Hello, I'm Guardrail, and I'm new here. I recently bought a '15 WRX CVT. I've been trolling around to see what's being done with the tuning of the transmission itself by tuners. I haven't found much. I inquired at Cobb for some info:
Q: "Besides the changes to launch control, what do you do with the transmission tuning in the CVT models?"
A: "...There are no other changes to the transmission."
So, I've compiled a wish list of things I'd like to see tuners do for owners of CVT's. It looks something like this:
1. First and foremost, get rid of the faux auto shifting, either 6 spd or 8 spd. I don't want my transmission trying to be something it's not. A CVT has its own strengths that will never be capitalized upon if it's trying to act like a "normal" automatic. Let the CVT be a CVT. Let it find the sweet spot and hold the engine there as it does in launch control mode.
2. Make the RPM that the transmission holds the engine at directly related to throttle position. In the stock tuning, when the car is cold, it does this. But as the car warms up in "I" mode, for example, as it takes off from a traffic light under light throttle, the engine quickly revs to 3,000RPM for a few seconds where there's good boost and decent acceleration, then suddenly drops to 1,500RPM where there is no boost and severely cuts the acceleration rate, all without ever having changed throttle position. Make it so that when I give it say 25% throttle, the engine revs to 3,000 RPM and stays there until I change my throttle position, such as letting off when I reach my desired speed, at which point the RPM would drop an appropriate amount for the amount of throttle I am now giving the car.
3. Let the above described relationship vary according to which mode the transmission is in. It should still be economy minded in "I" mode, requiring a deep dip into the throttle to get RPM to go above 3,000, let's say more than 50% throttle. In "S" mode, it should be more linear, and even more linear still in "S#".
4. In "S#" mode, the deceleration RPM should be able to be set in 500 RPM increments with the shift paddles. So that, when you're charging that straight at full throttle, then have to jam on the brakes for that fast approaching hairpin, the CVT doesn't allow the engine to go below a preset RPM, which would be adjustable with the paddles. So, if you have the decel RPM set at 3,500 RPM, when you let off the throttle to slow down, the CVT constantly adjusts its ratio so that the engine never goes below 3,500 RPM so that you're in the right "gear" when you get back on the throttle to come out of the corner.
5. Last, but not least, or maybe it is if the above changes were made, give me rev matching during downshifts in manual mode. Granted, if the above changes were made, I would rarely use manual mode, but with a nice aftermarket exhaust, it would be worth it to hear a few throttle blipped downshifts just for sh!ts and grins.
Now, that's my wish list. Is there any hope of ever having it granted by any of the tuners out there, house, custom or otherwise?
Q: "Besides the changes to launch control, what do you do with the transmission tuning in the CVT models?"
A: "...There are no other changes to the transmission."
So, I've compiled a wish list of things I'd like to see tuners do for owners of CVT's. It looks something like this:
1. First and foremost, get rid of the faux auto shifting, either 6 spd or 8 spd. I don't want my transmission trying to be something it's not. A CVT has its own strengths that will never be capitalized upon if it's trying to act like a "normal" automatic. Let the CVT be a CVT. Let it find the sweet spot and hold the engine there as it does in launch control mode.
2. Make the RPM that the transmission holds the engine at directly related to throttle position. In the stock tuning, when the car is cold, it does this. But as the car warms up in "I" mode, for example, as it takes off from a traffic light under light throttle, the engine quickly revs to 3,000RPM for a few seconds where there's good boost and decent acceleration, then suddenly drops to 1,500RPM where there is no boost and severely cuts the acceleration rate, all without ever having changed throttle position. Make it so that when I give it say 25% throttle, the engine revs to 3,000 RPM and stays there until I change my throttle position, such as letting off when I reach my desired speed, at which point the RPM would drop an appropriate amount for the amount of throttle I am now giving the car.
3. Let the above described relationship vary according to which mode the transmission is in. It should still be economy minded in "I" mode, requiring a deep dip into the throttle to get RPM to go above 3,000, let's say more than 50% throttle. In "S" mode, it should be more linear, and even more linear still in "S#".
4. In "S#" mode, the deceleration RPM should be able to be set in 500 RPM increments with the shift paddles. So that, when you're charging that straight at full throttle, then have to jam on the brakes for that fast approaching hairpin, the CVT doesn't allow the engine to go below a preset RPM, which would be adjustable with the paddles. So, if you have the decel RPM set at 3,500 RPM, when you let off the throttle to slow down, the CVT constantly adjusts its ratio so that the engine never goes below 3,500 RPM so that you're in the right "gear" when you get back on the throttle to come out of the corner.
5. Last, but not least, or maybe it is if the above changes were made, give me rev matching during downshifts in manual mode. Granted, if the above changes were made, I would rarely use manual mode, but with a nice aftermarket exhaust, it would be worth it to hear a few throttle blipped downshifts just for sh!ts and grins.
Now, that's my wish list. Is there any hope of ever having it granted by any of the tuners out there, house, custom or otherwise?