" because it could keep it in the powerband more efficiently.
 
yrwei52 said:
Agreed. The same happened switching manual to automatic ⋯
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Exactly. The CVT will eventually overtake the auto, just as the auto overtook the manual, in every quantifiable way---except personal enjoyment, and that IS a selling point, to be fair.
 
We test drove a 2017 Nissan Rouge SL. I must admit it had a well performing CVT. It was strange in_that I knew it was a 'CVT' but it performed and felt like a standard automatic. What kind of black magic was that?
 
Heritage07 said:
After owning Nissans for 25 years I dumped the brand when they shifted to CVTs. I had a 2016 Altima for a rental car while traveling and it was god awful. The drone and the acceleration noise was so loud when pushing the 4 cylinder it felt like it was going to blow up.
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I agree. I just bought a 1995 Nissan Maxima with a V6, LSD, and the very, very rare 5 speed manual for $600 the other week. The only thing I can say is, that they simply do not build these new cars like they used to. This Nissan has 213k miles on the clock. Not a creak or rattle anywhere - the doors shut nice and firmly. Engine runs perfectly, car looks brand new inside and out, is honestly pretty fast for its age, corners excellent... I cant say enough good things about this car, I absolutely love it. Hell, even the heated seats still work on this car! As for Nissan manuals, it requires an excessive amount of careful, deliberate shifting to drive smoothly but once you get the hang of it the clutch is extremely rewarding and Ive even noticed my fuel economy improve. Nissan clutches seem to absolutely hate being rushed off the line in first gear, but once youre rolling its a fun car.
 
GJ-Molestor said:
I agree. I just bought a 1995 Nissan Maxima with a V6, LSD, and the very, very rare 5 speed manual for $600 the other week. The only thing I can say is, that they simply do not build these new cars like they used to. This Nissan has 213k miles on the clock. Not a creak or rattle anywhere - the doors shut nice and firmly. Engine runs perfectly, car looks brand new inside and out, is honestly pretty fast for its age, corners excellent... I cant say enough good things about this car, I absolutely love it. Hell, even the heated seats still work on this car! As for Nissan manuals, it requires an excessive amount of careful, deliberate shifting to drive smoothly but once you get the hang of it the clutch is extremely rewarding and Ive even noticed my fuel economy improve. Nissan clutches seem to absolutely hate being rushed off the line in first gear, but once youre rolling its a fun car.
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That's actually an excellent buy.

My son had an early 2000's Maxima which was a great car. I think it had the 3.3L v6.
I had a 2003 Sentra SE-R with the 2.5 engine (bought new). What a nice little pocket rocket that was. I'm still sorry I let it go.
In my mind, the last good year for Nissan was 2006. After that, the Sentra, Altima and Pathfinder were re-designed....all for the worse.
 
Buzzman12 said:
That's actually an excellent buy.

My son had an early 2000's Maxima which was a great car. I think it had the 3.3L v6.
I had a 2003 Sentra SE-R with the 2.5 engine (bought new). What a nice little pocket rocket that was. I'm still sorry I let it go.
In my mind, the last good year for Nissan was 2006. After that, the Sentra, Altima and Pathfinder were re-designed....all for the worse.
Click to expand...

I was actually looking at a 2004 Nissan Sentra spec V with the 6 speed manual before settling with this Maxima. it could have just been that my particular Maxima was very well maintained by the original owner (it was from British Columbia so the car has no rust) but my 2001 Honda Accord Ive owned in the past had similar mileage and it did not feel anywhere near as well put together as this Maxima. It still feels like and for the most part drives like a new car except for the worn suspension... the quality of materials, fit and finish, overall assembly reminds me of the quality you would find in a Toyota Camry from this era - very well built. I inquired about this vehicle and bought it the very same day it was posted up for sale on Kijiji, so I scored one hell of a deal. I was looking for one of these to compliment my manual transmission-lacking lineup for ages but its damn near impossible to find one in any sort of condition with a manual transmission.

With the next generation of maximas they changed it from a 3L 5 speed like mine to 3.5L 6 speed in either 2002 or 2003, I do not remember when exactly. As for the last good Nissan being built before 2006, i wholeheartedly agree. Unfortunately it had a lot to do with Renault swooping in to save the brand, and they forced Nissan to take some very dramatic cost cutting measures to save money and you can feel it with the newer cars.
 
