Abstract
Traction fluid development is usually aimed at infinitely-variable transmissions for the luxury car market. Such applications demand good traction, often with demanding low-temperature requirements, and a long life for the transmission components - the cost of the fluid is not the most critical factor. Recently the applications of traction fluids have broadened so the development of fluids has become more complex. High traction or low cost may be the determining factors for success.
This paper describes the work done to develop and assess a low-cost traction fluid for an off-highway application. After an initial screening of brief traction testing the best candidate fluid was chosen and subjected to more comprehensive traction testing, efficiency testing and finally durability testing.
Keywords: Traction Fluids, Variator, IVT