Documente Academic
Documente Profesional
Documente Cultură
com
D I G E S T ®
The Automotive Powertrain Industry Journal
Friction
•Generating Income
•Hard-Parts Suppliers
•Staying Grounded
In Their Fathers’
Footsteps
On The Cover The Robbins family in central Alabama
has taken family ownership in the
Friction Focused transmission-repair business to a
A longtime player, Alto says the key new level.
to its friction future is development of
new papers. Pictured with the largest
Page 4
friction ring manufactured by the Technical
company are (from left) Craig Cooke,
Robbie Ferguson and David Landa.
Technically Speaking®: . . .10
Page 14 Design & operation of the new
Jatco JF015E “step-type” CVT Business
Captain Reman . . . . . . . .32
Shift Pointers . . . . . . . . .20
To be a master salesperson,
A battery replacement results
you have to master usage
in water damage to a VW
of the telephone.
Passat’s TCM.
It’s Your Business . . . . . .35
Tech to Tech . . . . . . . . . .24
Rules to live by in the modern
Diagnosing no-start codes
business climate
in the first-generation
Toyota Prius
A Little Help . . . . . . . . . .51
TASC Force Tips . . . . . . .28
Technology can mean greater
Vacuum-testing the
freedom for a shop owner.
ZF 6HP21/28/34, Gen. 2
Up to Standards . . . . . . .33
A properly written warranty
protects both you and
your customer. News & Previews
R&R Tech . . . . . . . . . . . .41 From the Publisher .............2
The ground side of a circuit
is just as important as the Catalog/Product
source voltage. Showcase ...................38-39
Bonus Tech . . . . . . . . . . .49 Hard-Parts Suppliers ........44
Engineering a solution: How to Industry News Highlights...54
calculate clutch working area
Powertrain Products ....56-58
Marketplace................59-64
Index to Advertisers..........64
CERTIFIED
Transmission Digest (ISSN 0277-8300) is published monthly by M D Publications, Inc., 2034 W. Vista, P.O. Box 2210, Springfield, MO 65801-2210. Advertising inquiries are welcome, by mail or telephone,
(417) 866-3917; Fax (417) 866-2781; editor@mdpublications.com. Advertising rates furnished upon request. Advertiser and agency agree to indemnify and protect the publisher from unauthorized use of any
person’s name, photograph, statement or copyrighted material. Copies available by subscription: One year (12 issues) United States and U.S. possessions $39; Canada $48; all other countries via IPA $81 in
U.S. funds only. Single copy price $4.75 plus shipping for current or back issues (as available) except the Annual Buyer’s Guide which is published as the March issue.
Copyright© 2014 by M D Publications, Inc. All rights reserved. Advertisements and Signed articles do not necessarily reflect the opinions of Transmission Digest or its management. Editorial contributions
welcome, but return of manuscripts, models or other artwork not guaranteed unless accompanied by a self-addressed stamped envelope. Information contained in Transmission Digest has been carefully
compiled from industry sources known for their reliability, but M D Publications does not guarantee its accuracy. Other M D Publications: Undercar Digest, Tech/Talk, and Short Line. M D Show Division:
AUTO TECH EXPO. Periodicals Postage paid at Springfield, Missouri, and additional entry offices.
POSTMASTER: Please send address changes to Transmission Digest, P.O. Box 2210, Springfield, MO 65801-2210.
C
omes to mind a quote from to celebrate the brutal climate. Bobby Mace
the Bard’s King Richard If one operates a shop in a Publisher
III: “Now is the winter of rural red state, there’s still the publisher@transmissiondigest.com
our discontent.” opportunity that high precipita-
Nothing could say more about tion and low thermometer are Editorial
the changing of our industry the still hooked up to cash registers. Gary Sifford
past few months than the change As for our informal climatic sur- Editor
of attitude concerning winter. vey methods, somehow, the cities editor@transmissiondigest.com
Wouldn’t you agree that wind- of International Falls, Minot, Mike Riley
chill readings should be meas- Pocatello and Buffalo didn’t Technical Editor
ured with a brrr-ometer? make it onto a publisher’s itiner- mriley@transmissiondigest.com
When we first began to pub- ary. Terry Greenhut
lish Transmission Digest – more Blissfully, now comes spring- Business Editor
than 30 years ago – there were time, a time of rebirth; a time for Mike Weinberg
frequent references to business spring cleaning. It’s a good time Contributing Editor
being good or not good because to do something that can seem
of the winter weather. trivial and yet will make a good Art Department
Everybody’s eyes would sparkle impression on the customer and
Jay Young
when the forecast called for deep lead to more business. Yep, it’s Creative Director
snow that would result in drivers the waiting area!
Lonnie Bolding
rocking their vehicles out of If you have magazines, cata-
Art Administrator
snow banks and trashing the logs and TSBs from 1982, people
transmission. might get the impression that the
We’ve just sojourned through shop specializes exclusively in Circulation
one of the most-severe winters in Powerflite repairs. Cleaning the Dudley Brown
decades. And yet, everybody we windows, mopping the floor and Circulation Manager
visit or talk with on the phone replacing the non-functioning Mike Turner
loathes the snow, despises the ice light bulbs will proclaim the mes- mturner@mdpublications.com
and harbors ill will toward wind sage that your shop is conscien-
chill. A combination of better-en- tious. Another, less-classical Advertising Sales
gineered transmission innards quote comes to mind from the Mike Anderson
and the growth in popularity of days when Winston cigarette manderson@transmissiondigest.com
4WD and front-wheel drive commercials were common tele-
makes us powertrain pros more- vision fare: “It’s what’s up front Accounting/Credit
nearly normal; we find no motive that counts!” TD
Donna Blackburn
Credit Manager
Tell Us What Support You Need and Pocket $50 Auto TECH expo
Our technical team wants to help you. Let us know what you find Bob Jacobsmeyer
Exhibit Manager
troublesome, the answers you havenʼt found or any other technical
jake@autotechexpo.net
question youʼd like to see addressed. Weʼll gather the ideas every
month and try to handle them in Transmission Tech/Talk or in
CO-FOUNDERS
Transmission Digest. If your idea is judged the most important issue
of the month, weʼll send you a $50 bill. Carol Langsford
Send your ideas to mriley@transmissiondigest.com and start 1933-2012
planning how youʼll spend $50. Les Langsford
1928-1993
2 Transmission Digest
Circle No. 3 on Reader Card
Patriarch Allen Robbins Sr. (in white shirt) is surrounded by family members, many of
whom work in the family-owned businesses. Allen, whose wife, Patricia, died in 2012, and
Henrietta Lockhart (in the green dress) plan to be married in June.
