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The gear box is a very essential, sensitive and expensive part of a car. The motion of the car originates in and is determined by the gear box. This is so because an automatic transmission contains two groups or clusters of gears. The malfunctioning of any components results in serious problem.
Therefore it is very essential and cheaper to take care of your automatic transmission.
WAYS YOU CAN PROTECT YOUR AUTOMATIC TRANSMISSION.
1. Ensure there is an adequate transmission oil for your automatic transmission. Use your dip stick to ascertain the level of your oil. To do this, follow the steps below:
(a) Start your car and allow the engine run until it gets hot. You can as well drive round your street or area to achieve that. (The engine must be hot before the next step)
(b) Pull out your transmission oil dip stick while the engine is still running but in parked position. For maximum safety, you can apply your parking brake too .
(c) clean the dip stick with toilet tissue or a clean rag.
(d) reinsert the stick into the gearbox and pull out again.
(e) carefully check the level of oil on the markings of the stick.
The stick is marked ‘COLD’ at the lower part and ‘HOT’ at the upper part. If your transmission oil level is at the upper part marked ‘HOT’ it means you have an adequate quantity of oil in your gear box and you are good to go. But if it falls below the ‘hot’ marking, you will need to add transmission oil to achieve the normal gauge.
However, you have to apply caution in doing so as excessive fluid prohibits proper lubrication and cooling. It can further cause potential damage to the transmission components.
2. Ensure there is no leakage in the system. You want to check for any possible leak. The hose and pipes supplying and returning fluid to and fro the gearbox must be be in good condition to avoid unnecessary shortage of transmission fluid.
3. Always Apply Your Parking Brake Before shifting to park . Pulling your parking brake (hand brake) before shifting your gear to park especially when parking on a slope helps to remove the pressure on the output shaft of your gear. That in turn will enable an easy and smooth shift when next you want to move. Neglecting the parking brake before parking your car gradually damages your transmission and would soon get seriously damaged.
4. Do Not Shift Before Your Car Has Stopped. Your automatic transmission should come to a full stop before shifting either to park, Drive or Reverse. Switching between gears too quickly increases the risk of grinding and seriously damaging your gear
Cultivate the culture of slowing down completely before selecting a new drive mode.
5. Avoid down shifting. Down shifting is a practice of reducing your vehicle speed by shifting from a higher gear to a lower one. this is more practical and harmless in manual vehicles. It is dangerous in automatic cars. Use your brake instead if you must slow down
Thanks in advance for sharing.
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