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Home My WebLink AboutTimes Advocate, 1998-05-13, Page 18Page 18 Times -Advocate, May 13, 1998 The care and feeding of your transmission (CCC)—The pistons in your engine are pounding up and down, turning a crankshaft. And your wheels are turning—at a different speed. But what exactly is the transmission? The transmission is what transforms the power of your engine into useful. power on the road. It regulates the speed that the engine needs to "turn,(revolutions per minute, or RPM, if you have a tachometer) to deliver the speed you want over the road. Another factor comes into play—torque. Torque is the twisting force. that gets your car rolling, and many of today's smaller engines develop less torque than the old monsters we used to drive. That means that the engine has to work at higher RPM. to deliver the needed torque, resulting in more shifting by the transmission. Your transmission's worst enemy is heat, because excess heat will cause the transmission fluid to carbon up and lose its effectiveness, eventually leading to the dreaded transmission rebuild—expensive and definitely to be avoided. After the long, hot summer, check on your' transmission fluid to ensure you won't have any unpleasant surprises during the dead of winter. • Car Care Canada offers the following tips for looking after your auto - Check your brake IQ (CCC) --Brakes are the most critical safety item on a vehicle. After tires, they are the leading vehicle defect reported in highway accidents, according to some North American studies. But how much do you know about your brakes? Find out by taking this simple brake quiz. It could save your life. 1. If your car pulls to -the left when brakes arc applied: - a) Your left front tire may be under -inflated, b) Your right front brake is not working properly, c) Your left front -wheel bearing may be' failing, d All of the above. The correct answer is 'd.' - 2. When brakes squeal, you should: a) Replace all pads and linings, b) Have the rotors resurfaced, . c) Ignore the noise, it's normal, and turn up your radio, d) Have a mechanic/automotive serv- ice technician check it out, e) All of the above. The correct answer is 'd.' A brake inspection may dis- close that one of,the other answers also applies. Brake squeal is a common problem, indicating a need for corrective measures. Only a thorough brake inspection •• •�` 11 i t i i 1 can reveal the true cause of the problem. 3:Brake fluid in the master cylinder- should ylindershould be checked and replenished as needed. When doing so, you should use: I a) Whatever good brake fluid you may have in, your garage, b) A good quality brake fluid meeting the specifications recom- mended in your owner's manual, c) A quality grade 20 weight motor oil, d) All of the above. The correct answer is 'b.' Always use brake fluid from a freshly opened container. Use only the specific grade of oil recommended in your owners manual. - 4. Most brake lining pads are now made of: . a) Steel wool-like strands in a heat -resistant resin binder, b) High -friction, heat -resistant asbestos fibre, c) Ceramic -based friction material, d) Any or all of the above. The cdrrect answer is 'a.' Asbestos, now considered a hazardous waste. has not been used in brakc linings for a long time. 5. Do you understand your ABS brakes? Answer true or false (score half, a point for each of the,following): , r a) Even with ABS, on a slibpery road 1 should pump the brakes for maximum stopping -power. The correct answer is 'false.' The ABS system will pump only the brake or brakes on wheels that are slipping. The other brake§ remain fully applied, so you'll stop faster. The ABS system can pump the,brakes that need to be pumped many times a second. b) When I press down on the pedal on a slippery day„1 feel the pedal press back against my foot and I hear a humming noise. This means the brakes are failing. The correct answer is 'false.' This is normal, and tells you that the ABS system is working. Use a firm steady pressure on the brake pedal. What's Your Score? • If you have five correct answers, you have an excellent knowledge of brakes. Congratulations! .• • If you scored four correct answers, you_have a very'good under- standing of brakes. You should be proud of your knowledge. • If you have three correct answers, you have a passing knowledge. Be,careful, or seek professional guidance. • If you scored less than three correct answers, brush up on your car care tips, or be sure to have your vehicle properly and regularly main- tained by a trained automotive service technician. For more information, contact Denise Faguy, Car Care Council, Manager, Communication Services, at 1-519-766-9893. Car Care Council www-w777wTmp • at HAY'S AUTOMOBILE RECONDITIONING INTERIOR SHAMPOOING, VINYL AND FABRIC P*OTEC'POR, ENTI RIOR BUFFING AND HAND WAX, ENGINE SHAMPOOING, 3 YEAR SHINE GUARANTEE, OH UNDERCOATfillis,I'YEAR RUST PROOFING QtrSR BILL HAY Hensall Ont. NOM 1X0 20 Years Experience (519) 262-3342 {`Will pick up and deliver” matic transmission: 1. Don't shift into park of revetse while the car is moving --come to a stop and then shift. 