Henrietta is the mother of Kenny Robbinsʼ business partner,
Kimberly Cole Zemke.
T
here’s nothing unusual about ways been inquisitive about trans-
family-owned businesses in missions and how they worked, re-
the transmission-repair indus- paired his first one, a Powerglide, at
try. Shops employing one or even the age of 17 while working for the
several of the owner’s family mem- owner of a garage and gas station.
bers are fairly common. The owner left him in charge while
However, the Robbins family in on vacation for a week, and a cus-
central Alabama has taken family tomer came in with a transmission
ownership to a new level. Patriarch problem. Allen removed the trans-
Allen Robbins Sr., who retired from mission and took it apart, figured
active shop operation about 10 out what was wrong and fixed it.
years ago, has three sons – Kenny, The customer spread the word, and
Allen Jr. and Michael – who own soon other customers were bringing
shops in the Montgomery area. In him transmission work.
addition, his youngest son, Jamie, “I studied books and whatever I
works for Allen Jr., and several of could find to further my education
his grandchildren work in their fa- on transmissions,” he said. “By the
thers’ businesses. Although he’s of- time I was 25 I was pretty well edu-
ficially retired, he still spends much cated.”
of his time in his sons’ shops help- He operated a shop in
ing with day-to-day operations and Montgomery, the state capital, for
This family photo shows Allen Sr.ʼs providing advice. many years and also ran a couple of
late wife, Patricia Robbins, with son For instance, he said, “My back- shops in Florida. As his sons grew
Kenny. She ran the office in Allen
ground in transmissions goes all the up, they also became interested in
Sr.ʼs shop until he retired. “She
was a wonderful business lady,” way back to the ’50s, so if they get a transmissions. “They followed in
Kimberly said, “and she helped transmission from that era, I help my footsteps and we just went on
instill honesty, integrity and a them out.” from there,” he said. “The boys saw
strong work ethic in her sons.” Allen Sr., who said he had al- continues page 6
4 Transmission Digest
Circle No. 25 on Reader Card
The Allen Robbins Transmission team (standing, from
left): Charlie Costner, Kayla Robbins, Allen Robbins,
Allen Robbins Sr. (center) with sons (from left) Dustin Yocom, Patrick Robbins, Jamie Robbins, Mike
Jamie, Michael, Allen Jr. and Kenny “Red” Hill and Jeremy Lee. In front is Josh Yocom.
their opportunity and I showed Montgomery. In 2009, he and busi- Kenny, 54, said he has slowed
them what I knew, and we all got ness partner Kimberly Cole Zemke down so he can spend more time
our heads together and they opened a shop in Jones, where he is with his family. He describes his
opened up shops. known as “The Transmission business as a specialty transmission
“We’re in business to do the best Gladiator.” shop. “We’re in an isolated area
of work and keep on top of the with six or seven small towns
knowledge of everything, the up- around us. We get 90% of our busi-
dates and everything like that, to ness on word of mouth.
please the customer. The customer “I do all my work myself,” he
is number one in our business, and said. “I R&R, build them, put them
we try to give the best price, the back in.”
best parts, the best knowledge pos- That gives him complete control
sible. That’s what our goal is, and over the entire process, he said. “I
so far it’s worked out real well.” take a little more time with each
The first of Allen Sr.’s sons to unit. I average about two major
have his own shop was Kenny, overhauls a week.”
who fixed his first transmission Allen Jr.’s shop in Prattville,
when he was 16. He had been which has a population of about
doing R&R work for his father and 34,000, is in a 6,500-square-foot
learning how transmissions building. His daughter Kayla, who
worked. Kenny’s first shop was in recently completed a business de-
Montgomery, but after the area gree, runs the front office and sells
where the shop was went into de- jobs. His son Patrick is one of the
cline, he let the business go and technicians, and Jamie, Allen Jr.’s
opened another shop with Allen Jr. Michael Robbins operates ATCO youngest brother, is a rebuilder at
in Prattville, northwest of Transmission in Montgomery. the shop.
continues page 8
6 Transmission Digest
Circle No. 5 on Reader Card
Kenny with daughter Jordan, who does some occasional
R&R work for him. His daughter Chelsea helps with
answering the phone and greets customers.
Jamie Robbins (left) with
Allen Jr.ʼs son Patrick
20 years. When he was laid off be-
The shop typically services cause of cutbacks at the dealership
about 20 cars a week, and his goal he worked for Michael for about
is to provide a quality job at a rea- five years. When Kenny left Allen
sonable price, he said. “That’s been Jr.’s shop to open his business in
my motto since I opened up, and Jones, Jamie took his place.
it’s done very well for me. If it’s not After being laid off from Ford,
broken, we don’t fix it. Jamie noted, “I was lucky enough
“One of the great things about to have brothers who took me in. I
having so many family members in had to learn how to build all the
the transmission business is that transmissions, and they were there
when we do run into an issue, a for me. That’s where I am now, and
problem, or something that we just I really enjoy what I’m doing.”
can’t figure out, a lot of times four Allen Jr. said the four brothers Kimberly Cole Zemke, Kennyʼs
heads are better than one. When and their father, each with their business partner and office
you add up all the experience that unique experience in the business, manager, will become a family
we’ve got, one of us usually figures form a strong technical team to member in June when her
it out.” support each other. Allen Sr. is fa- mother marries Allen Sr.
Jamie was a transmission techni- miliar with the older transmissions
cian at a Ford dealership for about that they see occasionally, Jamie The diagnostician is a crucial
has helped them with his knowl- member of the team, Michael
edge of Ford units and is good at noted, because when customers
figuring out the newer transmis- come in they want a good price but
sions, and Michael has been the they also want to know that you
leader in adopting new diagnostic can fix their vehicle’s problem.
and service technology and passing “Today, if you’re sick, you’re
that knowledge on to his brothers, going to go look for the best doctor.
