( CVT ) Can the auto shift up be removed?

Gruber said:

The issue is the location of the real power peak: I've seen some dyno power curves for the stock 1.5T with the peak around 5500 rpm, and some with the peak significantly higher, at least at 6000 rpm or even a bit higher than that.

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What he said above! Look at all the dynos on this site, Facebook and elsewhere. Take note of the power peak and what modifications where done to the car that has this peak.

Since I can not dyno my CVT, this is the route I have taken. When I go full throttle, I put the transmission in 'L' gear so the revs stay at max rpm. Seem to have been working ok so far. When I make a change, since I can not dyno to see how the change affects my max horsepower, I take it to the dragstrip. If my 1/4 mile trap speed goes up, I've made more power and vice versa. The weather conditions have to be similar for the tests of course.

D-RobIMW said:

That's a waaaaaay generalized statement that holds no basis in truth.

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I wasn’t going to write a dissertation on the topic and cover everything from VE to inertia, I simply put it down in a layman’s phrase. It was focused on the factory designs and not everything you could possibly modify.

Gruber said:

I'm not talking about tuning, but only a stock car. Btw. Honda specification for top power with CVT is 180 hp @6000 rpm.

There are slightly different dynograms for stock, because it requires some skill and care to make an accurate measurement at peak power. In addition, the conditions are slightly different for a car on the road and a car sitting still in a shop in still air and spinning wheels.

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yes agreed, it depends on many factors such as weather/different climates on the dyno & OTR
but i disagree regarding stock car only because i have all the basemaps of various different versions or models of civic x & of course at different regions the stock maps are different besides different models
of course different make & models of dyno + calibration or the operator is taken into consideration too
i'd say dyno is a good & safe way to measure hp/tq & use it as a good reference it won't be 100% same every time.

btw here are the various type of specs for reference :

L15B7 VTC Turbo

L15B7 from the Honda Civic (10th Generation)

L15B7 VTC Engine found in Honda Civic and L15B9 Acura CDX, the intake is not the same.

• Found in:
  • 2016— Honda Civic turbo (US, Canada, China)
  • 2017— Honda Civic Si (US, Canada & México)
  • 2017— Honda CR-V, non-LX (US, China)
  • 2018— Honda Accord (US & Canada)
• Engine Type: DOHC in-line 4-cylinder with VTC, single scroll MHI-TD03 turbo and internal wastegate (Although Advertised as a TD04 by Honda, the turbo is actually a newer TD025)[8]

• Valves system:
  • Variable Timing on both intake and exhaust side - Honda Civic[9], Honda CR-V[10]
  • Variable Timing on the intake side, Variable Valve Timing and Lift on the exhaust side - Honda Accord[11]
• Fuel injection: Direct
• Boost Pressure:
  • 16.5 psi (1.14 bar) - standard Civic
  • 20.3 psi (1.40 bar) - Honda Civic Si
  • 18.5 psi (1.28 bar) - Honda CR-V
  • 20.2 psi (1.39 bar) - Honda Accord
• Displacement: 1.5 L; 91.4 cu in (1,497 cc)
• Bore and Stroke: 73 mm × 89.4 mm (2.87 in × 3.52 in)
• Compression: 10.6:1 (10.3:1 - Honda Civic Si, Honda Accord and Honda CR-V)
• Power:
  • 174 hp (130 kW; 176 PS) @ 6000 rpm - standard Civic
  • 180 hp (134 kW; 182 PS) @ 5500 rpm (6MT) or 180 hp (134 kW; 182 PS) @ 6000 rpm (CVT) - Civic Hatchback Sport/Touring
  • 205 hp (153 kW; 208 PS) @ 5700 rpm - Honda Civic Si
  • 190 hp (142 kW; 193 PS) @ 5600 rpm - Honda CR-V
  • 192 hp (143 kW; 195 PS) @ 5500 rpm - Honda Accord

