This started in a different thread that was not exactly related to me getting a new car, only that I was considering a CVT car after being a manual transmission person for much of my life. I was seeking cruising speed RPM info on the CVT. I have copied and pasted from that thread in an effort to share my experience with a new 2018 Fit EX CVT. Also, I have added a lot of info after the copy and paste..

11 days ago my 52,000 mile - 2015 GK 6mt, car was traded in on a 2018 GK EX CVT with 29 miles...

I'm thankful a previous thread pushed me away from buying nearly the same car I already had. I was close to buying a 2017 EX-L, but a little peer pressure had me questioning my motives. Yes it was going from base to loaded, but still much of the same. I walked into the dealer on my third trip to tell them I was not convinced the 2017 EX-L was for me, and I think the dealer knew this.. I walked in and I said "hello" and the dealer responded with, "good to see you back, I have an idea... lets go drive the 2018 EX CVT, it costs a less and I think it's a lot of car..." I drove the car and the rest is history.

THIS IS A DIFFERENT CAR. WOW! I just did 2400 miles of road tripping from Indiana to Southern Florida and back and I am in shock that it is so different. Having my fiance comment at least 4 times during our trip, stating, "wow, I still can't get over this difference." She was actually against the idea at first and wanted to put the miles on the one we knew we would trade in. During the trip she made multiple comments that this was such a good decision to make the trade beforehand.

Things I was considering with the 2018 based on my reading:
SiriusXM
Better sound system
Body reinforcements
insulated belly pan under the car - looks like the fuzzy fender liners instead of the previous plastic
better headlights
lower rpm on the interstate with CVT
better suspension
Honda Sense package
Different glass for insulation
Moonroof
Better steering feel
Key fob door lock and push button start

after buying:
learned they added tie down hoops or child seat tie downs in the back seat.

Some quick opinions:
Honda Sense - Amazing. I never knew I would care about this stuff. The lane assist, active cruise, etc... about 15,000 of my 18,000 miles per year are highways. This stuff changes the game.

The keyless technology and push start.. - Why was I so hard headed. The car starts each time and it will probably have a quarter-million miles before it has a starting issue. If the starter begins to fail, I'll fix it... But my hard headed side always said "I want the control of a key" It's like saying I wanted buttons on my iPhone, or give me a flip phone (it's history, it's gone)

The sound! The car is so quiet I can't explain it. When the 6 speed manual was an interstate car, it was howling. If the manual car was a windows down, summer climate, city car with some interstate jaunts, then sure, it would be great. But the reality is that the 2018 with CVT is a different beast and it is quiet. RPM is so much lower, which helps, but even when it revs, it's quieter. Moments on the highway that it needs to rev up to 3500-4000, it's still so much quieter. Around town, especially in ECON, it only revs as much as it needs, not revving higher than needed to make the next gear more manageable.

I talk about how much quieter it is, but it also sounds so much better. The previous didn't have the same notes inside the cabin. I have read that the firewall is insulated and I give credit to this.

Apple CarPlay.. again, WOW! Changed my life. I was bummed that it takes a cord but I quickly got over that. It has some kinks to work out, but I'm sure Honda or Apple will get it.

SiriusXM - We have had it in my fiances Jeep, but that Jeep moves maybe 2,500 miles per year with her driving it. I never knew how great XM could be on long road trips. I'm not searching, I'm not going through a predictable playlist from a USB, etc... (which reminds me, my USB is in the I traded in and the dealer has already sold it, uh-oh! I wonder what else I had on that mini USB, LOL)

It's important that I mention... I went from one end of the spectrum and almost all the way to the other end. A 2014 built, 2015 Fit that I loved even though it's this pain, creaking motor mount, 2200 rpm 1st gear annoyances, etc.... Now this 2018, it's just simply a more refined car.

I'm a car nut with a Honda Fit budget. I pay attention to little things and this car has fixed those, it seems.

For those that would not own a CVT, I was there too... This thing feels like a manual with infinite gears. In fact, the CVT makes me really dislike regular automatics. It doesn't search for gears like an auto does... It simply gives you however much power is needed to maintain or achieve the goal of your foot on the pedal. It is the oddest thing to have the car simply give you more power because you requested it. Versus bogged down and a huge downshift. Or even a compared to a manual where you may have control, but a majority of the time you are either above or below the perfect amount of power for a given situation.