Allen Jr. said. You’re going to look for the best
Michael has had his own busi- heart surgeon, the best brain sur-
ness for 23 years and in December geon. Our customers are the same
moved to a larger building in east way today. You can’t take these
Montgomery that’s 5,000 square cars to just anybody and let them
feet and has 10 lifts. He has seven work on them. Parts are expensive
employees, including a diagnosti- and you can replace a $700 piece
cian and two R&R men, and each and be wrong. Nowadays, if you’re
technician in his shop is a special- a good shop and you diagnose
ist, he said. your stuff, you build a good prod-
His rebuilding process is the uct and you’re able to fix it, you’re
same as that of remanufacturers, he always going to be busy.” TD
Taylor Robbins, Jamieʼs son, said. “We build every transmission Photos by family members Kayla Robbins,
works at Allen Jr.ʼs shop. to last.” Mathew Robbins and Griffin Hollon
8 Transmission Digest
Circle No. 1 on Reader Card
TECHNICAL TRAINING Technically Speaking
•Author: Mike Riley, Technical Editor So what is unique about the new Jatco JF015E
•Subject Matter: CVTs (CVT7)? The JF015E (Figure 1) actually has a gearbox
• Unit: Jatco JF015E to provide, in effect, a high/low (stepped) gear, in con-
•Vehicle Application: Nissan
junction with the drive/driven pulleys and push belt.
At this point, the question could be asked, “Isn’t Jatco
•Issue: Design & operation
going backward?” The new CVT will literally shift like
a regular step-type transmission, as opposed to phan-
The New Jatco tom shifts that certain CVT models have, due to com-
puter strategy. The programmed upshifts give the
driver the illusion of a shift.
T
he CVT (contin- On most models of CVTs, getting to the pulleys and
1
uously variable belt requires splitting the bellhousing and case.
transmission) Gaining access
concept has been to the JF015E 2
around forever, but pulleys and
CVTs have been on belt (Figure 2)
the road now for merely requires
decades, in one form removal of the
or another. Although end cover. In
there are several dif- addition, the
ferent models of CVT, two pulleys
they all have one pop out of the
thing in common: cover fairly
basic operation. easily, no
Over the years there have been variations in CVTs clamps needed.
from vehicle model to model, starting with the original When remov-
DAF European CVTs, up to the first Jatco CVT, Saturn ing the belt, note the position. It should have a direc-
VT20E, ZF VT1, Ford CFT30 and then on to later- tional arrow on it for reassembly.
model Jatcos. There are CVTs that use a torque con- Use caution when removing the pulleys from the
verter and some that don’t. A CVT may have a push end cover to avoid damaging the tone rings (reluctors)
belt, while others use a drive chain. Electrical compo- (Figure 3). The driven pulley on the left uses a tone
nents also vary widely among models. In addition, ring on the outside diameter (O.D.) of the pulley,
certain models use a direct-drive pump while others whereas the drive pulley on the right has the tone ring
use a chain-driven remote pump. The CFT30 uses a at the end.
pump with oscillating pistons. A CVT will also have a continues page 12
planetary gear set, primarily for reverse.
Basic operation, however, consists of the drive chain 3
or push belt being clamped between two pulleys (vari-
ators) under high pressure. Ratio (gear) change is pro-
vided by the drive- and driven-pulley sheaves (sides)
moving sideways toward or away from the center,
which forces the chain or belt to walk up or down the
pulleys, thus changing the ratio from low to high and
back.
The whole purpose of this approach is to keep the
engine at optimum speed for performance and fuel
economy. As a step-type transmission shifts up
through the gears, engine speed climbs between shifts
but then drops back, awaiting the next gear. That is
Reluctor
why a CVT has better fuel economy, or so the story
goes.
10 Transmission Digest
Circle No. 11 on Reader Card
Technically Speaking
With the end cover and pulleys out of the way, the housing in the foreground contains the differential
back cavity of the case is exposed (Figure 4). The and pinion gear, whereas the case section has the
input gear appears in the opening on the left. The chain-driven pump and auxiliary-gear-set cover. The
shaft on the right is the sun gear. An important item in cover is held in place by inverted Torx-head bolts.
between is the chain oiler. Make sure that it’s not re- The main drive gears are the input gear with shaft,
stricted. The cooler filter is at the lower left of the drive pinion with park gear and differential (Figure 6).
case.
6
4
Oiler
Filter
Once the bellhousing and case are split, most of the The splines at the end of the pinion gear spline to the
remaining components are visible (Figure 5). The bell- planet carrier. The stator support contains the con-
verter bushing.
5 To gain access to the auxiliary-gear section, the
cover, which contains the reverse-clutch piston, must
Cover be removed (Figure 7). With the cover out of the way,
the reverse clutches, direct-clutch drum and planetary
set can be removed.
Pump
Reverse
12 Transmission Digest
Circle No. 22 on Reader Card
Friction the technology can then be applied again in the after-
market to improve performances in those applica-
tions.”
Alto was founded by Landa’s father, Sandy, in
1952, with its operations in New Jersey. With contin-
ued growth, in 1995 the company relocated most op-
erations to Atmore, Ala., where it occupies a campus
of three buildings that combine to provide 375,000
square feet of manufacturing, research-and-develop-
ment laboratory, warehousing and office space. The
majority of Alto’s 300 employees are based in Atmore.
Alto cuts many of its parts with a laser cutting machine. Additionally, the company maintains warehouses in
New Jersey, Los Angeles and Miami. A secondary
stamping plant is in Connecticut. Alto’s international
“O
ur focus is on the continuous development of sales and distribution locations include Mexico, The
new friction materials,” says David Landa, Netherlands, Australia, India, Dubai and China, but
president of Alto Products Corp. all the manufacturing is in the USA.
He points out that the future for a company like Landa continues: “China has become one of our
Alto is to advance the technology of clutches to match largest markets, particularly for OEM business. The
the technologies used in new transmissions. He also market there is the largest in the world right now.
emphasizes that the company’s role as a global OEM While in the past Chinese OEMs mostly adopted
clutch-plate supplier requires a cutting-edge research- transmissions from other manufacturers, many of
and-development program. them are beginning to design and manufacture their
“Development of friction materials, particularly own. Alto is supplying many of those OEMs.
those for our OEM and High Performance customers, “Our largest customer there would be Geely, the
is the direct result of our customers’ requirements largest Chinese car manufacturer and the owner via
such as the need for extended wear, improved torque acquisition of Volvo. We supply all the friction plates
performance, smoother shifts and higher coefficients for the new Geely six-speed front-wheel-drive units.
of friction,” Landa explained. “Once those improve- We also supply plates for DCT applications being
ments have been engineered into a friction material, used in that marketplace.”
