These Are The Cars You Probably Didn't Know Came With A CVT

CVT is an acronym short for continuously variable transmission, so for anyone who refers to them as CVT transmissions, you’re wrong and just as annoying as people who say ATM machines. Now that’s out of the way, you may be surprised to learn that each of the vehicles on this list came available with a continuously variable transmission. The automotive press has learned to hate most CVTs, though some of the older models on this list were praised for their innovative and incredibly smooth continuously variable transmissions. From old cars to modern ones that may fly under your cool-car radar, here’s a list of cars that you probably didn’t know were offered with a CVT.

Audi called its version of a CVT the Multitronic, which was a term first used in an episode of Star Trek in the ’60s. The Multitronic transmission was only available in front-wheel-drive A4s, and was not known for its reliability. In fact, Audi lost a class action lawsuit and was required to replace any Multitronic transmissions that failed within the first 10 years of ownership. Audi has since moved away from using CVTs.

Dutch truck builder DAF was the first company ever to feature a continuously variable transmission, and the 600 was first small automatic passenger car. DAF’s CVT was called the Variomatic transmission, and it had a switch-operated engine braking function.

When Mini reappeared in the early 2000s, the Cooper immediately became the darling of the automotive press thanks to its exciting and fun to drive nature. Adding a CVT to the mix sapped some of the fun, but provided efficient transportation for the folks who didn’t want to shift their own gears. The manual Cooper was so fun that it’s almost impossible to find a review of an automatic model.

Everybody knows that the new Subaru WRX features a CVT since headlines went crazy when it was announced, but fewer folks know that the VA WRX also had a CVT option. Similar to the Mini, the WRX’s manual transmission is so overwhelmingly favored by buyers that it’s difficult to find reviews of automatic cars.

The 1996 Civic was Honda’s first implementation of a CVT. Interestingly, in the early days of CVTs they seem to offer improved performance over traditional automatics and sometimes manuals, too. In the Civic, the CVT was less efficient than the manual model, but more efficient than the alternative four-speed automatic.

I had no clue that the Ford Five Hundred offered a CVT, but given that it’s one of the most anonymous vehicles ever produced, that doesn’t come as a surprise. It’s a rare example of a true large sedan being fitted with a CVT.

The Caliber was prime pre-financial-crisis Chrysler. It was a sloppily executed vehicle that got mediocre fuel economy despite its dismal performance. The engine sounds like it’s struggling mightily in the Motorweek performance tests, but they insist it was good around town.

Is the Lexus LC500h the most expensive vehicle with a CVT? It might be, and despite my opinion that it’s sacrilegious for anyone to buy a LC500h when the LC500 exists, it’s a novel concept. Since Lexus introduced the LC, we’ve grown a lot more accustomed to high performance hybrids, but the LC500h just never made many headlines.

The A6 was another application of Audi’s Multitronic continuously variable transmission that was the subject of a class action lawsuit. It’s especially unfortunate to see it contrasted with a model as badass as the S6 Avant.

CVTs aren’t great for off-roading, and the Patriot was positioned as the most rugged model on this shared platform. Jeep somehow managed to get a CVT to receive a trail rated badge, which is surprising given the natural limitations of CVTs in low-speed, rock-crawl applications. The Patriot shares its platform with the Jeep Compass and Dodge Caliber.

What’s the one thing that can make the Chevy Malibu, the car with an excitement quotient of a slice of dry white bread, even more dull? Stick a CVT between its motor and drive wheels. The only time I’ve seen the Malibu in headlines over the past five years has been on “Cars You Forgot Were Still On Sale” lists, so I actually assumed the Malibu had a traditional automatic transmission until I put this post together.

Is the Subaru Crosstrek the modern version of the Subaru Justy? It’s the brand’s smallest crossover, it has Subaru’s all-wheel-drive system, and it comes with a continuously variable transmission. Hilariously, the CVT-equipped Justy was actually faster than the manual transmission equipped car on the Motorweek test track. This was Subaru’s first CVT, so we have the adorable little Justy to blame for Subaru’s all-but-exclusively CVT-laden model lineup.

The Ford Maverick is the only pickup truck on sale that’s equipped with a continuously variable transmission. It is the only transmission available in the hybrid Maverick, and has yet to garner any recalls from Ford which is impressive.

The Jeep Compass started its life as Jeep’s singular model that wasn’t primarily off-road focused. It shared a platform with the more car-like Dodge Caliber and the more off-road focused Jeep patriot, so it occupied a weird spot. Like both of those cars it was originally offered with a CVT, but thankfully in its subsequent generations it lost the CVT.