November 7, 2017
The transmission system in your vehicle allows you to change gears. Lower gears are power gears. They get your vehicle moving and get it up hills. Higher gears get the vehicle up to speed and get it rolling faster. If you have a standard transmission, then you have to do the work of shifting gears yourself. But with an automatic transmission, the vehicle shifts gears on its own. It automatically starts out in low gear and automatically shifts to high gears as it gets rolling. Again, it will automatically shift to a lower gear to climb hills or when you need a burst of speed.
How does it know when to change gears? Today's automatic transmissions are computer-controlled. The computer gathers information about what the vehicle is doing and changes the gears as needed.
Automatic transmissions are becoming more sophisticated all the time. More gears, or “speeds,” are being added. Almost all vehicles have at least four speeds. Five or six is common. Some are even increasing to seven or eight – up to ten. Adding gears has a lot of advantages for Chicago vehicle owners: it improves fuel economy and increases performance.
But there is a drawback for drivers in Chicago: more gears equal more parts and a more complex transmission system. Plus, all those parts need to fit into the same space as older, less complex transmissions. This means that today's transmissions are engineered to much tighter tolerances. In other words, they demand meticulous care from Chicago drivers. Transmissions are designed for durability. But that durability can be compromised if they aren't given proper care.
That's why changing transmission fluid is such an important part of preventive maintenance for vehicles in Chicago. Transmission fluid lubricates the transmission and keeps it in good working order. But if the fluid runs low, transmission parts will wear out quickly or suffer damage due to increased friction. The transmission can even fail.
Dirty transmission fluid can clog the small passageways in the transmission, blocking lubricant from reaching all of its parts. Again, this can lead to increased wear, damage or failure.
New transmissions aren't cheap. Repairing them isn't cheap either. But changing transmission fluid is fairly inexpensive at Tuffy Chicago (Diversey Pkwy) in Chicago. That's why responsible car care includes maintenance on the transmission system at Tuffy Chicago (Diversey Pkwy). It doesn't take a genius to figure out that periodic fluid changes aren't just good auto advice, they actually pay for themselves by preventing transmission repairs.
Tuffy Chicago (Diversey Pkwy)
1400 West Diversey Pkwy
Chicago, Illinois 60614
773-929-3622
September 14, 2025
You probably never thought about it, but your vehicle is like a rolling weather station. It can check the outside temperature, let you know when the roads are slippery and help you deal with rain. And how it does all those things is pretty cool. First, just like any weather station, a vehicle ha... More
September 7, 2025
On a hot day, you want your vehicle's air conditioning to work. When the air blowing out of your vents isn't cold, it's easy to think, "I'll just take it by the shop and have them top off my refrigerant." But while some people think air conditioning is that simple, it's actually not. If your ref... More
August 31, 2025
If youve ever stepped on your brake pedal and felt your vehicle vibrate, thats a signal that you shouldnt ignore. A pulsating brake pedal is a sign that something is wrong. Braking action should be smooth, sure, and quiet, not shaky and noisy. Most newer vehicles have disc brakes, called that b... More