justjed:
Japan's Nissan Motor Co plans to equip some of its luxury cars with a system to control steering electronically, rather than mechanically, the first time so-called "steer-by-wire" technology will be used in mass-produced vehicles.
And, in theory, you could hook an Arduino into that too! ]
They may be doing it to cut cost, like replacing tactile buttons with touch screens. By the way, I tested the MPG for my car. On highway if I use cruise control I can get the advertized 38MPG at 75MPH. I was on the other hand trying my best but only got 24MPG on local roads. They promised 27MPG. I was driving like a senior citizen.
I think the CVT is very good at high speed. It shifts to a gear ratio that optimizes engine efficiency. My engine is running at 2,000 RPM or less at 75MPH. You want to always drive with cruise control otherwise if you step on the gas, the RPM goes up and ruins your MPG. But the same CVT is horrible at low speed, especially at stop to go. It easily revs at 2,000 when I was trying to get from 0 to 20MPH and then shifts down to 1,250RPM when I hit 30PMH. Maybe I need a tune-up.