14 Transmission Digest
Ray Engle, vice president of technical services, and
Claude Hall, vice president of engineering, say Altoʼs
focus is the development, prototyping and evaluation of Using a micrometer for measurements, Deantonio Jones
new and continually improving friction materials. builds prototype parts for testing and evaluation.
“Domestically we supply OEMs Clark, CNH, Dana, “To a large extent, our initial input for developing
Eaton and Caterpillar, while internationally our cus- a new paper or a new variant of an existing paper
tomers include OEMs John Deere (Spain), Ssang Yong comes directly from market demands. Alto’s engi-
(Korea) and Mahindra (India), to name a few. neers and sales group are out there working with the
“We have an extremely large and growing library customers and truly understanding their needs with
of friction materials with emphasis on DCT, heavy- regard to clutch performance. Those opportunities re-
duty and high-performance markets. Our formulation sult in development projects for our research-and-de-
development takes advantage of using the latest in velopment team.
high-tech materials such as carbon fibers, para-aramid “The more you look at what appears to be a simple
synthetic fibers (Kevlar), enhanced high-performance clutch plate, the more you come to appreciate the
fibers and innovative custom-designed resins. complexity of the product. There are all the different
Outside of Alto’s friction-material library, we can fur- types of materials that contain fibers, bonders, fillers
ther affect the performance of the clutch disc through and resins. Each of these has different grades. Finally,
various manufacturing processes such as changing of we need to decide on percentage of each of the materi-
groove patterns, segmentation, compressions and als in each grade. It doesn’t end here … how you
other process techniques.” process a clutch plate via densification, groove and
Ray Engel, vice president of technical services at surface treatments also have a significant impact on
Alto, adds: “The key to making a friction clutch plate performance; the combinations are nearly endless.
is the lining. What we do here in the development lab And, what will work best with one type of fluid does-
is evaluate various combinations of fibers, fillers, n’t necessarily work best if a different fluid is speci-
binders and resins that are used to create the friction fied by the OE.”
papers. Alto’s vice president of engineering, Claude Hall,
April 2014 15
Customer-service and sales team (from left): Jose Pereira, Inez Etheridge,
Donny Houston inspects an Alto part Stephanie Barnes, Sarah Nezovich, Trici Ramirez, Nora Aslanova, Claudia
using a Micro Vu machine. Lewis, Craig Cooke and Robbie Ferguson
says: “Today, there are much tighter tolerances in- typical clutch pack. The consideration of fuel efficien-
volved with the development of a clutch pack. The en- cy is a constant requirement as well.”
ergy levels that are handled by the materials are very Landa recalls that the venerable THM350 transmis-
different as the transmission engineers find ways to sion contained 17 frictions, comparing it to the 6L80
put more and more into less space. [This causes a that contains double this amount.
clutch to have a set of requirements that must be ac- “We’re not using high levels of cotton fibers in the
complished with less surface area than was available friction materials anymore, and the cost of the en-
in the past.] It’s all about managing more torque with hanced materials such as carbon or Kevlar fibers is
less territory.” much higher. In the end, there are more clutches
“Energy-level challenges have been met by increas- made from more-expensive components, and that’s
ing the number of component frictions and steels in a one of the factors driving up the cost of rebuilding a
Robotic Processes
“The worldʼs changing,” says Alto President is properly aligned, the teeth are stamped correctly
David Landa. “Everybody wants it better, they want and that the plate is perfectly round. These quality
it faster and they want it less expensive. Those checks can handle two plates per second. When
criteria are the drivers for our manufacturing any of the checks identify a quality issue the plate
processes. Weʼre finding ways to increase our is removed to a controlled reject bin.”
use of robotics, automation and lean
techniques within our factory to meet
the growing demands of the market.”
“We have numerous robotic lines
in the factory now, with more on
order.
“One use for robots is in the
assembly of the friction materials to
the steel core. We also use robots to
load the clutch assembly into our
bonding process. This robotic
process will establish oil grooves,
proper thickness and the bond. Alto
also applies automation to facilitate
quality checks through lasers and
high-resolution vision systems. With
the high-resolution checks, we are
able to take a photo of the top and of
the bottom of a finished plate and
then evaluate it to assure the paper
16 Transmission Digest
Comparing high-resolution photography with stored
Robert Knight observes Stephanie Brown assembling benchmarks, the vision system can inspect 120 clutch
sandwiches of plates and friction rings. rings per minute.
unit. We’ve been able to mitigate the rising costs by can’t even tell from their dynos how much torque they
finding more-efficient, technology-driven manufac- have. The dyno maxes out at 3,500 foot-pounds and
turing methods.” they’re pegging the needle. Some are now pushing
The Alto people say that in recent years one of the more than 2,000 horsepower in a diesel truck that they
hottest markets domestically has been in the area of can drive to work or take to the drag strip to run a
diesel performance clutches. nine-second quarter mile.”
“The transmissions in those trucks are built to Landa adds: “The materials that we have developed
stand more torque right off the showroom floor,” says for diesels are much more durable than those required
Robbie Ferguson, sales vice president. “In general that for most other applications we supply. Take, for in-
means they are physically a much larger unit, as is the stance, the racing market, where the transmission is re-
case with the Allison 1000s and the 5R110s. Ford’s placed after every race. The durability there isn’t as
new 6R130 is a huge unit. much of an issue. The diesel pickup is going to drive
“These transmissions are for trucks that come from across the country and pass through the Rockies tow-
the factory pushing 300 horsepower and 600 or 700 ing 20,000 pounds. This is the challenge we’ve been
foot-pounds of torque. People are spending $65,000 able to address with great success.”
buying a new truck and then an equal amount to redo Engel said: “Across the board, we are committed to
the engine, the transmission, the suspension, wheels quality. We have all the certifications that attest to our
and everything else. We end up with customers who commitment. The products Alto develops rely on what
takes place in the manufacturing processes. I think that
when you look at the factory, particularly the new ro-
botic processes, you’ll find we have built those quality
requirements into every step of production, and that
results in a very high-quality product that we have for
a very competitive price.”
