Mastering the Mysteries of Synchronizers
In a transmission we have a sequence of events that must take place in a precisely timed manner to get a smooth, effortless, clash-free shift. Let’s follow these events to understand the theory of operation and with that knowledge find the solutions that will fix and prevent further shift problems.
Six-Speed Solutions
The T56 now is found in Camaros, Firebirds, Dodge Vipers, C5 Corvettes, Aston Martins, the Australian Holden, Mustang Cobra R’s, the new Pontiac GTO and the just-released Cadillac CTS-V. Tremec also developed an aftermarket T56 unit that replaces the T5 units used in earlier Mustangs, Camaros and Firebirds. This unit is a direct bolt-in, which will require some modification to the cross member, driveshaft and, on Mustangs, the exhaust system.
Making Money with Transmissions and Transfer Cases
At least 50% of the calls on the tech line are generated by shops that are not fully educated in the work they are doing or have not learned to look at the whole vehicle. The modern automobile is a combination of very complex interconnected systems that must function together correctly. Do not let the unit you are working on isolate your thought patterns from the whole vehicle. A knowledge of how these connected systems affect each other is a must for you to remain profitable.
The Tremec TKO Series of Transmissions
The business of doing business for our industry has become much more complicated in the past few years. The general advance of complex designs and electronic functions has made severe changes in the cost and volume of the work the average shop can produce. Add to this the competition for market share that the car dealers through reman programs and the centralized rebuilding centers have placed on the transmission shop, and it is easy to see how the industry is contracting.
What Is New at New Venture Gear?
New Venture Gear is a major supplier of transfer cases to the world’s automakers. A subsidiary of DaimlerChrysler, New Venture Gear began life as a marriage of the New Process Gear division of Chrysler Corp. joining with the Muncie transmission division of GM to manufacture transmissions and transfer cases. That joint venture has now been dissolved, with DaimlerChrysler retaining the New Venture name and continuing to design and manufacture transfer cases at its plant in East Syracuse, N.Y.
The End of the Season
It is 6 p.m. Tuesday, Oct. 28, and I am about an hour away from Daytona Beach, Fla., where I will compete in the final race of this season. The sanctioning body is the Grand American Road Racing Association, the road-racing division of NASCAR. This series, on premier race tracks in the United States and Canada, features 10-12 races per season, all televised on the Fox Speed Channel.
Clutch Technology – the Real Deal
One of the most-common repairs performed by transmission and general-repair shops is clutch replacement. The clutch is a high-wear item that must engage and disengage hundreds of times a day. It is subject to a lot of driver abuse; vehicle overloading; wear and failure of linkage, hydraulics and powertrain mounts; and contamination from oil leaks in the engine or transmission.
Domestic-Truck Transmission Identification Guide
One of the difficult problems facing most transmission shops is the identification of manual transmissions. To be able to order parts and create a valid sales quote for a customer, the shops have to know what they are working on. Stick-shift transmissions comprise about 20% of the market; so most shops are very familiar with automatic units and have difficulty with manual-trans identification. The following guide provides some basic information to lead you in the right direction as to which transmission you are working on. Space limitations do not allow us to list every manual transmission you may encounter, but those listed here are the most-common units in domestic trucks and sport/utility vehicles.
It Ain’t Just Oil
One thing we have seen that is consistent in the repair industry has been an unprecedented explosion of new and changing technology. An amazing number of new transmission and transfer-case designs soon will be appearing in your shop. The ever-increasing use of computer and electronic controls has made all the units more sophisticated, and diagnosis is becoming a stand-alone specialty.
Synchronization: A Study in Timing
Manual-shift transmissions have been manufactured with synchronized gear train for decades. The early designs were three-speed transmissions with 2nd and 3rd gears synchronized, and as transmission design progressed, four-, five- and six-speed transmissions were developed. At this point all forward speeds were commonly synchronized, and as the purchase costs of the vehicles increased and customers became more demanding, reverse was synchronized in most late-model vehicles. Synchronizers remain the most-misunderstood components in manual transmissions and transfer cases and therefore cause a great number of diagnostic headaches and comebacks.
The Road to Hell is Paved With Good Intentions
Dynamic emissions testing on chassis dynamometers can be disastrous for all-wheel-drive transfer cases
In my distant youth, my mother often said to me, “The road to Hell is paved with good intentions.” During those years it never dawned on me how true those words were, but as I aged it became clear how smart my mother really was.
Where Do We Go From Here?
There is an old Chinese blessing that says, “May you live in interesting times.” As far as the auto-repair and automobile-manufacturing industries are concerned, these are very interesting times. The balance of this year and the next few years will bring about some profound changes in these interdependent industries.
