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Hi, we are looking for a used station wagon, $12-14,000, 80,000K....we are getting very confused about salesmen saying the newer CVT transmissions are more reliable, and that most cars have it now anyway?? If we got a wagon with CVT, in which year did they become more reliable?
Thankyou!

In this price range you should consider the 2003 or newer Mazda Atenza/6 with a 2.0L or 2.3L petrol engine or Ford's Focus or Mondeo wagon 1.6L / 2.0L around 2007 models and newer. The Mazda Atenza/6 is a good option but you might find it difficult to find one with 80,000km in this price range.

Manufacturers are claiming that CVT's have become more reliable in recent times but the latest wave of CVT's haven't been around long enough and only time will tell if they have better long term reliability. Another problem to consider is if the CVT 'box fails in most cases they aren't serviceable as spares aren't available which means replacing the complete gearbox - this will be expensive. Older CVTs don't have a good reputation for reliability.

Thankyou Donavan, that clears up that! Could you tell me if "tiptronic" transmission is not CVT, as we are having trouble finding a car that is not CVT!

The Tiptronic feature allows the driver to change the gears up or down manually but in most cases drivers soon forget about this feature and leave the gearlever in drive. Some auto and CVT transmissions have this feature so this will not tell you if the gearbox is a CVT or not.