“We are making everybody on the floor an inspector
and every process more robust so that there is an ever-
decreasing probability of error. Today’s marketplace
demands that quality, and we’ve been able to improve
our products, our people and our processes to remain
viable in today’s competitive marketplace. At Alto, it is
always about continuous improvement.”
Landa concludes: “Alto has been doing this now for
over 60 years. I am fortunate to have a great team who
has made us successful. We make decisions and invest-
ments based on long-term goals, not maximizing short-
term profits. We continually reinvent our products, our
processes and ourselves. We’re the last independently
owned and operated company doing what we do. The
good news we take away from that is that we can con-
tinue to compete and do all the things that public com-
panies do while retaining the flexibility that allows us
Stamping presses are used to form steel plates. to be innovative and development oriented.” TD
April 2014 17
Technically Speaking
continued from page 12
splines to the driven pulley and cannot be removed
8
from the planet. The large sun gear and shell is held
stationary by the low brake. The planet carrier has
splines that mesh with the direct clutch on the O.D.
and also has splines that mesh with the pinion gear at
the inside diameter.
The main filter is accessible by dropping the bottom
pan. The pan uses a gasket and also has a stand pipe
for checking fluid (Figure 11). The neck of the filter is
long because it extends up through the valve body to
the pump.
11
Standpipe
9 Reverse
Low
Figure 12 12
shows the
cooler filter
and cover
that bolt to
the case.
The filter is
a cartridge
type.
With the
pan and fil-
ter removed, the valve body is accessible (Figure 13).
continues page 22
on the right is the low brake. When the low brake ap-
plies, the gear set is in reduction. The low-clutch pis-
ton is in the case. 13
The key item that differentiates a JF015E from the
pack is the planetary gear set (Figure 10). Other CVT
models use a simple gear set, whereas the JF015E has a
compound planet carrier. The small sun gear and shaft
10
18 Transmission Digest
The powerhouse
in POWERTRAIN.
RMP POWERTRAIN SOLUTIONS
20 Transmission Digest
Circle No. 23 on Reader Card
Shift Pointers Technically Speaking
continued from page 20 continued from page 18
mention here is, when you replace the water deflec- The manual-shaft lever and nut must be removed first.
tor do not try to install it by bending it as this will The electrical connector extends through the case and
cause it to break. (Ask me how I know.) It is best to is removed with the valve body. The bolts that hold
remove the bolts from the hood and just move the the valve body to the case are much longer than the
hood forward and install the water deflector valve-body section bolts, so they cannot be inter-
through the top (Figure 6). changed.
The valve body has the normal amount of stuff.
There are five solenoids, a couple of pressure switches,
6
electrical connector etc. (Figure 14). It remains to be
seen which parts will become available for sale.
14
7
15
22 Transmission Digest
Circle No. 7 on Reader Card
TECHNICAL TRAINING Tech To Tech
I
t’s no secret that the Generation Gen 1 owners speaking highly start. The technician, thinking that
1 Prius is my pick for favorite about the cars that the redesigned he hears the engine start, run for a
commuter vehicle. When these Gen 2s took the hybrid market by bit then stall, starts chasing his tail
cars are properly serviced and run- storm. The Gen 2 Prius introduced until the hybrid battery becomes
ning as they should, you just can’t in 2004 sold 54,000 units, and in too weak to spin the engine over.
beat them for transportation. They 2005 that number nearly doubled. Since there aren’t many recharge
were designed to be the best hy- The rest of the car manufacturers options for the hybrid battery, this
brid vehicle on the market, and began the race to develop hybrids becomes a serious situation often
there were few cars that could of their own, with nearly all of ending in the car being towed to
compete with them when they first them now offering some version of the dealer, traded in and then sent
came out. Toyota put the cars in hybrid vehicle. It is safe to say that to the auction. It’s gotten to the
service in 1997 and had time to hybrids are here to stay, and point that I would say at least one
work out the bugs and even re- Toyota had sold nearly 3 million third of Priuses that are not run-
design the high-voltage (HV) bat- Priuses worldwide as of June 2013. ning and are towed to my shop get
tery. here because they are overfilled
Trade-in issues with oil.
History of Gen 1 Prius The Gen 1 Priuses are now all
The original Prius battery used reaching the age and mileage at Trouble codes
the same basic battery cells that the which the original hybrid batteries There are lots of data and
Honda Insight and Civic Hybrids are starting to let go, forcing their Internet blogs with documentation
are using. They basically look like owners to decide whether they and even You Tube videos explain-
a series of D-cell stacks. The newer want to put the kind of money into ing the causes and repair options
Panasonic cells were much-better the cars that their dealer is saying for the all-too-common no-start
performing and last much longer. it will take to keep the cars in serv- codes P3101 and P3191 that occur
Toyota introduced the Gen 1 Prius ice. Gen 1 owners are generally of- on these vehicles. These codes are
in the United States in 2001. It sold fered very little on trade-in value associated with multiple causes,
only about 15,600 units in the U.S., with the dealer. The dealer gener- which include but aren’t limited to
but its reputation soon had the ally offers only a brand-new bat- any of the things that can keep a
people who were following the tery as an option and deducts the normal gas engine from starting,
Green Car idea looking at the tech- repair cost from the trade-in value. such as out-of-fuel condition, low
nology. Toyota sold only about Some of these cars are showing up fuel pressure, ignition coils misfir-
56,000 Gen 1 Priuses from 2001 to at auctions after their owners de- ing, crank-sensor signal missing,
2003. The people who bought these cide to donate them to charity. I mass-air-flow (MAF) signal prob-
cars quickly became loyalists, and have picked up a few of them rela- lems, engine mechanical condition
most are reluctant to let go of their tively inexpensively that needed etc. Then there are other problems
Gen 1s even when replacing them little more than battery recondi- inherent to these particular vehi-
with a newer model. I have heard tioning. cles that can keep the engine from
the statement made many times by Some others I’ve bought were starting. Probably the most-com-
different Gen 1 owners that this sold as not running. It doesn’t take mon issues that cause problems on
has been the best car they have much misdiagnosing to send these these cars are created by technician
ever owned. cars on a one-way path to the auto error. These cars require 3.9 quarts
auction. Sometimes the chain of of oil during an oil change with a
Growth of hybrids events begins with a simple oil filter. Four quarts is too much oil.
