As summer continues to make the mercury in the thermometer climb, it's important to take steps to make sure your car can survive the heat. One particular area you might want to pay special attention to is your transmission. Your car's transmission plays a critical role in keeping your vehicle in the right gear, and if it were to overheat or run into other trouble, you would quickly find yourself out of commission. Here are some tips to help keep your transmission cool and running smoothly as summer moves forward.
Always Be Mindful of the Fluid
Your transmission without enough transmission fluid is like an engine without oil or the car itself without gasoline. Your transmission oil is responsible for keeping all moving parts properly cooled and lubricated. If the fluid is too dirty or too low, trouble will likely find you sooner rather than later. Get your transmission fluid flushed and changed by a professional every six months, or more frequently if you drive a lot. Make it a point to keep this fluid topped off in between official maintenance appointments.
Avoid Too Much Shifting
The more work your transmission has to do, the more wear and tear it will accumulate and the greater chance there will be of something overheating. If you have a manual transmission, accelerate and decelerate as smoothly and consistently as possible. Actually, that's good advice for automatic transmissions too. But you should also be mindful of the types of roads you are driving on this summer. Roads with a ton of ups and downs as you travel through the hills are going to cause extra stress on the transmission, regardless of whether it's manual or automatic.
Add Another Component
If you've had problems with your transmission overheating before, you might want to make an addition or two under the hood. Consider having an expert install a larger pan that can hold more transmission fluid. This will help spread out the heat as your vehicle moves down the road. If you have a high performance vehicle and really need some extra help, you may be able to add an additional cooling system that works in conjunction with your radiator to keep the fluid cool.
To keep your transmission properly cooled this summer, pay special attention to your transmission fluid and be mindful of how often the transmission has to shift as you move down the road. Contact a transmission repair service today for more tips or to schedule an appointment.
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