For Those Who've Owned a G2 and a G3; The Toyota Press Release of Jan. 12, 2009 states, "the HSD is 90% newly developed", "Transaxle is lighter, reduces torque losses by as much as 20%), "Inverter has a new Direct Coooling system, which reduces size and weight) and "together the Inverter, Moter and Transaxle are smaller and 20% lighter). Is there a perceptable difference between the G2's CVT and the G3's, CVT, is it smoother, quieter etc....or NO difference? Curious David (aka Blind Guy)
The perceived difference are minor, while there are many functional improvement: lighter, no drive belt, etc. Tom
Feels "tighter" to me, but part of this could be the difference between a fully broken in chain drive vs. a new gear drive. Sounds are different too due to the reduction gear for MG2 and it's higher RPM. MG1's "whine" sounds identical though.
I notice that when the G3's ICE turns on and off it's much smoother - this could be attributed this directly to these weight improvements...