What is more reliable - variator or "automatic"? What is the difference? Advantages and disadvantages

Managing a car with manual transmission requires attentiveness, and modern man is always somewhere in a hurry. Automatic transmission in this regard is much easier. Electronics itself will think for the driver and will perform all the necessary actions - you can not be distracted from the road. But the device of automatic transmissions is much more complicated than manual transmission. And the more complex the design, the lower its reliability. In the history of the automotive industry, there are a lot of unsuccessful converter boxes, variator systems are still poorly understood. Let's try to find out what is more reliable - the variator or the "automatic".

Automatic transmission: history

The first automatic transmission appeared in 1903, but it was not used in cars, but in the shipbuilding industry. The inventor of the design is the German professor Fettinger. It was this man who first showed and suggested a hydrodynamic transmission, which could unleash the propeller and power unit of the ships. So the light appeared hydraulic coupling, which is a very important node for any automatic transmission.

Later, already in 1940, the Americans began to use automatic transmission "Hydromatic" on cars "Oldsmobile". It must be said that the design of the automatic transmission has not changed much since that time. The automatic transmission consists of two main components. It is a torque converter and a reducer. The first performs the function of adhesion, and the purpose of its work is smooth switching without jerking. The reducer is a pair of gears that are meshed. This makes it possible to obtain a one-piece, fairly compact mechanism with several steps at once.

Automatic transmission: technical part

Let's see how the automatic transmission works. This system is worked out along and across. For many years this design was perfected. In general, the technical part is characterized by sufficient strength and reliability.

In torque converter boxes, the torque from the power unit is transmitted to the drive wheels via a "bagel".

There is no rigid engagement in it. This system works thanks to oil that circulates under pressure. When there is no hard gear, there is really nothing to break. But in the design there are also shafts with gears of planetary type and friction disks. Packages of clutches in the automatic transmission replace the clutch. When they are compressed or released, the couplings corresponding to the specific gear are connected.

In the automatic transmission device there are such units as a high-pressure pump, as well as a hydroblock. This is the basis of any automatic transmission.

What usually breaks in the automatic transmission

If you look at the statistics of breakages of automatic boxes, you can see that most of them happen because of untimely maintenance. Not all owners change the working oil even after large runs. As a result, the hydraulic unit, the radiator of the automatic transmission is clogged, filters are clogged. All this leads to the fact that the pump can not create the required working pressure. Because of this, frictions are scrolled, transmissions are no longer included. There are jerking and jerking.

The resource of automatic transmission

It is difficult to say what is more reliable - a variator or an "automatic". At first glance it seems that the variator, since it has a slightly different device, without hydraulic equipment. But with high-quality and timely maintenance, the resource of the classic automatic transmission can be very large.

There were cases when in the case of oil change every 40 thousand kilometers the box works more than 400 thousand without breakages. Experts believe that the most reliable "machines" are old Japanese four-stage boxes.

To increase the life of the automatic transmission, you must follow certain rules:

• It is required to replace the oil according to the regulations. If the manufacturer recommends changing the oil every 60 thousand, do not ignore this period. This applies to the so-called unattended "machines", where the manufacturer's flooded liquid is designed for the entire lifetime. This does not happen - you need to change the oil. The best option is a complete replacement with washing on the stand. This will ensure the transmission of reliable and long work.
• Together with the ATP-fluid, the oil filter is also changed. Its timely replacement can extend the life of the box by 20 percent.
• Also periodically it is necessary to remove the radiator. It is blown and washed. Then, clean the bottom of the body of debris - there may be chips, carbon deposits and a lot of things.

By the way, chips are accumulated on special magnets. How this phenomenon looks, you can see in the photo below.

If you comply with these rules, the life of the automatic transmission will increase significantly. A box can pass from 300 thousand or more. Because of this, many choose this transmission.

Box-"machine": advantages and disadvantages

Let's consider the main advantages of automatic transmission:

• The process of controlling the car with automatic transmission is much simplified - you no longer need to think about how to move the car from its place, how slowly to release the clutch, what gear it is better to turn on. The computer itself will do everything.
• Also, automatic transmission is chosen for reliability. With quality care, automatic boxes are capable of walking more than 300,000 km. Also one more advantage is high maintainability. The design is well studied, and a large number of specialists can repair the automatic transmission.
• Oil is also a plus of automatic transmission. For automatic transmissions a special fluid is required, but the requirements for it are much lower than for the variator one. Yes, and its price is less.
• Jerks and the number of gears is also a plus. Today there are already multistage boxes. There are even 12-step models. They have a larger maximum speed threshold - the engine will not roar in the fourth gear. The speeds change softly and imperceptibly for the driver.
• Another significant advantage is a small amount of electronics. This is to the question of what is safer - the variator or the "automatic". Yes, the automatic gearbox works together with the computer, but the electronics in the design are not more than 30%.