By the time Toyota introduced change. A day or two later the car There is a factory bulletin re-
the Gen 2 Prius, there were enough gets towed to a repair shop as a no- continues page 26
24 Transmission Digest
Since 1951
We are
the REAL
Transmission
People
◗Kits
◗Hard Parts
◗Torque Converters
EVT Delivers Quality Parts
For Quality Rebuilds:
Import, Domestic,
1950 - Present Day
1 2 3
26 Transmission Digest
Circle No. 99 on Reader Card
TECHNICAL TRAINING Tasc Force Tips
28 Transmission Digest
2
April 2014 29
Tasc Force Tips
30 Transmission Digest
4
TD
April 2014 31
B USINESS TRAINING Captain Reman
32 Transmission Digest
TECHNICAL TRAINING Up To Standards
I
n the auto-repair industry it is If your customer’s vehicle breaks amount of money aside from every
customary to warrant the prod- down during the warranty period vehicle into a warranty expense
uct we provide to the customer while they’re on vacation, a court fund, and so should you. If you are
for a period of time and mileage. A may rule that you have to compen- charging a fee above and beyond
warranty is defined as a promise to sate them for the entire vacation, for a longer warranty, put that
the customer of a level of perform- plus the cost of the repairs to get extra money in a separate account,
ance for the product they are buy- the vehicle back on the road. The which is your warranty fund. If
ing to ensure that for a specified reason for this is federal law, the you fail to do so and just spend
period any problems or failure of Magnusson/Moss act. This law that money, any comebacks that
the product will be repaired or re- states that you must specify (in occur under warranty will be
placed at no expense to the cus- writing) what is and is NOT war- painful, to the max.
tomer. This sounds like a fairly ranted. This in legal terms is an ex- A secondary consideration is
simple issue, but it is anything but press warranty. You also must that the number of warranted vehi-
in the United States of Litigation. state in your warranty that there cles you have on the road at any
A warranty that is correctly are implied warranties that may time will be considered a liability
written can be a powerful sales not apply to the customer. Implied on your balance sheet. Now, they
tool in getting the customer to buy warranties are those that are gov- won’t all come back on the same
work from your shop. The au- erned by the laws of the individual day, but if you try to sell your
tomakers are now using the war- states. business, a real businessman will
ranty as a weapon to return more Automakers provide a warranty ask that you put an appropriate
vehicles to the dealers’ service with every new vehicle. In the pur- amount of money in escrow as a
bays by providing several years of chase price of the car, they package warranty fund so that he does not
preventive maintenance within the individual costs associated with have to pay for comebacks on jobs
warranty. Such provisions have the vehicle. The dead-nuts cost of he did not earn money on. The es-
put a hurting on the quick-lube the car or truck itself, advertising crow period will be long enough to
business, and the longer warranty costs, legal costs (they are self-in- cover all the liability generated by
options have created a loss of busi- sured), warranty costs and multi- the volume of cars under warranty
ness for all phases of auto repair ple other expenses all go into that are on the road at the time of
until the vehicles come out of the arriving at a purchase price to the sale, and when that period has
warranty period. end user. elapsed, the balance left will be
On the other hand, a poorly It has become fashionable in given to you.
written or unwritten warranty will these times to offer extended-term It is possible to have an attorney
open up a shop to all manner of ex- warranties to compete for busi- write you a good legal warranty,
penses that go far beyond the pur- ness. You can offer a standard local but it will be costly and untested.
chase price of the work performed. warranty; a national warranty; or a You can join a service organization
If you write on your repair order three-, four- or five-year warranty such as ATRA and use its warranty
“Warranted for 12 months or as a persuasive measure to get that has been proved judge proof
12,000 miles” you have put your- your customer to sign up for the over the years. At the same time
self in a very dangerous situation. job. The automakers put an continues next page
April 2014 33
Up To Standards
you will get technical help and the suspected failed unit and either purpose of the two-week checkup
other services that make such a repair or replace it to fulfill its obli- up is to change the oil and get rid
membership a great investment. gation. This can be a time-consum- of the newly generated debris be-
However you do it, there are ing issue as the unit is returned to fore it has a chance to contaminate
many important issues to be cov- the factory for repair. Make sure the bearings.
ered in a warranty to make it legal that you read and understand the Then you have your customer
under federal and state laws. The warranty the company provides return every 15,000 miles for a lube
time and mileage period; the cus- you with the new unit or part, and change and inspection that are nec-
tomer’s responsibility to maintain educate your customer. essary to keep the warranty in
the unit properly during the war- When you buy a reman unit, the force, just as the car dealer will
ranty; exclusions for abuse and same thing applies, and on it goes want to see the service records be-
misuse such as racing, accidents, with new parts. You are entitled to fore making a warranty claim. If
commercial use, modification of a replacement part, but will the you have not provided the proper
your product or the vehicle from supplier pay for labor? Usually routine service as outlined in the
its intended design; and a host of not. We are living in a “big-box- owner’s manual, the dealer and the
other conditions will apply. store” world, where in that ultra- factory will refuse to warrant the
One important and often-over- competitive market they have parts. Try turning in a lease car at
looked feature is a stop-loss clause. educated everyone: Just bring it the end of the term without the
The stop-loss clause limits the total back for any reason and they will proper service receipts. You will be
amount that any warranty can cost get you another one. Those days billed for it and for any excess
you by limiting the amount to the are coming to an end as many of mileage and wear and tear, which
total dollars that the customer these stores have taken huge losses can run into lots of money. You
paid. In other words, refunding the and have been gamed by their cus- need to insist on the same thing to
customer’s initial cost is your out- tomers. Make sure that the prob- maintain a warranty.
