Honda recently revealed the fuel efficiency figures of the upcoming Elevate. While the manual gearbox variants offer a 15.31 kmpl fuel efficiency, the CVT automatic variants offer a fuel economy of 16.92 kmpl. Readers must be wondering how a CVT offers better fuel efficiency than a manual gearbox.
Honda Elevate: CVT Vs Manual fuel efficiency
Unlike conventional automatic transmissions that have fixed ratios, continuously variable transmissions (CVTs) theoretically have infinite gear ratios, courtesy of a belt and pulley drive system, therefore, offering more chances of optimum driving compatibility between the engine and the gearbox.
The one offered by Honda in Elevate and City, is a 7-step CVT which means the gearbox has been tuned to mimic 7 gear ratios of a conventional automatic transmission. The gear ratios in Honda’s CVT are taller than the 6-speed manual gearbox, thus, offering better fuel efficiency on paper.
However, the rated fuel efficiency doesn’t always resonate with real-world fuel efficiency. As seen with the City that comes with the same engine and gearbox combinations, the manual and automatic variants of the sedan offer a claimed efficiency of 17.8 and 18.4 kmpl, respectively. Real-world mileage of Honda’s CVT models depend primarily on the driver and driving conditions which usually don’t return the claimed fuel efficiency figures.
Honda Elevate: Engine specs
Under its hood, Honda Elevate gets a familiar 1.5-litre naturally aspirated i-Vtec petrol engine that puts out 119 bhp and 145 Nm of peak torque. This unit is paired with either a 6-speed manual transmission or a CVT automatic transmission. Pre-bookings for Honda Elevate have started at a token amount of Rs 21,000 while deliveries are slated to commence around the start of the festive season.
