The best (and worst) gearbox in the world

The Continuously Variable Transmission is technically superior - so why aren't we all using it?

Remember when a six-speed dual-clutch gearbox was a thing of magic and intrigue? Now you can buy a Land Rover with a nine-speed automatic transmission, our American cousins get 10 ratios (and six clutches) in Ford/GM's 10R80 gearbox, and Honda has patented an 11-speed triple-clutch system. Even manual 911 Carreras get seven speeds.

CVT actually quite simple, as gearboxes go

It's all in the name of being able to offer economy or performance - depending on that moment's need - at any given road speed. But the endgame to all this tail-chasing is already here: CVT gearboxes. No countless gearsets, just a pair of conical pulleys linked by a belt to allow an infinite number of ratios within a given range. Infinite ratios. That's definitely more than 11.

Need maximum acceleration? The CVT pins the engine at its most powerful point on the tacho and keeps it there, even as you accelerate. Time to cruise? Pick your speed and the CVT finds the engine's frugal sweet-spot. Of course, there are myriad sensors and processors involved, too, but that's the gist of it.

Technically, the CVT's main weakness is, well, its weakness - the system's more delicate set up is just not able to cope with the kind of torque figures that tend to make enthusiasts come over all giddy. But in a world where space rockets can land themselves on a floating postage stamp, this is surely an obstacle that can be overcome.

It should offer the perfect mix of economy and speed

But there's no motivation for manufacturers to do so. That's because the best gearbox in the world - the CVT - is universally hated. So much so, that the least unlikeable CVTs (for none is likeable) have been bastardised with gear-like 'steps' to behave like their technically inferior Muggle cousins with their silly toothed cogs and endless shifting.

The reason they're so despised is that they seem unnatural and unintuitive. Driving is a very visceral pleasure - the sight, the feel, sometimes even the smell and absolutely the sound. If the engine pitch doesn't rise as the horizon is sucked ever-faster towards us, there's a fundamental disconnection that our brains don't like. It's unnerving. Like steering that has a single weight, no matter how fast you're going or how much lock you apply. Or brakes that have the same resistance at the top of the pedal as the bottom. No thanks - it just ain't right.

Yet even manual seems more popular than CVT!

This explains why a dynamically proficient car can leave you cold. Modern Audis get stick for lifeless steering. The new Alfa Stelvio's brakes work perfectly well but feel a bit weird, the McLaren MP4-12C sounded too one-dimensional and the Mk4 VW Golf 4Motion's gearstick moved between gates like it was tethered to a demented goat.

In a rational world, we'd all be driving CVTs. But, thank goodness, us fickle humans and our irrational, emotional bond with the automobile wins out. That's where the real magic and intrigue lies.

Richard J Webber

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