Sorry if any of this is sounds boastful. As a car nut, I get excited about these things, just the same way I get excited about other peoples mods. Hopefully this gives someone the view of a guy who loved his first GK and now really loves the slightly more refined newer-GK.


Not a great pic, but you all know what they look like

 

I am a sporty driver, Porsche and BMWs, and always had manual for my personal cars. My initial intention was a 2017 6 spd LX, but at the last minute I went for the CVT and glad I did.

 

If Honda follows their typical pattern, you are probably driving what will be mechanically a 2019 Fit.

They generally test the waters with the next generation stuff by putting it in the last year of a model run. Some things can alter their plans, but that is their general operation.

Glad you're so happy with the new car!

 

Congratulations!

 

i dont think so but do agree the CVT is 1000x better than the complete shittt AT they put in the GE.

personally i hate torque converters regardless of planetary or cvt when im on the car.

 

I think you are mistaking a torque converter for a slipping front wheel drive transaxle in low dollar cars. A properly built torque converter auto like you find in a new Corvette, Hellcat, AMG Mercedes or in one of the worlds fastest street cars (talking 6 second quarter mile drag cars) go to 100% lock and are only used to multiply the torque at low rpms to help a car launch.

Where as a CVT never fully locks into a single gear ratio, a proper torque converter auto will slip and provide torque multiplication until the ECU calls for lock. In my car, I have the program set to go to full lock at 2400 rpm. That gets the car into full boost and torque in first gear. From that rpm/gear forward, the converter is 100% locked and it becomes the same as direct drive in each ratio just like a DSG.

I can paddle shift it up or down, but as long as it's above 2400 rpm, it's at full lock and the converter does nothing except sap some power due to reciprocating mass.

The same launch is achieved with a DSG by slipping the computer controlled clutch at lower rpm's and then locking at preset rpms. The only difference is that the DSG does not have the torque multiplication of the torque converter and takes less power to operate.

It's a trade off. The DSG has fewer moving parts, is lighter, and can shift faster. The torque converter auto has torque multiplication to aid in launch and operates as a cushion for the transmission at lower rpms.

CVT's are a whole different beast. They are literally built in sterile rooms and are not even currently rebuildable in the field. They operate by constantly slipping a belt along two pulleys. Their primary advantage is infinite gear ratios, but they also have the highest parasitic drag.

In the world of high horsepower, big dollar builds you have DSG type transmissions and torque converter autos ruling the world. The CVT is much newer though, so who knows what the future holds. If the internal combustion motor sticks around long enough, we may see some kind of hybrid between the three styles.

Edit - there are other types that aren't as common. For instance a Top Fuel car doesn't really have a transmission. It only has multiple clutches between the motor and differential. Each sequential clutch adds more friction to provide more locking force until the last clutch nears 100% lock. Not useful for street use, but darn cool!

 

CyclingFit, I usually buy manual's, but at the time the commute to work in stop and go traffic was killing my manual car and milage (not to mention my clutch and clutch leg). I'm very happy with the cvt in my Fit.

Nice info GAFIT.

Off topic but there is the potential to use cvt's in superchargers.

 

What I find interesting is what Honda has done with it's newer CVT's.

They program them to intentionally skip over potential gear ratios in order to mimic a standard transmission. In other words, they have infinite potential, but they choose to have it instead skip up or down at times so that the user feels/hears a "shift."

It takes away some of the usefulness of the CVT, but works great to alleviate some of the drone and improves perceived performance.

My Dad has a new CR-V with the CVT. I had to explain to him what it was doing because he couldn't tell the car had a CVT at all. It just feels like a standard 6-8 speed transmission.

 

Every post I write could be a novel if I wrote everything I think I agree, torque converters are the devil and any extra slush just drives me nuts. American cars forever have gotten this wrong for as long as there have been American automatics.

This car just doesn't do much of the slushy thing. What I like so far is that it's not predictable. It's not like it has some kick down point in the pedal. It doesn't shift simply because it got to a certain RPM with a certain amount of pedal pressure. So far it feels like it does just enough to answer my requests.

Now... I have not tried to drive the wheels off it in sport/paddle mode. I don't know if it will rev to the moon no matter what gear I am in or if it will try to build the RPM and feel like a true stick. I may figure this out on the way home tonight.

All my initial hate for CVT was caused (I think) by a Nissan rental car and the "drone" that you mention, maybe as far back as 8 years ago when I was in that car. They REV up like a cheap go-kart and then have that accelerate later feeling. I'm guessing those original CVT's have been hard to overcome for marketing teams. I'm guessing the shift feelings are to rope in the people that just can't get over the CVT idea.

