The VTi is a continuously variable transmission

Continuously variable transmission

A continuously variable transmission is a transmission that can change steplessly through an infinite number of effective gear ratios between maximum and minimum values. This contrasts with other mechanical transmissions that offer a fixed number of gear ratios...

 for automobile

Automobile

An automobile, autocar, motor car or car is a wheeled motor vehicle used for transporting passengers, which also carries its own engine or motor...

s. It is fully automatic, electronically controlled, and designed for transverse

Transverse engine

A transverse engine is an engine mounted in a vehicle so that the engine's crankshaft axis is perpendicular to the long axis of the vehicle. Many modern front wheel drive vehicles use this engine mounting configuration...

 front-wheel drive

Front-wheel drive

Front-wheel drive is a form of engine/transmission layout used in motor vehicles, where the engine drives the front wheels only. Most modern front-wheel drive vehicles feature a transverse engine, rather than the conventional longitudinal engine arrangement generally found in rear-wheel drive and...

 use. The VTi is assembled at a General Motors/Fiat

Fiat

FIAT, an acronym for Fabbrica Italiana Automobili Torino , is an Italian automobile manufacturer, engine manufacturer, financial, and industrial group based in Turin in the Italian region of Piedmont. Fiat was founded in 1899 by a group of investors including Giovanni Agnelli...

 joint venture

Joint venture

A joint venture is a business agreement in which parties agree to develop, for a finite time, a new entity and new assets by contributing equity. They exercise control over the enterprise and consequently share revenues, expenses and assets...

 plant in Szentgotthard

Szentgotthárd

Szentgotthárd is the westernmost town of Hungary. It is situated on the Rába River near the Austrian border, and is home to much of Hungary's small Slovene ethnic minority....

, Hungary

Hungary

Hungary , officially the Republic of Hungary , is a landlocked country in Central Europe. It is situated in the Carpathian Basin and is bordered by Slovakia to the north, Ukraine and Romania to the east, Serbia and Croatia to the south, Slovenia to the southwest and Austria to the west. The...

.

Quality issues delayed the introduction of the VTi until the second quarter of 2002. Production ended in 2005 in favor of the GM-Ford 6-speed automatic transmission

GM-Ford 6-speed automatic transmission

General Motors and Ford Motor Company cooperated in 2002 to create a new automatic transaxle, designed for transverse engine applications in cars and light trucks...

.

The VTi can handle a maximum of 200 N·m (147 ft·lbf) of torque for vehicles weighing up to 2100 kg (4630 lb), with gear ranges from 2.61 to 0.44. A 2.15 reverse gear is also specified. The effective final drive ratio is 4.35.

It uses two sets of 12 steel bands (Van Doorne belts) inside a die cast aluminum casing. GM claims that the CVT's bands, normally a weak spot in CVTs, are reliable for at least 100,000 miles (161,000 km) . A 225 mm (8.9 in) torque converter is also used.

In 2004 GM extended the transmission's

Transmission (mechanics)

A machine consists of a power source and a power transmission system, which provides controlled application of the power. Merriam-Webster defines transmission as: an assembly of parts including the speed-changing gears and the propeller shaft by which the power is transmitted from an engine to a...

 warranty on all 2002 - 2004 GM vehicles with the VTi to 5 years / 75,000 miles (120,700 km) due to high failure rates.

Applications:

• 2002–2004 Saturn Vue
  Saturn VUE
  The Saturn Vue is a compact crossover SUV that was sold by General Motors' Saturn marque, and at one time was Saturn's best-selling model. It was the first vehicle to use the GM Theta platform when it was introduced in 2002. A second generation model was launched in 2007 for the 2008 model as a...
  
   (GMT315)
• 2003–2004 Saturn Ion
  Saturn ION
  The Saturn Ion was a compact car sold by the Saturn marque of American automaker General Motors between the 2003 and 2007 model years. It used the GM Delta platform. The Ion replaced the Saturn S-Series in 2003,...
  
   Quad Coupe
• Opel Astra
  Opel Astra
  The Opel Astra is a small family car engineered and manufactured by the German automaker Opel since 1991.It is branded as Vauxhall Astra in the United Kingdom, the Buick Excelle XT in China and the Chevrolet Astra/Vectra in Latin America...