Can any body give me some in put on the CVT trans, Likes or dislikes.
Thanks, Steve (Killeen, TX)

Hi Steve, and welcome to MINI2! There have been many discussions on CVTs, you should try doing a search for CVT. Some like it, some don't, it's not an automatic, just get used to it, is the discussions boiled down essense.

CVT Poll (http://www.mini2.com/forum/showthread.php?s=&threadid=18117)

CVT Users (http://www.mini2.com/forum/showthread.php?s=&threadid=15024)

If you have any questions, bring them this way if you would like...

I think the summary of the opinion of those of us who like the CVT would be something like, "all the convenience of an automatic and a lot of the fun of a manual."

I heard CVTs have a fake gear change feel for the American market. Is this true? If so, is there a way to stop it? Maybe importing a ECU?

I always thought the gear change feel was the CVT simply catching up with itself...you are refering to when you are fully accelerating right?

In September, I test drove a MINI Cooper w/CVT and remarked to the salesperson how smooth the acceleration was...how there were no discernable "shifts" that could be felt in a typical car with an auto tranny.

He replied "yes, that's the nature of CVT, like the name says...continuously variable transmission."

Then he said, "But, because so many Americans are so accustomed to feeling the car shift and hearing the engine noise change at each shift, MINI is actually going to program the CVT with 'virtual shifting points' that will take the revs down a bit, then back up, for a fraction of a second, so it feels 'normal' to the driver. " I said, "But by doing so, that actually impedes performance!" and he replied "That's right, but because so many buyers are expecting it (the feel of a conventional auto tranny changing gears), MINI decided to put it in future CVT programming updates."

I hope they don't actually do this on future CVT MINIs. I for one really liked the smooth "shiftless" feel of the CVT I drove. It was neat feeling the car get up to speed with imperceptable shifting....now they're going to ruin it with virtual shift points. Crazy Americans.

-Mighty Boognish

I don't understand this. They think that the american public is so stupid as to not understand a CVT. The next thing you know, BMW will do something else stupid and disable some safety feature like :D"rear fog lights":D just because us stupid americans probably don't know how to correctly use them.

For all I know BMW might be planning on faking a "shifting" CVT, but I suspect a lot of this comes from a misunderstanding about the sports mode when the CVTs hadn't really been released yet. There was an idea that the sports mode delivered a shifting sensation as well as delivery more power. In fact, of course, it simply makes it possible for you to shift simulated gears manually.

Originally posted by Mini1380
I don't understand this. They think that the american public is so stupid as to not understand a CVT. The next thing you know, BMW will do something else stupid and disable some safety feature like :D"rear fog lights":D just because us stupid americans probably don't know how to correctly use them.

How truely spoken. All you have to do is look around at the number of people who drive 24 hours a day with their front fogs on no matter what the weather, and you can see how many people would just leave the rear fog lights on all the time also. :rolleyes:

Then there would be a thread titled, "How can I rewire the switch so that my REAR fogs stay on when I restart the car"?

Second thread. "How can I put light bulbs in my rear fog lamps with enough wattage to melt the lenses, without melting the lenses"?;) ;) ;) ;)

Originally posted by steve mcbride
Can any body give me some in put on the CVT trans, Likes or dislikes.
Thanks, Steve (Killeen, TX)

It is the only choice for me, I don't have use of my left foot. So the CVT is a perfect choice for me. I loved tooling around in the Demo, the Sales Guide had me on back roads and highways so I could see how well it operates. Does take a bit to get used to, but over all a good choice if you don't want to do the shift/clutch thing.

I have a CVT myself. Even in Standard drive mode, it seem there are jumps at times when I accellerate hard. The only other CVT Auto I have driven is a Toyota Prius (Hybrid Gas/electric). On this Vechicle, it is VERY smooth, and you feel NO shiftpoints whatsoever, let alone when the Electic motor And Engine are trading places...as it is very quiet car. I hope that the option of total CVT on my Cooper was programmed out for the Americans. :mad:

I will have no way of knowing until I travel abroad and find a ride with a CVT owner!

[QUOTE]Originally posted by RedBackFur
[B]I have a CVT myself. Even in Standard drive mode, it seem there are jumps at times when I accellerate hard. The only other CVT Auto I have driven is a Toyota Prius (Hybrid Gas/electric). On this Vechicle, it is VERY smooth, and you feel NO shiftpoints whatsoever, let alone when the Electic motor And Engine are trading places...as it is very quiet car. I hope that the option of total CVT on my Cooper was programmed out for the Americans. :mad:

Answer.