2. Check your, transmission fluid regularly, and replace the fluid according to the schedule in your owner's manual. Watch for any dark- ening in colour or black specks in the fluid—that's carbon and it means your transmission is taking too -much heat. Get it checked before a small problem turns into.an expensive rebuild. 3. If you do any towing, use the gear selector—don't just put it into overdrive and forget it. Run mostly in third, or whatever -your highest non -overdrive gear is, except when you're on the highway and really cruising. Even then, help your transmission out in hilly terrain. You should also consider adding a transmission cooler to keep the transmis- sion from overheating. . 4. Consider using friction -reducing products on the market for your transmission. Many of these products contain a polymer called polyte- trafluoroethylene, or PTFE (aka Teflon). These particles bond to trans- mission parts to reduce wear, which is very important if you like to keep your car for a long time: 5: Regular check-ups. You go to the doctor, you go to the dentist— your ear needs preventive maintenance, too. Preventive maintenance is just that—you spend a little now so you don't have to spend a lot more down the road. How do you know if you have a transmission problem? You may feel the shifting get jerky instead of smooth, or maybe it won't shift at all. It may be reluctant to shift up as you accelerate, or down as you slow down. Or it may slip, instead of shifting smoothly and rapidly into the - next gear. Checking your transmission fluid is always the first step. The hardest partabout it, usually, is finding the dipstick, but car manufacturers are getting better about labelling them. As with almost all maintenance, the first place to look is in your owner's manual, which will tell you where the dipstick is:and how to check the fluid level. Here's How You Do It • Drive the car around the block to get everything flowing. • Park on a level place, apply the parking brake, and shift through each gear in turn, holding it for a second or two in each gear. • • With the engine still running. pull the dipstick, wipe it clean, rein- sert it all the way and then pull it out again. • The level should be. in the appropriate range on the stick. Wipe a little on a clean white cloth, or a piece of tissue and check the colour. It should be a Tight reddish pink. If there is any black in the fluid, you have a problem What if you drive a standard?Many of the same facts are true. You 'also have to consider the health of your clutch. so don't hold your car on a hill by slipping the clutch. What you're doing is allowing two plates to grind together without letting them grip, so they are wearing out. Standard, or manual, transmissions also need lubrication to prevent metal -to -metal contact. Just as for automatic transmissions, additives arc available, specifically formulated for manual transmissions, that will bond PTFE to the metal and leave a protective coating. All it takes is common sense. Follow a preventive maintenance sched- ule that includes periodic fluid replacement. and your transmission will reward you with long and faithful service. , Car Care Canada Tire Care And Wheel Alignment Can Reduce Operating Costs . (AiA)--Proper maintenance of tires and wheel alignment can help to reduce the costs of operating your vehicle. For example, tires tinderin- • flitted by only eighi pounds can reduce gas mileage by five percent and cut tire life by 25 percent or more. The amount of money we pay for gas and tires today makes it worthwhile to check tire inflation. And ensuring your vehicle is running at peak efficiency is environmentally friendly, too. How do you check your tire pressure? You may want to own.a tire gauge, which is available in most automotive stores, such as a retailer, department store or automotive parts wholesaler for under:$10. Also, when your vehicle is on the hoist or lift for regular vehicle maintenance or repairs, ask your automotive service technician to check the tires for abnormal wear. • More fuel is consumed as a result of incorrect alignment, which can result in at least a two percent tankful energy loss as well as reducing tire life. Of.course, incorrect alignment accelerates tire wear to an even greater degree. There are two easyways to detect incorrect' alignment of tire balance, indicating the need.for cost-saving wheel and front-end service: 1) Looseness or excessive play in steering or difficulty in controlling the vehicle over bumps and around curves are indications of problems which need correcting. 2) Vibration or the slightest shimmy'are also indications of a problem. When vehicles are on the hoist, they should be checked for front-end and steering looseness and shock absorber leakage. A good automotive service technician can determine thecorrective measures needed for steer- ing and suspension systems...or advise that ball joints, steering, linkage and shock absorbers or struts are dependable, but wearing to the point where replacement would be advisable in the near future. . 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