A hydrostatic propulsion drive for a vehicle is disclosed including an electronic control unit and a hydrostatic transmission having a hydraulic pump with an adjustable swept volume and a hydraulic motor with an adjustable swept volume, the hydraulic pump being arranged in a closed hydraulic circuit. The swept volumes of the hydraulic pump and the hydraulic motor are changeable in accordance with a correction factor which is stored in a characteristic diagram and is dependent on the rotational speed and the drive torque of the hydraulic motor, the operating pressure at the hydraulic motor being increased if the correction factor is used. Due to the increased operating pressure, flow-induced pressure drops are reduced by way of volumetric flows, and leakage flows via gaps between moving parts of the hydraulic pump and the hydraulic motor are kept large enough to avoid excessive friction and loss of efficiency.