• Torque:
  • 162 lb⋅ft (220 N⋅m) @ 1700-5500 rpm - standard Civic
  • 177 lb⋅ft (240 N⋅m) @ 1900-5000 rpm (6MT) or 162lb-ft @ 1700-5500 rpm (CVT) - Civic Hatchback Sport/Touring
  • 192 lb⋅ft (260 N⋅m) @ 2100-5000 rpm - Honda Civic Si
  • 179 lb⋅ft (243 N⋅m) @ 2000-5000 rpm - Honda CR-V
  • 192 lb⋅ft (260 N⋅m) @ 1600-5000 rpm - Honda Accord

• Redline: 6500 rpm

So, in our country we dont have the hatch nor Si, we have the 1.8 ivtec and an RS Turbo, which is pretty much an aesthetically downgraded Civic Sedan with no sun roof but has a 1.5L turbo with 171hp and 220 nmTorque. We do have Type R here but my pocket can't afford it yet.

I was wondering about increasing the rev limiter on a cvt not because of just sound, but also if there is any perfomance increase. I dont want to kill the trans. But if I could push it a little bit for more power on a cvt, why not right?

ryuma63 said:

So, in our country we dont have the hatch nor Si, we have the 1.8 ivtec and an RS Turbo, which is pretty much an aesthetically downgraded Civic Sedan with no sun roof but has a 1.5L turbo with 171hp and 220 nmTorque. We do have Type R here but my pocket can't afford it yet.

I was wondering about increasing the rev limiter on a cvt not because of just sound, but also if there is any perfomance increase. I dont want to kill the trans. But if I could push it a little bit for more power on a cvt, why not right?

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nope, you can't increase it & even if you can it's doing more harm than good if it's on a stock map.
it is tuned 5500rpm peak power & starts to drop past 6000rpm
peak boost is at 5500rpm at 16.1 psi & past that it drops to 13.8 psi at 6000 rpm 12 psi at 6500 rpm & 10.1 psi at 7000 rpm & cvt will never get there.
you can make a little more power before & past 5500 rpm till auto shift up from bolt-ons especially from intake + DP & a tad more from tuning & it'll still auto upshift regardless of mode you are in.

captminer said:

nope, you can't increase it & even if you can it's doing more harm than good if it's on a stock map.
it is tuned 5500rpm peak power & starts to drop past 6000rpm
peak boost is at 5500rpm at 16.1 psi & past that it drops to 13.8 psi at 6000 rpm 12 psi at 6500 rpm & 10.1 psi at 7000 rpm & cvt will never get there.
you can make a little more power before & past 5500 rpm till auto shift up from bolt-ons especially from intake + DP & a tad more from tuning & it'll still auto upshift regardless of mode you are in.

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Can you explain also why Honda specifies the CVT turbo cars as having the peak power at 6000 rpm, while they specify 6MT cars at 5500 rpm?

Gruber said:

Can you explain also why Honda specifies the CVT turbo cars as having the peak power at 6000 rpm, while they specify 6MT cars at 5500 rpm?

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maybe try calling 1-ASK-HONDA
must be a reason why they do that. could be due to gear ratios & we know that specifically Si,CRV,Accord have slightly larger turbos (hot side), diff comp ratios, TIP, HPFP or maybe some other stuffs that we do not know yet.

I have the 2.0 NA CVT and KTuner pushed the rev limiter to 7300 and lowered VTEC to 5600.





According to KTuner the CVT in the NA 2.0 engine still climbs past 5500. I don't know how the chart would look for the 1.5T but I would imagine that Honda does this to save the CVT from any sort of damage. I'm limited on knowledge in this field but maybe someone else can comment, add, or refute that info.

ryuma63 said:

So yeah, the the CVT on sports mode auto shifts up when it reaches 5500 rpm on sports mode, Can this be removed so that you actually have the full control on your shifting?
I don;t have hondata yet but i'm planning to get one maybe a year or two from now, since my budget for now is on wheels and cosmetics.

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You can try it my advise if it works with your car.
First put it in s mode then press the gas pedal at fully down. When you see the between 5500-6000 rpm release gas pedal until kickdown switch if you have and stay there. At this method sometimes cvt holding rpm until around 200 km/h.

Just try it to release gas pedal and hold on kickdown switch.