The 97 manual is rated 31/39 and the automatic is 29/35. From Ryland: "Yes, the Civic HX with the CVT has a 4 wire o2 sensor instead of the wide band 5 wire o2 sensor, so it doesn't have lean burn with the CVT either"
http://ecomodder.com/forum/showthrea...tml#post290511
Shouldn't a CVT be at least theoretically more efficient than a normal automatic? I do not know what the best comparison would be, but a 2,013 Corolla is 26/34 and the manual is 27/34.
Strangely, the automatic transmissions in the Focus have a higher EPA rating than the manuals, which is why my father bought his first automatic.
According to Wikipedia, lean burn is on "2000–06 Insight Manual transmission & Japanese spec Cvt only"
Lean burn - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia