Overview Of The Components Within Your Car's Transmission

By Eric Hoover

Far different than your alternator or fuel pump, your transmission is an intricate construction that relies upon multiple parts working together. Each component has a specific job. As long as they perform their jobs, your car can shift gears properly. If any of the parts wear down and malfunction, your tranny might "slip" or refuse to shift. Given enough time, it will be necessary to have the entire assembly either replaced or overhauled.

In this article, we'll take a brief tour through the various components within your transmission. I'll describe their responsibilities and explain how they fulfill them.

Planetary Gearset

The planetary gearset is designed to provide the gear ratios. It consists of an outer ring gear, a central sun gear, and at least two planet gears that form a bridge between the ring and sun gears. Pinions intersect the planet gears while the ring gear is connected to an input shaft. The input shaft is powered by the engine, which causes it to turn. As the ring gear turns, the planet gears turn, which turn the sun gear.

Hydraulic System

The hydraulic system has a simple duty: to send pressurized fluid to every area of the transmission. The fluid lubricates the parts and cools them down. In doing so, it provides more shifting control. Even though the hydraulic system's job is a simple one, its design is complex. There are many tubes through which the fluid is sent. If any of those tubes suffer a reduction in pressure, it can cause the entire system to break down.

Torque Converter

The torque converter is found on automatic transmissions. It is tasked with the responsibility of supplying power to the tranny and sits between it and the engine. A turbine sits inside the torque converter and connects to the input shaft. A pump and a part called the stator work with the turbine to move oil in a consistent circular direction through the converter. The turbine powers the sun gear (mentioned above) which supports the turning of the planetary gearset.

Keeping The Fluid Flowing

Front and rear seals are used to prevent fluid from leaking from the transmission. The front seal keeps fluid moving through the torque converter. The rear seal keeps it from leaking from the output shaft. Both are made from rubber and as a result, will deteriorate with time. When they do, they should be replaced as soon as possible. There are also several other smaller seals (for example, the O-ring) that are located throughout the assembly. Gaskets also help to keep the fluid from leaking.

The above are the main parts that are found within your transmission. It's worth noting that they cannot do their jobs properly without the contribution of other components. An oil pump, a series of clutches, modulator, and solenoid pack all play important roles. Fortunately, the entire assembly will usually last for years before problems emerge. - 21396

About the Author:

For all your used auto parts and used transmissions needs the leader in parts is http://www.everdrive.com

How To Go About Buying A Selling Cars

By Dawn Enstruthe

There are a ton of things you will have to keep in mind if you are looking to buy or sell cars. Now, the first thing that you have to realize is that you can buy and sell car online and offline, you do not need to keep it to just online or just offline, you could do them both at the same time. You also need to figure out why you will be selling cars, will it be for personal reason, or are you looking to start a business?

Okay, for this article we will look at buying a car for personal reason, with the main objective to get from point A to point B. Okay, so you want to start by looking online, it is easy; we all know that the internet has made everything just so much easier since it first started. These days you can by a car from anywhere in the world, which is really cool.

First of all the pros are that you can get everything done that you need to. You can compare prices with hundreds of different stores and make sure you are getting the best deal. Offline you would have to go to a few shops in your area only to look for products making your shopping experience very tiring and limited.

Now, to go back to online shopping - buying anything online is a breeze. If you are new to the internet and online shopping there is no need to be worried. Yes, there are hackers out there, and there is such a thing as spyware, but relatively the internet is a safe place. You have nothing to worry about, as long as you have a good antispyware and antivirus installed on your PC.

You have absolutely nothing that you have to worry about - but make sure that you have a good antivirus installed on your PC if you are going to be using online banking to make payments.

The internet is a huge place, so you want to start you search by finding a good search engine - most people use Google and Yahoo for this.

The best thing to do before you start is to think about what type of car you want and how old it should be. Then you can narrow your search quite a lot before you even begin, otherwise you are left with a huge database of cars to go through. - 21396

About the Author:

Dawn Enstruthe owns website EAC Atlanta which has details of cheap DUI attorney Atlanta and inexpensive car accident attorney Atlanta.

Getting Your Car Across The Atlantic Ocean

By Minerva Leechman

An exciting opportunity arises when you get the chance to move overseas for work. There are a lot of unknowns and uncertainties associated with becoming an expatriate, but there are a lot of things to look forward to in a foreign place. One of the things you'll need to consider when you move is what to do with your existing vehicles?

Most major corporations that have a structured expat program in place will take care of all the moving for you. They generally pack up all of your belongings and ship them by boat. They'll do something similar with your vehicles, using a car transport vessel, or a plane in special cases, to get them to the new country and home. This can take months.

What if the company is moving overseas for the first time? As the guinea pig, you may not have the luxury of having all of the details taken care of for you. You may have to find your own way of getting your car or truck or van across the ocean, supposing that you'd rather drive what you currently have instead of buy something new.

In cases like this, you may need to hire a car transportation company that specializes in getting vehicles across countries and over oceans. People with car transport skill generally have contracted with ships and planes to provide several transportation options for people, whether they want to get the car there fast or whether they don't mind waiting a little while and getting a cheaper price. Regardless, a car transport company will be able to get your car wherever you need to go.