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rj_make said:
We test drove a 2017 Nissan Rouge SL. I must admit it had a well performing CVT. It was strange in_that I knew it was a 'CVT' but it performed and felt like a standard automatic. What kind of black magic was that?
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The kind everyone is using nowdays? The Subaru WRX and Forester 2.0XT do just fine with CVT's, although rowing your own is "a thing" in a car like the WRX, so I disagree with its use, there.
 
GJ-Molestor said:
I agree. I just bought a 1995 Nissan Maxima with a V6, LSD, and the very, very rare 5 speed manual for $600 the other week. The only thing I can say is, that they simply do not build these new cars like they used to. This Nissan has 213k miles on the clock. Not a creak or rattle anywhere - the doors shut nice and firmly. Engine runs perfectly, car looks brand new inside and out, is honestly pretty fast for its age, corners excellent... I can’t say enough good things about this car, I absolutely love it. Hell, even the heated seats still work on this car! As for Nissan manuals, it requires an excessive amount of careful, deliberate shifting to drive smoothly but once you get the hang of it the clutch is extremely rewarding and I’ve even noticed my fuel economy improve. Nissan clutches seem to absolutely hate being rushed off the line in first gear, but once you’re rolling it’s a fun car.
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this guy agrees:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ChZ_GvP_fkQ
 
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erhayes said:
Mathematically the CVT should be the ideal AT for an internal combustion engine. I feel the resistance to the CVT was initiated by the first production efforts and the reliability issues. We drivers, are a stubborn group when it comes to any changes or something we perceive as negative without any data. I think the modern CVT has a great future because of high efficiency and performance. Ed
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I agree with you and I think that a well designed and reliable CVT is here to stay since it reduces fuel cost and emission levels. Drove Toyota RAV 4 with 2 litre petrol engine and CVT and did not notice that it was a CVT until someone told me later. RAV4 as a whole was not bad at all except for the oldish interior design and only three years guarantee (Mazdas offer ten year guarantee here). I think most people that are negative to CVT are referring to older CVTs.
 
Buzzman12 said:
That's actually an excellent buy.

My son had an early 2000's Maxima which was a great car. I think it had the 3.3L v6.
I had a 2003 Sentra SE-R with the 2.5 engine (bought new). What a nice little pocket rocket that was. I'm still sorry I let it go.
In my mind, the last good year for Nissan was 2006. After that, the Sentra, Altima and Pathfinder were re-designed....all for the worse.
Click to expand...

'00 & '01 were 3.0L with 222HP but '01 had an anniversary edition with 227HP. The '02 & '03 were 3.5L @ 255HP and were the last Maxima models made in Japan.

Equivalent Infiniti models were the i30/i35 with latter model bowing out for the '04 model year.
 
CVT is a bandaid in my eyes.... and lets check back in in say about 10 years. Nissan didn't extend their warranties out to 10 yrs/ 120k miles because they're nice people.
 
Buzzman12 said:
That's actually an excellent buy.

My son had an early 2000's Maxima which was a great car. I think it had the 3.3L v6.
I had a 2003 Sentra SE-R with the 2.5 engine (bought new). What a nice little pocket rocket that was. I'm still sorry I let it go.
In my mind, the last good year for Nissan was 2006. After that, the Sentra, Altima and Pathfinder were re-designed....all for the worse.
Click to expand...

My last Nissan was a y2k gle. Ran that sucker for 265,000 miles before I bought my current BMW 328 currently with 149,000 miles so far.
 
Moonlighter said:
Manufacturers who fit a CVT to a car sends me a very clear message: their car is soul-less and they are selling an appliance, not a driving experience to be enjoyed.

Not for this little wood duck, thanks very much.
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Funny, the RAV4 also has a 6 speed automatic transmission, I guess it's got a ton of soul(lol2)
 
raj55 said:
I think most people that are negative to CVT are referring to older CVTs.
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This is correct. You'll notice the people that bash them here constantly bring up Nissan as an example. Maybe Nissan just builds unreliable CVTs? I don't know I have never driven one, although most reviewers who have done reviews on vehicles with good CVTS(CRV/Forester) praise them, in fact the CRV and Forester have won 3 Motor Trend SUV of the year awards in the last 5 year using CVTs.
 
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