This Week in Motorhead History: A DAFfy Transmission?

On February 7, 1958, the Dutch truck manufacturer DAF introduced its first passenger car, the DAF 600, in Amsterdam.  Groundbreaking in neither size nor appearance, the car is remembered for having a continuously variable transmission.  The “Variomatic” transmission was a novelty for the time but proved, over the course of the next 20 years, to be a successful design for the company and an inspiration to today’s automakers.

Although ridiculed by some as a “rubber band” transmission, partly because of the drive belts in the system and partly because the engine would rev in an unorthodox fashion, the DAF Variomatic was innovative and ahead of its time.  Today, in the quest for better fuel economy, continuously variable transmissions are in use in cars and SUVs from most of the major automakers, including Acura, Audi, Ford, Honda, Jeep, Lincoln, Nissan, Subaru and Toyota.
The modern continuously variable transmission (CVT) has been estimated to improve a car’s fuel economy by about six percent, so while the DAF was somewhat of a novelty, refined CVTs are now mainstream.

Having received a positive public reception in Amsterdam, the DAF 600 went into production, and was followed by several subsequent models, all of which used the Variomatic CVT.  When the Daffodil model was introduced – isn’t that a great name? – DAF cars made very minor inroads into the US market.  But today DAF is a car name forgotten in America.

One of the quirks of the Variomatic is that it enabled the cars to be driven in reverse every bit as fast as in the forward gear.  This had the effect of making DAFs very popular for reverse racing, which strikes us as a European version of “Hold my beer and watch this!”  It also accounts for the relatively low number of DAF cars still extant.  Perhaps to the disappointment of trial lawyers across America, modern CVTs do not offer this capability.

Prior to the introduction of the DAF 600, DAF was a truck maker, and subsequent to the production of passenger cars, DAF continued as a truck maker, and a particularly successful one.  DAF trucks remain in production in Europe to this day.
But, as you run to the store or commute to work in your Toyota Corolla or your Honda CR-V, you may be sitting behind a CVT that can trace its inspiration to the DAF 600. 

Image top right selected from Wikipedia Commons. 

Image center left selected from Wikipedia Commons. 

Image bottom right selected from Wikipedia Commons .