Car transport can often cost thousands of dollars, so the decision to keep your vehicles while overseas is not necessarily an easy one. You'll want to decide whether the car has a value high enough to warrant keeping. You may even want to keep your vehicles stored in your home country and buy a smaller car in the new country. This is because local cars will have cheaper parts and maintenance costs over the life of the car, unlike an import. Whatever you choose, just know that you have a lot of options for keeping yourself on the road overseas. - 21396

About the Author:

If you require an car transport company to move your vehicle, there are a number of options to consider when choosing the right auto moving company for you.

Do You Know How To Read Your Car Gauges

By Sam Bradley

To learn how to drive, you will need to do a lot of studying. In order to drive, you must understand what road signals mean, you must learn how to physically drive your car and you should be able to read and understand the gauges in your car. The gauges are important to keeping your car in good working order so that you can drive it for a long time.

Some cars have more lights than gauges, but all cars will have some type of an alert system in place to warn you about things on your car that are not operating as they should be. All forms of warning can be found in the dashboard of any vehicle. For those cars with gauges rather than lights, you will be able to tell what is going on with your car long before there is any problem. Learn what they are and where they should be so that you will know if you need to take any action.

The fuel gauge is one that almost everyone knows about by instinct. However, some drivers have a hard time learning to pay attention to this gauge. If you do not want to run out of gas in the middle of the road and a long ways away from a gas station, then you will need to pay attention to the gauge and make it to a gas station before you run out. If you are going on a long trip, then you can plan ahead where you will stop for fuel to make sure that you do not run out on the trip between towns.

Another gauge that is self explanatory is the speedometer gauge. On every road that you travel there will be a speed limit. You need to be sure to look for the speed limit sign and then travel no more than the speed limit. If you pay attention to the signs and your speedometer you can avoid a costly speeding ticket and make the roads safer for all of us to drive.

Fourth of the car gauges is the tachometer. This will give you the measurement of your engine's turning speed in revolutions per minute or RPM. There is no difference in reading the tachometer for automatic or manual cars. Keep in mind that you should only run the speed of your engine outside the red area of the tachometer.

The temperature of the coolant in your engine also has a gauge. The temperature gauge tells you how hot the coolant is. The hotter the coolant, the more likely you are to have problems inside the engine. Again, the gauge should have a red zone and you need to watch to make sure that the gauge does not get into the red zone. If the gauge is moving in that direction and does not come back down quickly as you get to speed, then you should pull over. You will need to let the engine cool down substantially before continuing on. You should check the coolant level the next morning before driving because it is likely too low and needs to be topped off to prevent the engine from getting too hot.

The last gauge is for oil pressure. It is important for your engine to run with the appropriate oil level. The indicator is on the middle part of the measuring device. If you noticed that the oil pressure is rising up or dropping down, you have to pull over and look at the oil level. Make sure to turn off the car's engine first before checking.

Gauges are important in the proper function and use of a car. These instructions are general in nature and you should consult your driver's manual of the car that you are driving for specific instructions concerning the gauges of that car. Paying attention to the gauges and taking actions when needed can give your car years of life and use. - 21396

About the Author:

In your dashboard you can find car gauges. It is important that you watchthem, especially the speedometer gauge. If you do not, you may be paying in the way of speeding tickets.

The 2008 Chevy Malibu Is Calling All The Shots

By Andy Zain

Although it has not been out for an elongated period of time the 2008 Chevy Malibu continues to turn heads. It's excellent as far as fuel economy is concerned. Fuel economy is the main subject on everyone's minds before they even think about purchasing a vehicle. This vehicle is great in this department so you should not have any qualms.

The fuel economy on the 2008 Chevy Malibu is awesome, you will get 20-25 miles per gallon. This vehicle accompanies all of the three key points that we have all come to love about Chevy's, it has impeccable style, along with refinement, and mind boggling performance.

The 2008 Chevy Malibu is available different trim styles, four styles to be exact. You can choose to have the LS, 1Lt, 2LT, as well as the LTZ styled vehicles. Every style has its own perks that allow it to stand out from the other styles that it has.

The LS style comes equipped with 16 inch steel wheels as well as a keyless entry. All of your accessories inside as well as out are full power accessories, and you also get an OnStar navigational system. With the 1LT the thing that makes this style different from the others is its steering wheel mounted audio controls along with its 17 inch alloy wheels. The 2LT style comes with a remote start engine, as well as adjustable pedals and seats that warm up.

The last style or trim of the 2008 Chevy Malibu is the LTZ version. This is noted as being the luxury style of the vehicle. It comes with 18 inch alloy wheels, the interior is comprised of nothing but leather seating and it has a few other perks that the other Malibu styles lack. A traditional navigational system, as well as climate controls throughout the vehicle are two of the extra features that come with the LTZ version.

The Malibu comes with a V6 engine for added power for your vehicle. However, you do have the option to go with a 4 cylinder version of the vehicle instead for added fuel economy overall.

In all of its safety tests the Malibu scored a good rating. All of the vehicles are well equipped with anti-lock brakes that work superbly. You have both front as well as side airbags and the LT and LTZ versions also have added stability control if you are ever put into an adverse situation such as a collision or anything of the sort.

The 2008 Chevy Malibu allows drivers the opportunity to engage in one of the smoothest rides they have ever experienced. Chevy has always been a trusted name on the market, and the 2008 Chevy Malibu is nothing short of all the excellent vehicles that Chevy avidly manufactures. - 21396

About the Author:

Andy Zain is the admin of Chevy Malibu Forums , a place where fans and owners can get the right information for tuning, customization and general discussions on anything about Chevy Malibu. Get the information you need when you visit Chevy Truck Forum