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Subaru is a brand that has seen impressive growth in the past 10 years, and the Japanese automaker is doing one thing that customers love and another that they dislike with a passion. Subaru’s EyeSight is popular and is getting the brand top safety scores and customers want it. The CVT automatic is a staple in the Subaru stables and some customers loathe it. Why doesn’t Subaru move away from the CVT in the new 2019 Forester, Outback, Crosstrek, and Ascent if customers dislike it?
Subaru uses the Continuously Variable Automatic (CVT) transmission exclusively in their entire lineup of all-wheel-drive vehicles and won’t be dropping it because you have issues with it. They use the 6-speed standard gearbox in their sports cars for driving enthusiasts, but Subaru is committed to the CVT automatic in all their other vehicles and even use it in the sport-tuned WRX and BRZ sport coupe.
Subaru falls in love
Subaru was one of the first automakers to use the CVT. Do you remember the Subaru Justy? In 1989 the Justy became the first production car in the U.S. to offer CVT technology. The Justy was the first car in the world to come equipped with 4WD and ECVT. It was a big thing for Subaru and Justy was the car to introduce the world to the new transmission. Justy with 4WD offered all-weather capability and the new CVT offered fuel efficiency. The two were mated, worked well together and Subaru fell in love with the CVT. 30 years later, they still use a variation of the variable-speed gearbox now called Lineartronic.
Why CVT?
Subaru can get maximum power out of their small four-cylinder Boxer engines allowing for quicker and more responsive acceleration. The CVT is best suited for fuel-efficient city driving and a moderate load which works well in the small all-wheel-drive Forester, Outback, and Crosstrek vehicles. And maybe the biggest reason Subaru is love with the CVT, is because the gearbox is lighter in weight, delivers better power efficiency, and it helps improve a vehicle’s fuel economy over a conventional 6-or-8-speed automatic.
The CVT is ideally-suited for Subaru in their small and medium all-wheel-drive lineup of cars and compact SUVs. Subaru has also made it work well with their 2.0-liter WRX turbo Boxer engine and now coupled with the new 2.4-liter turbocharged Boxer in the larger 2019 Ascent family hauler.
Because there are no gears in a CVT, it allows for manual “shifting.” The belt-and-pulley system moves to preset points that simulate changing gears. This is accomplished by manually clicking the steering-wheel-mounted paddles. The CVT in the new Subaru Ascent SUV comes with paddle shifters and eight of these shift points.
Many customers find the sensation of continuous acceleration without shift points to be unnerving. Another common complaint is that a CVT gearbox tends to make the small SUVs seem excessively loud or harsh. That’s because it forces the engine to run at higher revs as the vehicle gets up to speed. Even if you hate the CVT in the new 2019 Subaru Forester, Outback, Crosstrek and Ascent all-wheel-drive vehicles, Subaru will never leave it.
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Photo credit: Timmons Subaru, Subaru USA
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Comments
I won’t touch another Subaru
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I won’t touch another Subaru with current cut. Had a 2016 Impreza that is now dead because of cvt failure. They are junk.
Until Subaru ditches Nissan
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Until Subaru ditches Nissan made JATCO CVT transmissions, I'll never consider getting one. Hopefully this new partnership with Toyota will bear fruit in this area. The Nissan CVTs are absolute garbage and are not designed to last long. Not to say that there are exceptions, but as a general rule...
Thanks for all the
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Thanks for all the information on cvts I currently own a 2014 forester xl turbo with 60,000 miles. Already replaced rear bearings and front axles and and now the cvt is acting up. So disappointed. After what I read I will take a loss before I replace the cvt. Goodbye Subaru
Update. Sold my 2014 Subaru
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In reply to Thanks for all the by Charles (not verified)
Update. Sold my 2014 Subaru Forester XL for a cx5 Mazda with a traditional automatic transmission. I really like this vehicle and Like any auto it takes awhile to know if the car will hold up only time will tell. The cvt at first was quiet, and smooth but only 60,000 miles is unacceptable!
At this time I will not buy a cvt car until they are reliable and last.
My friend is a very
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In reply to Update. Sold my 2014 Subaru by Charles (not verified)
My friend is a very experienced mechanic and shop owner who repairs all car brands. When I asked him an advice on what cars to buy he said, be careful with the CVTs. We are finding a lot of problems with this type of transmission. After reading your comments and many others I can see that my trustworthy mechanic and friend was right - to avoid the CVT. Many good things about Subaru and others, but if the CVT problems and persist and are not fixed there will be many unhappy customers.
Just bought a 2017 Forester
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Just bought a 2017 Forester XT and absolutely love the CVT 80-90% of the time. It's so much smoother and has great response but when you do spirited driving the rubber band effect is annoying.
Thought I liked the CVT until
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Thought I liked the CVT until last week. My 2012 Outback with 118,000 miles now needs a new transmission at a cost of $7300. But its not a new transmission....its a remanufactured one with a warranty of 1 year or 12,000. Who only drives 12,000 miles a year? This is my first and last Subaru.