There IS a clutch in the CVT. It is not a hydraulic transmission. The oil bath clutch is controlled by the computer, and it moderates the rapidity of the engagement with the fuzzy logic of the computer, trying to predict how hard you are coming off the line. If the last time you left a stop you were driving lightly, it will give a light and smooth clutch engagement. If you are full throttle, it will dump the clutch to prevent clutch slip. You must have a clutch, to disengage the drive belt at a stop.

The clutch slips as you start off, just like a manual transmission, except you do not directly control the engagement speed. The "shift" that you feel is the clutch engaging fully, and the belt starting to do the ratio changes. Not gear changes, ratio changes.

Nothing can be as smooth as an electric powered car, except for the 1953 Buick Dynaflow one speed. :D :D

I do know how to drive a stick, but I feel that if God had wanted me to shift gears, he would not have given humans brains to build automatics.

Yes, I do own a CVT equipped MINI.

For all of you who have decided that the CVT is not for you, I am in the market for another fully loaded CVT MINI. Of course, since you are trying to sell a (Oh, yuck, poo) CVT, I will only pay $10,000 below Edmonds book value.

;) ;) ;) ;) ;)

Jim, what is the best way to get moving from a stop considering the CVT technology??

Originally posted by Electrc109
Jim, what is the best way to get moving from a stop considering the CVT technology??


We only have about 7,000 miles on ours. The more miles on it, the smoother the clutch engages. The more consistent you are as to departure RPM on leaving a stop, the smoother the clutch engagement. The computer trys to learn your driving style, and the more it stays the same the better.

I have to believe that they did a lot of testing on this before bringing it to market. That said, I have no hesitation about doing a full throttle departure when needed.

As I have mentioned on another thread, in my opinion, the Cruise Control with the CVT is the best in the world. Instead of doing the hard downshift and rev engine the way a hydraulic trans does when it can't maintain speed in gear, the computer just ups the revs slightly, and lowers the ratio in the transmission. So Smooth, gotta love it.

As Mia posted, "The CVT is just different, get used to it.":D :D :D

You know you have adapted when you forget that it is different than any other automatic. (Except for the great gas mileage).

Yes, Jim Ray, I have been aware that there is no Torque Converter on a CVT...that it uses a clutch. I deal with the chatter on my CVT at times at stoplights when the climate control is on.

My Vespa Moped also had a CVT (I forgot about that one!) a single belt on two V-pullies...but that was in the 70s.

But realize that even after the clutch slip is finished at startup, when you push the car at freeway speed to pass, there is still a lack of smoothness.

Are you sure the Cooper CVT Is belt based? Some of the other methods are using a semi-planetary doughnut type wheel in a curved housing. I forgot where I read about that technology, but allows a more powerful engine than the belt method.

The Toyota Prius did not exhibit that at all. You should try to test drive one of those to understand what I mean.

Of course, the BREAKS on a Prius are very strange, as you can feel them switch between regenerative and true breaking.

Hi RedBackFur,

I am considering a 2003 MINI CVT order sometime in January or February. When I test drove a 2002 CVT at the dealership, having never driven a CVT car before, I noticed these things: That the RPMs would rise to around 4000 or so and just stay there as the car "caught up" to speed. It was very smooth and quite seamless - I noticed no real percetible shifts which was nice. I also noticed when stopped at a red light or in traffic, when I took my foot off the brake pedal, where most cars will usually "creep" forward a bit, the MINI displayed a pronounced back and forth feeling, like a yo-yo. A very odd feeling. I didn't ask the deale, who was in the back seat, what this was. I assume it had to do with the operation of the CVT at a stop when in gear (D).

I did ask lots of questions about the reliability of the CVT, and the dealer said that it was indeed belt-driven. Steel belts, he said. I wonder what the expected life of this/these (are there more than one?) belts are? And if the belt happens to snap (possible, no?) the repair would be....quite expensive, right? Mind you, this is not going to discourage me from ordering a CVT, I just would hope the reliability/transmission life is way over 100,000 miles. I know Audi A4's have used a CVT for years, and now the new Saturn ION (gasp) also has a CVT option! It's nice to know CVT is becoming more 'mainstream' in the USA.

Thanks for any insights...

Mighty Boognish

(Future/Hopeful Indi Blue CVT w/White roof and bonnet stripes, White 7-spoke wheels owner)