side liability. Do not try this at lem is actually with the new or Another issue that is ever more
home, and be really careful about reman unit you have bought and common today is vehicle modifica-
anything you put in writing. not somewhere else in the vehicle tion. Make sure that the warranty
One really gray area that or you will wind up paying freight you issue does not permit vehicle
plagues the repair industry is a and labor for sending back a good modifications that go over the de-
transmission repair. When you re- unit. sign limits for the vehicle as built
build a transmission you are – or Time is always a problem with a by the factory. Let’s say you do a
should be – working from a certain warranty, as the customer is with- transmission for a guy and during
standard, which includes the parts out his vehicle. If a unit needs to be the warranty he gives the vehicle
you will replace in any unit rebuilt. returned to the manufacturer for to his son. Junior decides that he
This usually would include new inspection, you may have to buy wants to put 35-inch tires on it and
clutches and steels, seals, gaskets, another one and receive a credit if chip the computer to get another
bushings, filter, bands, a torque the original unit is found defective 100 horsepower. I don’t think you
converter etc. Now you are going to quickly reunite your customer signed up for that. We see these
to repair a transmission because all with his car. problems daily where a customer
it needs is one clutch pack and a To maintain the warranty you calls and says that his customer
front seal. How do you warrant have received from your supplier, blew up a five-speed transmission
that repair so that you aren’t re- you need to make sure your cus- in his diesel pickup, which is now
sponsible if something that you tomer follows certain conditions producing 1,000 lb.-ft. of torque.
didn’t replace breaks or wears out under the warranty you provide. The only defense for this is a care-
and the customer wants you to buy First, for every unit you put out, fully crafted warranty and educat-
it under the warranty. Some jobs you must have the customer come ing the customer. If you want more
you are better off never taking in. back after two weeks for a free than the factory provided, you are
Another side of the warranty is checkup. This ensures that there out of warranty and it is your
that which you receive from your are no leaks and that all systems problem. Remember that a well-
suppliers. If you buy a new unit are operating correctly. It is very written, legally correct warranty
from a supplier, you are not get- common with manual transmis- protects both the customer and the
ting a warranty from the supplier, sions and transfer cases to find shop. Do not neglect this issue, as
but from the manufacturer of the some metallic debris on the drain the comeback can be frightening.
unit. If there is a problem under plug after 500 miles. This occurs TD
warranty that may be related to the because new gears, chains etc. will
unit, that manufacturer has the shed some small debris as they Mike Weinberg is president of Rockland Standard
right under the warranty to inspect wear into the opposing parts. The Gear.
34 Transmission Digest
B USINESS TRAINING It’s Your Business
Rules to Live By
in the Modern Business Climate
T
he New American Dream? can’t rely on some big company nancial freedom in a global econo-
What is it? How do we deal swooping in, gathering up our col- my in which all the rules have
with it to survive and suc- lege graduates and starting them changed.
ceed? out at $50,000 a year with all kinds First, let’s be clear: The entrepre-
There used to be a simple for- of benefits. Does it still happen? neurship I refer to is not necessari-
mula for building a good life: Go to Yes, but not with enough frequen- ly the “open your own shop and
school and make good grades, then cy to make a real difference to our bust your butt working there seven
go to college if you could afford to economy. We need to make a huge days a week” variety, although
or a trade school to get you ready mental shift back to the grass roots many of you already do that.
to face the world. You would then of making a living. Rather, it centers on generating
find a job with a good stable com- This isn’t the first time in recent multiple streams of income
pany, work hard, save money and history that we’ve needed to modi- (earned, passive and portfolio) so
maybe even start your own busi- fy the way we think about college that the money you make is not all
ness one day. Finally, you might and how it relates to the real-world directly connected to the time you
enjoy a decent (if not lavish) retire- aspect of making oneself a success. spend. If you are already in busi-
ment. For years, the middle class We had the same problem back in ness for yourself it means learning
has dutifully followed this path. the early 1960s: not enough jobs to to take the money you make and
OK, it wasn’t the most-exciting life accommodate all the “baby- maximize it by having better con-
but it paid the bills and maybe boomers” coming out of college. I trol of how your business makes its
even allowed for a week or two of know; I was one of them. So what money and how you as an individ-
vacation every year. did we do back then? Many of us ual invest yours.
Amazing how much can change learned trades and went to work in If you’re lucky enough to have
in a decade or two. These days the small shops making and repairing your own shop or to work for a
traditional path leads only to daily things that others would use. Some good business owner you might be
stress, crushing debt and uncer- were fortunate to get jobs at differ- able to scrape by on only that, but
tainty about the future. The most- ent levels of government where you might work yourself into an
remarkable part is that so many salaries and benefits were guaran- early grave. And, of course, if the
people continue to blindly follow it teed, but some struck out on their job goes away, the money stops.
when what we really need to do is own, opening small businesses It’s no way to live and no way to
make an about-face and learn how specializing in some form of serv- teach your children to live.
to think about work and wealth in ice to others. Anyone can make the leap to
a whole new way. Entrepreneurship in one form or this form of entrepreneurship and,
It’s time we realize, as a society another flourished and still does subsequently, financial freedom.
and as individuals, that the tradi- today, maybe more than ever. Is it Sure, you may have to learn new
tional means of making a living for everybody? No, but it creates practical skills, but mostly it’s a
has changed and that we need to jobs for so many more. In fact, it matter of changing your mindset.
change along with it. We really may be the only logical path to fi- continues next page
April 2014 35
It’s Your Business
Once you break free of “middle- mentality that is so common in our vestors, and marketing your prod-
class programming,” half the battle society. And as you begin to expe- ucts or services to buyers.
is won. rience greater rewards, you’ll con-
“I will remain coachable.”
Here are 15 Universal Laws of firm the beliefs and actions that
create wealth. History is filled with the tragic
Entrepreneurship for you to con- downfalls of leaders who got “too
sider: “I will remain aware that I am big for their britches,” refused to
“I will always do exactly what 100% responsible, 100% of consider the advice and expertise
I say I will do.” the time, for the results in of others, and ran their organiza-
my life.” tions and empires into the ground.
