Oscarmax yes I have a degree in mechanical engineering for my sins. Believe me if cvt gearboxes were great I’d be the first to praise them. Road test one and then a bmw or Vw auto back to back and you’ll immediately feel the difference.
Hi Phil that make two us, I have never understood why some manufacture have fitted CVT transmission to non hybrid engines, and yes some of the early CVT were interesting. I have been out of the industry now for 15 years due to my head injury 15 years ago, I leave it all to you youngsters with your technical minds. I had a long road test with the new 2.4 Mitsubishi Outlander PHEV, I was expecting a wailing transmission and excessive engine noise, it could not have been so different, I floored the throttle to induce the effect just a very quiet raise in engine rpm and noise. When we jumped back into the Ford Kuga powershift (not as refine as the BMW and VW transmission), the Kuga felt quite agricultural and noisy.
It was a few years ago for me too my first job was for Daimler.
But I fancied a change and went back to uni and did another degree then had my own business for 40 plus years the last 15 while disabled.
It really depends what you want in a car my mum had an automatic fiesta with a cvt box which she loved, I hated it it was horrendous on a motorway it put me off cvt boxes for life.