How to Identify Transmission Problems — AutoStream Car Care Center
If you notice your car struggles to shift gears or struggles to keep up at appropriate speeds, you may have an issue with your transmission that needs repair. AutoStream Car Care Center in Annapolis, Maryland, can provide any necessary repairs to keep your vehicle performing well, especially when your vehicle puts in a lot of work towing. A car’s transmission handles the swapping of gears which can more efficiently spend its energy. At lower speeds, cars struggle to accelerate so they need more power. Once at higher speeds, your vehicle can use inertia to maintain a gradual climb, but it still needs to work against wind resistance. To adapt to the ranges of speeds the vehicle can perform, it changes gears more efficiently spend its energy. A truck that isn’t handling extra luggage well may not be because it lacks power, but that it lacks torque which is part of the transmission.
Torque is the amount of pressure your vehicle exerts into twisting your wheels. The horsepower of a car is the force that sets the wheels in motion, but the torque is what gives that motion a direction. To make use of that power, you need to control it. In this way, a car’s torque works to improve its power. The transmission is what changes gears and applies varying levels of torque to reach higher levels of output with less work. Think of riding a bike with multiple gears and how hard it is to go faster when you’re still in first gear. To reach a certain speed, you would need to put exponentially more work in, but with higher gears and torque you can much more easily do so. This is why transmission repair can sometimes solve the problem of a car not reaching its maximum horsepower potential.
Your transmission may not need repair, but it is still important to maintain it so it stays that way. Transmission fluid lubricates the moving parts inside the gearbox so that they don’t grind down through use. In automatic transmission cars, you’ll feel a much smoother acceleration as your car automatically switches gears. This is because the transmission fluid makes this easier for your car and reduces the heat created. It is generally suggested to change the fluids every 15,000 miles or every year, whichever comes first. We can service your vehicle at AutoStream Car Care Center in Annapolis, Maryland, and keep your transmission fluid fresh and your car performing well. Call us at 443-241-8253 or visit us on 1210 Forest Drive to get ASE certified and AAA approved service for your car.
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