Now let's turn to the drawbacks:

• The automatic transmission can not boast of such dynamics as a variator or "mechanics". The box also has a lower efficiency. In the automatic transmission, the engine and transmission do not have a rigid coupling - everything takes on a torque converter. Therefore, part of the energy is spent on the transmission of torque. When switching, there are perceptible jerks, which can not be said about the variator. For and against it we will consider below.
• Also in the automatic transmission it is necessary to fill more oil - about 8-9 liters. At the same time the variator requires no more than 6 liters. Another disadvantage is the increased fuel consumption. On cars with the CVT variator it is the same as on the "mechanic".

If to sum up, then high reliability covers all the minuses of these units. With proper operation and regular fluid replacement, the box easily leaves more than 300 thousand km, which can not be said about its opponent.

Variables: a short history

Many believe that the CVT-transmission was invented later than the automatic transmission. But this is not so. The principle of work was invented even by Leonardo da Vinci in 1490. But he could not implement the unit, since then there was no internal combustion engine. Then the system was forgotten and remembered only at the beginning of the 19th century on industrial machines. In cars, variators began to be used in 58, when Hubert van Doorn created Variomatic. Then it was installed on DAF cars.

The device and the principle of operation

This is one of the types of automatic transmission. Box-variator and "automatic" - what's the difference? It consists in the lack of gears on the CVT-transmission. The design consists of two pulleys, on which the belt is stretched (now, of course, it is metallic). Cones - this is not an integral structure, as before, but from sliding halves. If the drive pulley is not connected, the belt rotates over the small diameter of the cone. When the pulley is shifted, a small gear ratio is formed, which corresponds to the lower gears of the automatic transmission.

Moving the pulleys, you can very smoothly reduce the gear ratios, that is, switch gears (although they are not). These numbers fully correspond to the steps in the automatic transmission. If you choose, the box is an "automatic" or a variator, then the latter is more efficient. Here, the maximum efficiency, since the transfer of torque - a tough.

What breaks down?

The design is very fond of quality service. The oil should be changed every 60-80 thousand km. Change the liquid always. If you do not replace it, there will be problems, and the recovery of the box will be very expensive.

Among the problems are clogging hydroblocks and oil pumps. Because of this, the shafts can not clamp or unfasten the belt. As a result, it slips. This negatively affects its resource. The material wears out more quickly, and at one point the belt simply breaks off. And then everything literally collapses inside. Also, the working surfaces of the shafts are raised, which does not affect the belt condition in the best way . Box-variator and "automatic" - what's the difference? In a large, simply huge amount of electronics, which can be up to 50% of the design.

CVT Resource

Here, as well as the automatic transmission, it is necessary to change the oil precisely according to the regulations. If this is not done, then the box will fail after 100 thousand. Also, every 120 thousand you need to change the strap. What is more reliable - variator or "automatic"? It turns out that the "machine". On the variator drive 300 thousand will not work, even if you regularly change the oil.

Advantages and disadvantages

Here, we are pleased with the more dynamic acceleration, reduced fuel consumption. There are no jerks, the efficiency is 10% higher than the automatic transmission. The car is easy to drive. But this ends all advantages.

We continue to consider the variator, pluses and minuses of the design. Repair such boxes is very difficult - the design is poorly understood, and experts in this industry are still few. Periodic belt replacement is required. This is expensive, and not in every STO undertake such a job. The design has sophisticated electronics. Well, finally, another significant disadvantage - oil. It is expensive and hard to find.

What's better?

So, we looked at both transmissions. It's time to decide which box is better - "automatic" or variator. Variator is better than automatic transmission in terms of dynamics and consumption. But in the event of a breakdown, repairs will be very expensive, and not always this CAT can be restored or at least serviced. Also, a regular replacement requires a belt, and the construction itself needs a high-quality oil. AKPP here wins more than completely.

Conclusion

We looked at the variator, the pros and cons of it. The verdict is this: if you buy a new car, which will be guaranteed, then you can buy CVT. If it is a car with a run of more than 100 thousand kilometers, then it's better to pay attention to the "automatic".