19 Subaru Impreza - CVT failed

It's still at the dealer and we're still with the loaner car LOL.
My 18 Legacy was in the shop for 30 days getting a cracked cover on the CVT replaced. Talked them into doing a fluid exchange whereas they were only going to top off.
 
"Honda makes the most reliable cvts on the market today. It is a strong transmission I've learned it inside and out. Like that bulletproof legendary 2 liter K series K20C2 engine you have. It's capable of 300,000 MI or more if well maintained not abused. Change the CVT fluid every 25,000 MI with new canister filter religiously. You'll be happy for years miles to come. Degraded fluid or filter is usually what kills a CVT it just lets it get too hot."
 
Subaru rulez! I am waiting until they offerT tops and 15' CB whip antenna before I invest.
 


This guy would take a CVT over any DCT. Sounds like Honda got it right.
 
Wife has 2015 Accord with 168000 miles on it. I have used Redline Nonslip CVT throughout-since 15000 miles or so… Have fluid changed once a year on average and continues to do well (knock on wood)… She is a fast left-lane driver as well… I do like that you get brand new fluid in there-nearly four quarts per change without the torque converter.
 
Wife has 2015 Accord with 168000 miles on it. I have used Redline Nonslip CVT throughout-since 15000 miles or so… Have fluid changed once a year on average and continues to do well (knock on wood)… She is a fast left-lane driver as well… I do like that you get brand new fluid in there-nearly four quarts per change without the torque converter.
Impressive testament to the Honda CVT and Red Line fluid. In hindsight I think the Subaru likely failed because it was never changed. CVT's beat up fluid pretty quickly.

The fluid in the Subaru was over 4 years old. Never changed.
 
I would say Honda CVT are reliable by latest automotive standards
 
Yeah just one sample.
 
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There were problems with '15-'17 Honda CVTs, my neighbour's Civic had a new transmission in less than 6k miles. It just happens.

Not against CVTs, my car back in 2007-2010 had a Honda CVT, and it ran fine. However, I was changing the CVT oil religiously every 25k miles.

If I ever own a car with a CVT, it must have a forced induction engine though, it makes the whole experience much smoother. You don't have to rev it to move like a naturally aspirated engine.
 
There were problems with '15-'17 Honda CVTs, my neighbour's Civic had a new transmission in less than 6k miles. It just happens.

Not against CVTs, my car back in 2007-2010 had a Honda CVT, and it ran fine. However, I was changing the CVT oil religiously every 25k miles.

If I ever own a car with a CVT, it must have a forced induction engine though, it makes the whole experience much smoother. You don't have to rev it to move like a naturally aspirated engine.

"Honda makes the most reliable cvts on the market today. It is a strong transmission I've learned it inside and out. Like that bulletproof legendary 2 liter K series K20C2 engine you have. It's capable of 300,000 MI or more if well maintained not abused. Change the CVT fluid every 25,000 MI with new canister filter religiously. You'll be happy for years miles to come. Degraded fluid or filter is usually what kills a CVT it just lets it get too hot."

Honda makes it VERY easy to change the CVT fluid, and they don't pretend it's lifetime fluid. The MM has a code for it, so change the fluid when the code pops up. Do it cold. Just take the cap off (there is no dipstick, but there is a tube like a dipstick would go in), then drain it (3/8 square drive, no socket needed), measure, then refill with the same amount you drained. It's easier than an oil change :)

Many others, such as Subaru, require a scan tool and a complicated process to change the fluid, and they pretend it never has to be changed, either :rolleyes:

In both cases, people are following the mfr's schedule and doing it by the book.
 
Honda makes it VERY easy to change the CVT fluid, and they don't pretend it's lifetime fluid. The MM has a code for it, so change the fluid when the code pops up. Do it cold. Just take the cap off (there is no dipstick, but there is a tube like a dipstick would go in), then drain it (3/8 square drive, no socket needed), measure, then refill with the same amount you drained. It's easier than an oil change :)

Many others, such as Subaru, require a scan tool and a complicated process to change the fluid, and they pretend it never has to be changed, either :rolleyes:

In both cases, people are following the mfr's schedule and doing it by the book.
Still much easier than a sealed oil pan you would find in many vehicles.
 
There were problems with '15-'17 Honda CVTs, my neighbour's Civic had a new transmission in less than 6k miles. It just happens.

The Civic CVT from 2016 on really isn't one of the bad ones though, it was mostly just the 2015 model year when the CVT was first introduced and then Honda figured out how to improve it for the 10th gen Civic in 2016. I'm part of a huge Facebook group for 10th gen Civics (2016-2021) and very few people on there have reported CVT issues. The ones that typically do have issues are the guys with the 1.5 turbo who have added more boost to them. If the engine is kept stock the CVT can go extremely long. I'm at 236,000 km on my Civic and it's only had two CVT fluid changes too. I don't drive it very hard and I fully expect this CVT to last 500,000km plus.
 
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