3 Things to Understand About Your Transmission

An automotive transmission, whether manual or automatic, is a complex piece of machinery that works with the other systems of your engine to get you where you are going. Here are some important things to know that could provide a better understanding of how it all fits together.

Your Transmission is Not an Island

By itself, the transmission won’t be able to accomplish much. It is dependent on all the other functioning pieces of the engine’s system to work properly, just as the other parts of the engine network are dependent on the transmission to function properly.

Diagnosing a transmission issues is detailed work and it is important to look at the whole system to ensure that a transmission problem isn’t originating in an exterior component. One of the last things any competent transmission professional should do to fix a transmission is to remove the transmission. Prior to any transmission work, we put every vehicle we work on through a battery of diagnostic tests to ensure that all input devices are working properly and every potential exterior problem is ruled out. Many times, transmission problems that seem major turn out to be a relatively minor malfunctioning exterior component that, because of our rigorous diagnosis process, is caught and fixed right the first time. This saves our customers time and money, and gets them back out on the road with peace of mind.

Do Not Ignore the Check Engine Light

A lit check engine light is telling you there is a problem, please do not ignore the warning! At a minimum you should have your car’s computer scanned to know what the issue is and be able to plan for a repair accordingly. The more knowledge you have, the better position you are in to make an informed decision and save money.

Transmission Input Devices are Controlled by the Engine’s Computer

External input devices within the engine tell the transmission when to shift up or down. Even though they are outside of the transmission body, they work with the transmission to control it. If any of the transmission input devices are malfunctioning, the transmission will start to shift erratically or hard shifting. Many times our customers think (or have been told) that they will need a whole transmission rebuild, when it could simply be a faulty or malfunctioning sensor or control device.

Call Kimmer Transmission & Gear 303-693-1400.

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