Daf 1958-1975 - Revolution thanks to Variomatic
Summary
There were around 10,000 car brands and designers - most of them have disappeared. One of these vanished brands is Daf, which stood for easy-to-drive and compact vehicles from 1958 to 1975. In particular, the so-called Variomatic, now known as CVT (continuously variable transmission), became a Daf trademark, as did the special sound when the vehicles accelerated at a steady speed.
Estimated reading time: 3min
Preview (beginning of the article)
In the post-war boom, cars became bigger and more powerful. And then someone came along and promised the small car revolution: Hub van Doorne had laid the foundations for the type of automatic transmission known today as CVT (continuously variable transmission). The first test drive in 1958 with the tiny four-seater led up a super-steep neighborhood street in Lucerne. The air-cooled 590 cc two-cylinder boxer engine began to howl at the top of its voice, as if the clutch had been let slip in an insane manner. But there was no clutch pedal, and the little car slowly but surely began to climb the slope, and gradually the increasing speed and the decreasing revs came closer together.
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