[Minardi]

I have been driving for 20 odd years and am good at it. However, yesterday, for the first time, I got an opportunity to drive an NHC CVT from Parle to Dadar. And I thought I did a decent job. But still would like to improve my theoretical knowledge about automatic driving.

There were 4 adults and 2 kids in the car, and never for a moment I felt it was underpowered. The engine was really peppy!

One thing I wanted to know...when you stop at the red light, you still keep the gear on 'D' and put your foot on the brake or do you put the gear on 'P'?

Secondly I thought the brakes were powerful and I was really careful not to slam them hard. I was scared I'll lock the brakes.

Can the gear change be controlled indirectly through the speed at which you press the accelerate? I though I read somewhere, if you press the accelerator suddenly, then the auto will shift down to give you that 'surge'. Is this true?

[turbo_lover]

When you are at a red light u can keep the gear select at (D) if you dont have your foot on the gas pedal the car will not move forward .

like your said ... if you are flooring the pedal on an auto the gears will shift late ...
and if your do it suddenly the gear will shift down to match the optimum revs..

hondas do have one of the finest automatic transmission systems , i am sure you could hardly feel the gears change at times ...

[Minardi]

Thanks for the quick reply turbo, the City CVT actually moves forward, even when the accelerator is not pressed. One has to keep the brake pedal pressed to keep it stationary.

[Dippy]

Hey dude

You can keep the shifter in D and keep you foot on the brake pedal but that would put pressure on the brakes since in D the car creeps forward. I drive a Zen AT but I always put it in N and pull the handbrake and wait. I prefer that

Yes the tranny does downshift to give you a boost when you press the accel pedal hard. This gives you more punch when you want to overtake

Dippy

[turbo_lover]

oh you drove the CVT .. in a CVT there are no interlocking gears ,it works on a pulley system .. so there are no shift shocks and responds better to throttle changes hence there is no gear hunting ..
but i wonder how good it really fares in a smaller engined car like the NHC as compared to its bigger counterparts...


however out of my driving experience ,i have always noted that the car when it comes a complete halt in(D) select it will park itself for that moment untill the throttle is applied..the car will neither roll forward nor backward ..in a traditional Auto trans one may notice a mild grinding noise a moment before the car comes to a complete halt and u can feel a mild jolt (very mild) which locks up the wheels ..

btw ...does the accord have the CVT ?

[Steeroid]

Neutral and handbrake, just as in a manual car. Its recommended that you leave the car on 'drive' and use the handbrake if you're the first vehicle at the traffic lights, so that you dont hold up the people behind you.

'P' is only meant to be used when the car is parked. Flooring the throttle should give you a downshift, but remember to ease off the throttle gently (not immediately) once you get your downshift and the acceleration from it.

[Montoya]

btw ...does the accord have the CVT

Nah the Accord doesnot have CVT.. its only the NHC and the lancer which have it.. and yeah the Sonata H matic too i guess(correct me if i am wrong) but arent the lancer and Sonata Manomatic??

[Shan2nu]

Dude i doubt the Lancer and Sonata have CVT. They both have a 4 speed A/T with touch shift/trip tronic (which ever way you like it).

Shan2nu

[Montoya]

Thanks Shan i thought the Invex is somewhat like a CVT..

[karthik247]

When at a signal, just shift into N. And i think all AT cars will keep moving forward when in D ie. if u don't use the brakes

[aadix]

i think for short stops u can let the gear be in "D" itself and keep the leg on the brake,but for long signals and stuff i put the gear in "n/p" and keep my leg(oops ,make that my toe,the brakes are damn powerful) on the brake.

[ajmat]

You also need to think ahead as the car may not downshift as fast as would in a manual.

[srasania]

Well,I think Honda is the first co. to introduce CVT type of Automatic transmission in India...
All others - Sonata,Santro,Lancer,Esteem,etc., have 4 speed conventional automatic transmission option..

Suraj

[Shrikar]

correct me if im wrong but i think that CVT is made for samaller cars say till a honda city...not for bigger cars like the accord and plus in the cvt the jerk will not be felt as it is all belt driven continously changing the ratios acc. to the requirement(continous varialble transmission)..

[V-16]

HeyMInardi.
The new city does come with a cvt and is the only car in India to have this kind of an auto box.Niether the lancer nor the sonata V-6 have the cvt. Firstly in the cvt u dont have any shifting jerks and cant feel the gear changes which can be a little annoying and confusing to regular auto users. The cvt was developed for two wheelers earlier. Driving the cvt is like driving an auto scooter, (the kinetic honda uses a cvt) where if u want to HEAR the gear changing, u cant, as it sounds as if the engine is in continously one speed. On eyeing the tacho one can see that the gears actually change, due to the fluctuating needle on the tacho.
Use P only when ure gonna turn the engine off while parking and is not recommended for stop and go driving.(i guess thats why its called Park) The best and safest way to wait at a red light is to keep the shifter in the D position and your leg on the brake as, the car definately will on a straight level, go forward. Another way is to shift to N with the brakes pressed or the parking brake engaged. The gear sequence on an auto shifter is always P-R-N-D-L.(or D4,D3,D2 depending on whether the auto box is a five, four or a three speed one)More often than not one uses the box in the D or N and believe me buddy if you are not paying attention and have shifted to the P on a light, its really very possible that one shifts to R and thinks its a D and goes crashing into the rear. Its happened to all of us
This was an experimental transmission but the Mercedes is going to start using it in their cars soon from the A class to the M class. Even Citroen and Peugeot are going to use it soon. The cvt is a good auto box if u can get over the "rubber band effect" and hey it gives good mileage.For me its the conventional auto as one can feel the kickdown when one floors the gas wheras in a cvt on hears an annoying higher octave sound
One can change to a lower gear in a conventional auto by flooring the gas pedal and depending on which gear ure driving and how much uve floored the gas, the box will shift to a lower gear. Too much flooring can give you cheap thrills but the fuel bill will go up dramatically......Hope that answered all your queries.
If u still ask me, well give me a manual any day...!!
Phew!! that was long....hope uve not fallen asleep buddy!!