Automatic transmissions sure make driving convenient, don’t they? It’s a good idea to have your automatic transmission serviced every 30,000 miles. This makes certain that this crucial system that is filled with thousands of parts is always operating as it should be. If there is a problem, John’s Auto Care lists some of the things you will experience below.
Burning Odors
If your transmission is low on transmission fluid, you may smell burning odors coming from underneath your automobile. A burning smell indicates a problem, whether with the transmission or not, and it also indicates that it may be unsafe to continue to drive your car, truck, or utility vehicle. Take any hot smells you detect seriously.
Check Engine Warning
The transmission has sensors that communicate with the engine control module, which is your car’s main computer. If the sensors send error codes to the module, it will turn on the check engine light to let you know that there’s a problem. In this case, the issue is with the vehicle’s transmission.
Gear-Shifting Trouble
One of the biggest signs that your transmission is going bad is having problems with the gears. Your transmission may refuse to go into drive or reverse when you shift it, it may refuse to shift through the gear cycle, it may skip gears in the cycle, or it may slip out of gear and go into neutral while you are driving. All of these things indicate serious problems with the transmission.
Grinding/Squealing Sounds
When the transmission does shift gears, it should be a silent process. You shouldn’t hear grinding or squealing sounds at each gearshift. If you do, there’s a problem with the transmission. In some cases, you may just have low transmission fluid that needs to be replaced.
Leaking Fluid
Transmission fluid will leak out of the system underneath your automobile. It will leak near the center of your automobile rather than from underneath the engine. Transmission fluid is red. Leaking transmission fluid indicates a serious problem with the system that needs to be fixed right away. Otherwise, you’ll be driving with low transmission fluid.
Neutral Humming
If your transmission makes humming noises when it’s in neutral, this, too, is a sign of transmission problems. The only thing you should hear when your vehicle is in neutral is the sound of your engine idling.
Shaking/Vibration
Finally, the transmission should shift gears smoothly. You might feel a little bit of movement when the gears shift, but your vehicle should not shake, vibrate, nor should you hear the transmission “clunk” into gear.
The sooner you get your transmission problems looked into the better. Call John’s Auto Care in Roseville, CA, today to schedule an appointment.