I am yet to pound on this car and ask it what it is capable of. It seems those days are usually behind me. Years ago I wouldn't miss an autoX and eventually got into motorcycle track days. I do know how to ask a lot of a vehicle, I just haven't had the desire to be hard on this one, yet........ Anything I have said about this car or compliment about this car has been as though my older parents are driving it.

I should probably give a short review later after a little back road romping.

Lastly, I totally understand the awesomeness of some modern transmissions. I've used launch control in both an M3 and 500hp M5, and it was beyond impressive. Even had the chance to push a 670hp Roush Stage 3 Mustang pretty hard. But in a class of sub $20,000 and below fun hatchbacks, I am very impressed with what less than 20 g's can buy these days.

Good chat guys, all, keep it up

 

why someone would compare a GK torque converter to a corvette is beyond me.. yes you, GAFIT. i'm taking about the regular car aka GK torque converter.

 

cyclingfit- the GK's cvt is so much better than the GE's AT, i applaud honda for the huge improvement. i speak from experience owning both cars. it's a night day improvement.

there are many benefits to the cvt, as you said no shift point jerkiness. i hated that on the GE and most planetary AT cars in cold weather.

 

I was only giving the Corvette auto as an example of why to not hate all torque converter autos. The new Mustang and Camaro's with the 10-speed auto smoke their manual counterparts at pretty much everything. The torque converters help them launch better and then the transmission outshifts any human. I also need to remind myself to not hate all CVT's. They are much, much better than they used to be.

Shoot, all auto transmissions are a million times better. The fact that enthusiasts are even able to talk about them is amazing. It was just a short time ago that it was either manual or a horrible slushbox.

 

Before I bought my GK CVT, I test drove a GE AT w/55K at a dealership. Accelerating from a stop, the GE's AT was buzzy and frenetic going through the first couple gears. I had a stick on my last seven cars and decided that if I were to get a tranny other than a stick, this wasn't the one.

What really swayed me from that GE is that the dealership had it way overpriced and wasn't interested in any discount, at which point I told them, look, I can get a new GK for maybe a couple thousand more, with a full warranty. They were adamant on their price. So what did I do? Went out and got the GK CVT, which is much smoother from a stop. Haven't looked back.

 

While I mostly agree with your post I want to clarify some aspects of it.
What you call a 'proper torque converter auto' is the clasic planetary gear auto with torque converter that bases operation on unlocking the TC to change gears.
But those aren't the only ones using a torque converter.
In fact the Fit's CVT does have a proper torque converter that allows the car to stand still, multipies the torque and locks exactly as in an old school auto but then remains locked unless the cars comes to a stop again, the CVT doesn't need it to change ratios.
Another example is Honda's 8 speed dual clutch transmission, as dual-clutch transmissions have been known to shift roughly (particularly from a stop) Honda incorporated a torque converter for a smoother launch and for moving at 'crawl' speed without stressing the clutch.

 

I've driven the 2018 with a manual and cvt. I preferred the manual. But my needs aren't the same as the needs of the OP. I don't drive through a lot of stop'n'go traffic and I rarely drive more than 40-45 miles per day during the work week. I'm not enough of a miser to switch from manual to cvt for mpg. I ended up in a 2017 MT as my first Fit and I'm very happy with my choice, but it's good to read the positive experiences of other drivers. Future Happens.

 

there’s no doubt the Fits are more fun with MT. but mine is my wife’s car and she can’t drive MT.

 

 

Hear hear...
CyclingFit Thread Starter: For those that would not own a CVT, I was there too... This thing feels like a manual with infinite gears. In fact, the CVT makes me really dislike regular automatics.

The 2017 LX CVT was not my obvious choice coming from manuals. If they had invented the CVT before the torque converter automatic, they would have said the auto is archaic.

 

Funny thing is my GK's suspension started feeling closer and closer to my 200k mile Pontiac Sunfire my buddy's parents own and still beat around the block. And it all started around that magic number: 50+ k miles. I am close to 80k miles now. Looking into OE replacement; dealer too much $$$.

I took off one of the gas shocks from the rear and there's still pressure in it, but very likely not enough. Now .... how to hook up my tire pump to it and get it back to "OE" spec

 

yah, my wife is happy with the CVT on her car..but to her it would be even better if autonomous..