Signs You Have Transmission Trouble
If you’ve been driving for a while, it’s probably happened to you: your engine starts shaking and making weird noises while you’re driving. Or even more obvious — the Check Engine light comes on. Unfortunately, these are all signs that you have car trouble, and the longer you let it go, the more serious it could get. Sometimes it’s obvious you have an issue with your transmission, and sometimes it isn’t clear at all. Here are some signs that your automotive issues could be coming from your transmission.
Fears for Gears
If your transmission won’t respond, or you can’t get your car into gear at all, it is a fairly safe bet that the transmission needs to be serviced.
Funny Noises, Bad Vibrations
This is also true if your gears are slipping or if you hear a grinding noise (or experience shaking) when your car changes gears (in vehicles with an automatic transmission). You may also notice additional or excess give when you depress the clutch pedal on vehicles with a manual transmission. This is called clutch drift, and is also a strong indicator that something is wrong with your transmission.
Other Things to Look Out (or Listen) For
Some signs of transmission trouble are a little less obvious than issues with changing gears. If your car suddenly starts to make unusual noises — when in neutral or just during normal operation — or the engine emits odd smells when the car is running, this almost certainly indicates some kind of issue, and can be clues that you have problems with the transmission. To state the obvious: any unusual burning smell coming from your engine is bad, and you should have it checked out!
A Leaky Car is a Squeaky Wheel
Another sign that points to problems with your car is a fluid leak. If you discover puddled fluids underneath your car or truck, you should investigate the source. And if the fluid smells sweet and is red-colored, it’s probably transmission fluid. You can dig deeper and confirm you have a transmission fluid leak by checking the transmission dipstick under the hood: transmission fluid doesn’t burn off naturally over time like oil does, so if the fluid is below the recommended fill line, a transmission fluid leak is probable.
The Dreaded Mystery of the Check Engine Light
When a Check Engine light comes on, that means something is signaling to your car’s computer that there’s a problem. And even if it hasn’t impacted your ability to drive the vehicle yet, it certainly could. There are all kinds of reasons why the Check Engine light will trigger, and many of them are related to the transmission. The good news is that it is usually quite easy to determine the problem causing the alert, and your friends at Auto Correct can help you figure it out.
Time is of the Essence
We depend on our cars, and we need them to be dependable. If you’re experiencing one (or more!) of the situations on this list, we recommend bringing your car in to get checked out — ideally before whatever the issue gets worse. If you’re in or near Glendale, let the professionals at Auto Correct take a look. We’ll help you track down the problem and solve it.
