11 March 2020
 Categories: , Blog

Modern-day cars are relatively easy to drive, and much of this is due to the ubiquitous automatic transmission. You may make use of this mechanical marvel every day as you drive your vehicle back and forth to work but may often take its operation for granted. Why is it important to have a general understanding of how this all works and, crucially, to be aware of problems as and when they arise?

Automatic Magic

When a car is fitted with a manual gearbox and transmission, you have to connect and disconnect the engine under varying circumstances. You will do this by depressing the clutch pedal, which will allow you to select the appropriate gear for forward progress. All of this manual effort is taken away in an automatic car, of course, but the equipment nevertheless has to perform the same function.

Deep within the gearbox is a component known as a torque converter. This is a very clever piece of engineering and it is designed to manage the power of the engine according to the actual speed of the car.

Clutch Issues

For example, a special clutch mechanism is able to maintain a set forward speed once the vehicle gets up to the required pace on a motorway. This is known as the "lock-up" clutch, and it can sometimes cause issues. When it does start to fail, it will not be able to maintain that cruising speed and will engage or disengage so quickly that you may feel that your car is actually shaking. When this happens, the lock-up clutch is unable to determine whether more power is needed for acceleration or whether the engine should be temporarily disengaged. In this situation, the gearbox will need to be disassembled, and the lock-up clutch itself may need to be replaced.

Other Problems

It's vital to ensure that the vehicle is maintained on a regular basis and that the transmission fluid is checked. If the fluid is very old or is below a certain level, then it may cause internal components to overheat, and this can also trigger issues with the torque converter. You may begin to notice issues here if the car seems to be very sluggish when you are trying to overtake a slower vehicle. In this case, the fluid may need to be changed, and the internal components will need to be inspected for excess wear and tear.

Next Step

If you suspect that you have issues with the automatic transmission, then your torque converter may be to blame. Take the vehicle into a qualified mechanic for them to have a look.

For more information, reach out to an automatic transmission service in your area.