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From: ems@amdahl.UUCP (ems)
Newsgroups: net.consumers,net.auto
Subject: Re: Restrictions on Japanese Cars
Message-ID: <1210@amdahl.UUCP>
Date: Fri, 1-Mar-85 13:48:54 EST
Article-I.D.: amdahl.1210
Posted: Fri Mar  1 13:48:54 1985
Date-Received: Sun, 3-Mar-85 03:41:16 EST
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Xref: watmath net.consumers:1905 net.auto:5913

> 
> Ok, I'll admit that the Korean car is low priced, but there IS a very
> low-priced car coming from Yugo.  According to R&T's 1985 Road Test Annual
> and Buyer's Guide, a Yugoslavian car called the Zastava will be imported
> into the U.S. by early summer with a base list price of (no kidding) $3990.
> This is a three-door model, powered (to use the term loosely) by a 1.1 L
> 4-cyl, reportedly seating 5, although it will be the smallest car sold
> in the U.S. (smaller than Chevy Sprint).
> The "DELUXE" model will list around $4700-4800, with a 1.3 L
> engine.  One interesting point in the description mentioned that the
> importers (something called IAI) were working with some Euro. companies
> to make this the first car sold in the U.S. with a Continuously Variable
> Transmission.  Does anyone know how this works?
> 
There are several ways to make CVT's.  One I saw on a riding lawn mower
had a spinning disk with a wheel running on it.  By moving the wheel
closer to the center of the disk, you got 'low gear'; moving it to the
rim got 'high gear'.  A trick used by Volvo on one of their cars used two
pulleys and *BELT* drive.  The pulleys were tapered split disks.  By
varying the closeness of the two sides of the pully, the belt ran
closer or farther from the hub.  The two pulleys were adjusted in
opposite directions to maintain constant belt tension while varying
the 'gear ratio'.  The last one I saw proposed used two cones with
parallel axis and the pointy end of one near the wide end of the
other.  A disk ran as an 'idler gear' between them.  By moving the
disk closer to one fat end or the other the 'gear ratio' was changed.

I am sure there are other ways...

E. Michael Smith  ...!{hplabs,ihnp4,amd,nsc}!amdahl!ems

Computo ergo sum

The opinions expressed by me are not representative of those of any
other person - natural, unnatural, or fictional - and only marginally
reflect my opinions as strained by the language.