Auto Transmission Maintenance (1 Viewer)

[Jim_Phillips]

This has been a long neglected item on my truck. I only just got round to changing the fluid for the first time and was wondering whether there are any other maintenance tips.

To be honest, I have no idea how an automatic transmission works. Is there a clutch that will need a replacement at some point. What wears out / after how many miles?

Any insights much appreciated.

Jim Cheers

 

[Jim_Phillips]

Whilst I'm on the subject... Is it doing any harm if the truck is stationary (say at traffic lights) and you leave it in Drive but keep a foot on the brake? I often wonder, but can't always be bothered to shift into neutral.

Jim

 

[CruisinGA]

Auto trannies use a torque converter which is somewhat like automatic clutch you could say. It smooths things out for the belts in the tranny, so that shifts are easier and smoother. They don't really wear out. You are not hurting anything by keeping your foot on the brake while in drive and not moving, the torque converter is disengaged allowing the the engine to idle but the car to not move. This is why people talk about getting locking torque converters for hill descents, a normal torque converter unlocks, disengaging the engine and transmission so you have to rely on brakes to stop, whereas in my 40, I don't really ever use my brakes off road, just leave the tranny in gear and let the engine compression keep me at a constant speed downhill.