Quote:
Originally Posted by Daox
Nissan started using CVTs on those cars at some point, and back then they really did not last. A friend sold one with under 100k miles and he was starting to notice issues with the transmission.
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I had a 2007 Dodge Caliber w/Nissan CVT. Many people had problems with many items on the Caliber, but mine was sweet. Lots of people said the Caliber had no power. It was a 2liter, I was a featherfooter, & didn't care if it was leisurely. Once tho, I & other cars were following a really slug-slow vehicle that was on the on-ramp to the freeway. At one point, where the on-ramp widened, I put the CVT in low & took-off around the slug, so I could have a good blending speed with the general free-way traffic. I blended into the traffic well & settled down in the outside freeway lane, at the speed limit. About a 1 minute later, one of the cars that had also been behind the slug, drove up beside me in the freeway middle lane. He turned to me & gave me a thumbs-up. Guess he thought my acceleration looked to be fairly good. Yes, the Caliber 2liter wasn't strong, but the CVT gave it more total acceleration than an automatic 4 speed tranny could have given & probably as good as the 5 speed manual.
CVTs do NOT have good seat-of-the-pants acceleration, but they are ALWAYS accelerating, not like step transmissions, that stop accelerating during shifts.
At 54,000 miles, the gasket between the dependable 2liter engine & the good CVT went out, for a replacement cost by my long-term mechanic of $700(normally $1000). Actual problems with CVTs cost $4000+. I didn't want that, as my Caliber got older & resale value dropped. I sold it. We now have 2 Hyundai Elantras (145,000 total miles--6speed automatic, 6speed manual) & nothing has ever gone wrong with either one.
I have talked with 2 Caliber drivers with 180,000 & 230,000+ miles, who said they haven't had any problems with their CVTs. But, those were two Calibers that were operating on roads. I, quite quickly, am NOT seeing operating Calibers on the roads.
As for MPG, many Caliber owners reported 25MPG AND LESS. Featherfooting, I averaged 31MPG with E10 & 33MPG with E0. NEVER got 40MPG on any tank. Once tho, I had to return from southeastern Oregon to Everett, WA quickly, while crossing south of Mt. Hood, as high as 4000 feet, with 60+MPH speeds on secondaries & 70+MPH on I-5. I had expected low MPG in the un-aerodynamic Caliber, but the Caliber did get 34MPG on that run. Possibly the CVT really helped on the 4000 foot highway portion.