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Jet aircraft have variable output hydraulic pumps on their engines directly connected to hydraulic motors to turn their generators at a perfectly constant speed. They're called constant speed drives. You could take one of these and essentially turn it backwards to get a constant input, variable output transmission. This allows the engine to run in it's most efficient profile for load, and I wouldn't be surprised if it ended up being close to the efficiency of a conventional transmission. Now you can easily reverse the function of your variable output hydraulic motor into an adjustable hydraulic pump for braking, add a couple of valves and an accumulator and your done. In my opinion it's the system for those who refuse for whatever reason to support electrics, or when an electric is simply not suitable.
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