We have a 2010 Outback with
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We have a 2010 Outback with 180,000 miles on it. We have had 0 problems. Drives like it is new. Only car I have ever had that has performed this well. Original exhaust. A/C works like new. All switch gear on the dash works like. I do maintain our vehicles though to the point you could eat off the engine. I hope my big mouth doesn't jinx me.
Won't buy another. Had a
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Won't buy another. Had a forester with standard transmission. Good except used more oil than a Toyota with 300000 miles. Class action lawsuit. CVT transmissions as a whole are junk. Toyota and Honda are ok. Use their transmission and maybe. But then why. We just bought a Honda, no more problems. Has a cvt but is relatively quick. Will spin tires, not Subaru. Expect this transmission to last 300000 changing fluids at regular intervals.
Subaru doesn't have any clear
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Subaru doesn't have any clear maintenance guidence to service cvt. Dealer doesn't help here at all. I use private subaru mechanic, that replaced cvt fluid on my 2015 3.6r outback at 50k. The fluid needed to be replaced already. Keep performing maintenance every 50k is a key to extend cvt life. At least I very much hope in it. I have 63k on the car and don't see any differences in driving from the first day I bought it.
Agreed. The cvt in our honda
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In reply to Subaru doesn't have any clear by Aleks (not verified)
Agreed. The cvt in our honda fit is great. Just keep the fluid clean. I just am having trouble trusting Subaru after the last one I bought. Make them to last even if it costs more. Like Toyota. Profits will follow.
I love the looks of the
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I love the looks of the Outback, and was seriously thinking about buying a new one until I read all these negative comments about the CVT transmission. Well, back to the drawing board.
The CVT belt is comprised of
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The CVT belt is comprised of up to 300 metal peices joined together so as to be able to flex. This belt runs between two sets of metal cones that expand and contract to alter the gear ratio. They require a special oil ( not normal auto trans oil) to stop the metal to metal contact. If you don't change the oil it will collect metal particles which will cause valve, bearing and chain problems. Not a good transmisdion for towing long term. Too much heat and the oil loses its ability to work properly.
My last two cars had normal auto tranny and traded in at 500,000km .Tranny oil change 30,000 and oil change and flush 50,000
Clean oil, clean fuel, clean air and driven properly will last a long time.
I bought a new 2020 Forester
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I bought a new 2020 Forester in December 2019 and I can’t stand it. Whenever I drive, it catches and jerks. I especially notice it between 45-60 mph, and then as I coast or let my foot off of the gas. It is a prominent jerk/catch motion. I also notice it when I am starting to brake. SO ANNOYING.
Don't expect me to buy a
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Don't expect me to buy a Subaru (or any car), if it has a CVT transmission or a stop/start engine. Give me a normal engine and a normal automatic transmission, or don't ever see my money.
and that's surely your
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In reply to Don't expect me to buy a by Eric Claeyborn (not verified)
and that's surely your prerogative.
But no-one, least of all Subaru, cares if they lose your custom because there are many new buyers out there everyday enjoying what Subaru now offers.
My biggest head shake comes from those who won't buy a Subaru because they don't provide a "stick-shift" ... ie manual gearbox. Again, no-one cares in the least. They've pretty much gone the way of the Dodo
There was a class action law
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There was a class action law suit regarding the failure of the CVT. Suburu had no choice. They had to increase the warranty coverage. I am a mechanic and I do not recommend ANY vehicle with a CVT transmission.
I have a 2019 Forester with
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I have a 2019 Forester with 20K on it. The transmission is sloppy, especially around town. It's a very jerky sensation as you bring the vehicle to a stop. I never should have left Honda. My 2010 Accord was traded in with 238,000 miles on it and it ran great as was smooth as silk.
I think I royally screwed up.
I would consider selling
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In reply to I have a 2019 Forester with by Mike Walsh (not verified)
I would consider selling/trading the Forester if I were you especially at such low mileage. The transmission has put me in such dangerous situations - engine shutting off when coming to stop, extremely rough idling and stuttering on the freeway, etc. Almost got in a crash on the freeway because of it and had to have my car towed because the idling was so bad and the engine light was flashing, I couldn’t drive it. Subaru told me it was a known issue but at just over the extended warranty wouldn’t help with it.
Not sure who wrote this, but
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Not sure who wrote this, but they have not driven a modern CVT equipped Subaru. The CVT has pre set “changes” so when you accelerate you “feel” the “gear change”. Obviously it’s not changing gears, but you get a drop in revs just like an auto transmission. Selecting Sport (in an outback for example) means those “gearshifts” move up the rev range, meaning more speed and shorter intervals between “changes”.
The brz uses a six speed…
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The brz uses a six speed automatic transmission by Aisin. If you got such a simple fact wrong that's revealed by a simple google search I have to wonder what else you got wrong.