How To Prevent Abnormal Transmission Wear & Damage
There are several things to avoid that could speed up wear on the parts of your transmission.
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- Your Driving Habits Have an Impact on Transmission Wear
- Towing Excess Weight?
- Regular Transmission Maintenance Will Help Prevent Wear
- Make Sure the Right Transmission Fluid is Used
Related: What Is A Transaxle?
Related: 10 Ways To Lengthen The Life Of Your Car
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Your Driving Habits Have an Impact on Transmission Wear
The best way to prolong the life of your car and prevent major transmission repairs is to watch how you drive. Many people have driving habits that are actually causing more wear on their car, in particular their transmission, than necessary. What are some of these habits?
Parking without the Parking Brake Engaged
Essentially, your parking brake takes all the pressure off your transmission when your car isn’t moving. Without your parking brake, your transmission is actually what’s keeping your car stationary, which is a bigger job than it’s meant for. If you tend to park on inclines, this is especially true, since it takes even more force to keep your car from rolling.
Shifting Gears while the Car is Still Moving
This is mostly true for automatic transmissions, though it’s a good habit to break even if you tend to drive manual transmissions. It really has to do with shifting from drive to reverse, or vice versa. When you shift while the car is still rolling or in motion, it causes extra wear on the transmission because it is more difficult to shift into that new gear.
Keeping Your Transmission Running Smoothly
AAMCO Colorado’s team of expert mechanics are licensed, trained, experienced, and certified. You can trust us to help you with your transmission and save you time.
Towing Excess Weight
If you look at your owner’s manual, every car has a recommended max weight for towing. It’s a good idea not to go over that max recommended weight – or even come close to it, if possible. In general, towing any weight is putting more wear on your car, so the more you tend to tow or carry around, the more wear is caused by your transmission.
Ignoring Your Engine Temperature
Your engine and transmission work closely together, so if your engine temperature is getting high, the same is true for your transmission temperature. And generally speaking, the higher the temperature in your engine or transmission, the more wear is being caused, regardless of your driving habits. It’s a good idea to keep an eye on your engine temperature and avoid driving as much as possible if you notice that dial creeping too far upwards.
Regular Transmission Maintenance Will Help Prevent Wear
As with any part or system in your car, recommended regular maintenance will help prevent wear and damage. Just like your car’s engine, your transmission has fluid that keeps working parts lubricated, as well as a filter to keep debris and contamination from cycling through.
Don’t Let Your Transmission Fluid Level Get Too Low
You may or may not be able to check the level of your own transmission fluid. Many newer cars do not have a dipstick for this purpose but if yours does have one, it’s a good idea to keep an eye on it, just like engine oil. If you’re uncertain, a mechanic can easily check for you. The lower your transmission fluid level, the less lubricated your transmission parts are, causing increasing amounts of wear and even overheating due to friction.
Make Sure the Right Transmission Fluid is Used
Transmission fluid comes in a variety of viscosities, so it’s important to make sure the correct variety is used in your car. If a mechanic is replacing your transmission fluid, you should feel confident that the correct type was used. However, if you start to notice signs your transmission isn’t running well just after having the transmission fluid replaced, there is likely extra wear being caused and you should get it checked as soon as possible to prevent real damage.
Replace Your Transmission Filter
Your transmission filter keeps most contaminants out of your transmission so that they don’t cause extra wear by cycling through the moving parts. You or your mechanic should keep an eye on how dirty your transmission filter is and have it replaced once it accumulates too much contamination.
No Matter What Transmission Service You Need, Trust AAMCO Colorado
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