Most of us do keep our word to
others, or at least try to. And, of It’s easy to blame disappoint- Entrepreneurs, by nature, are go-
course, being trustworthy is critical ments and failures on everything against-the-grain types. It’s easy
to your success. (How else will we other than ourselves. For instance: for them to assume they know best
find investors and get return cus- “I could be a lot wealthier if the and disregard good advice from
tomers and referrals?) But what economy hadn’t tanked.” Or, those who’ve been there. Don’t fall
about the promises and pacts you “How was I supposed to know into this trap. Not only should you
make with yourself? Most people that there would be a storm and I’d carefully consider advice, but you
are far more likely to break agree- have to clean out my savings to re- also should actively seek it out.
ments with themselves than they place my roof?” Although it’s true
“I will stop doing minimum-
are with others. Yet since becoming that you can’t always foresee or
wage activities.”
an entrepreneur requires a dramat- control what happens in your life,
you can choose how you respond Our culture puts hard work on a
ic change in both mindset and pedestal. From sayings like “If you
habits, you won’t get far if you to those circumstances.
I know, life has a way of kicking want the job done right, do it your-
keep letting yourself off the hook. self” to the belief that the longer
in the door and derailing your
“I will take action in my plans. There are bills to pay, prob- you stay at the office, the better
life now!” lems to solve and circumstances employee you are, it’s clear that
I’d like to build my wealth. I that need attention. You’ll have to Americans think that spilling one’s
want to start my own business. It deal with these issues, but you can- blood, sweat and tears is a noble
would be great to be in firm con- not allow them to stop you. Every calling. Not so. If you don’t sepa-
trol of my financial future. These day, you must make time to move rate yourself from the mundane
are nice, positive thoughts, but toward the life of your dreams, no and the nitty-gritty, you might just
when they’re not paired with ac- matter how small that step is. If micromanage your business away
tion, they are nothing but day- you aren’t taking steps to change from success.
dreams. Only action – not plans, your reality, you forfeit the right to “I will always remember that
not goals and not ambition – gets complain about it. time is more valuable
results. Every day that you don’t than money.”
“I will invest in a financial-
take a concrete step forward is an- Chances are, you grew up being
education program to
other day of the status quo, anoth- taught that the way to support
master the skills of being
er day of accepting a mediocre, yourself and to get ahead in life
an entrepreneur.”
humdrum life. was to trade your time for money.
For decades, American schools
“I will remove all unconscious, have taught (and are still teaching) In other words, if you spend 40 or
negative and scarcity-based students that they’ll need to give more hours a week doing what
programming.” the best years of their lives to em- your employer wants, you’ll be
The middle class has been “pro- ployers so that they can retire on paid for 40 or more hours. But once
grammed” with belief systems that 40% of their working salary. those 40 hours are gone, they’re
weren’t designed to help us attain (That’s assuming they can get a gone forever. So the question is:
wealth and that, indeed, barely good job at all in today’s economy, Did you do anything with those
work at all anymore. But because of course.) It stands to reason that hours that builds your future or
everyone around us is buying into if you want more out of life, you’ll did you just trade them for a little
the formula, we assume it’s the need to seek some non-traditional bit of money?
“right” way. Often, you’ll find that education that will help you culti- It’s OK to put in a lot of time in
fear, not a rational reason, is hold- vate the skills that will enable you the beginning. You have to estab-
ing you back. You need to evaluate to generate multiple streams of in- lish systems that will do a good
and gradually reprogram your be- come. You’ll need to learn about deal of the work for you later on,
liefs about the fear of investing, the acquiring credit, using debt wisely, but eventually you’ll have these
availability of money and the lack seeking (and persuading) in- systems in place that allow you to
36 Transmission Digest
profit from time put in by others
and to reinvest your earnings so
that you can generate even more
income.
“I will maintain a credit score
of 760 or higher.”
Your credit score is the gate
standing between you and the
success you dream of. That’s be-
cause lenders use credit-score rat-
ings to control the amount of
money in the marketplace. If they
want to increase the flow, they
lower qualifying scores. And if
they want to decrease the flow,
they raise those scores. As an en-
trepreneur, it’s crucial for you to
be able to borrow money when-
ever you need it, regardless of
what the market is doing.
In 2011, the scoring for “A”
credit was raised to 730.
Therefore, you should choose to
have A+ credit with a score of 760
or higher. Not only will this score
allow you to borrow money any
time, but it also means that you’ll
qualify for lower interest rates.
Overall, make it a priority to be-
come a master at understanding,
evaluating and controlling your
credit score and credit availability
so that you’ll never find the gate
to the resources you need closed
and locked.
“I will no longer view debt as
negative, because I will use
credit to invest so I can get
out of destructive debt for
the rest of my life.”
We’ve all heard the horror sto-
ries: families so sunk in consumer
debt they were forced to declare
bankruptcy and individuals
whose educational debt haunted
them for the rest of their lives. In
part because of these cautionary
tales, we’ve been programmed to
believe the only route to financial
freedom is becoming debt free. It
might be time to reprogram that
belief.
It’s not that debt itself is bad;
it’s the type of debt that’s impor-
tant. When you borrow money at
continues page 40
Circle No. 4 on Reader Card
April 2014 37
CATALOG/PRODUCT SHOWCASE
Transtar Industries Certified Transmission
Transtar is your full line supplier of domestic and import Just released from our
New OEM, Aftermarket and Quality Tech team, the
Remanufactured Toyota/Lexus U660.
and Used Hard Certified Transmission
Parts for now has in stock the
your drive- U660 for the Lexus
line solution ES350, Camry and
need. Avalon. Check out
our website
www.certifiedtransmission.com
or call one of our distributors.
38 Transmission Digest
TransTec® by Corteco Sonnax
Now Available – Corteco has introduced Sonnax designs and manufactures the industry’s
a new TransTec® overhaul best driveshaft components including aluminum
kit 2615, which services the weld yokes, tubing, repair bushings and Power
ZF RWD/AWD 8-speed Train Savers®. Now, Sonnax has taken slip yokes
HP45/845RE transmission. to a whole new level by offering affordable, high-
This global transmission quality performance yokes which are forged,
application is found in vehicle precision machined and 100% leak tested for
makes that include Audi, BMW, maximum durability and dependability. These revolutionary yokes
Chrysler, Dodge, Jeep, Land Rover are featured in the latest Sonnax slip yoke catalog, along with helpful
and VW. TransTec® kit 2615 is in stock and ready for immediate charts showing how to verify correct dimensions, spline tooth count,
delivery. Contact your authorized TransTec® distributor or visit critical application information and more. To request a slip yoke
www.transtec.com for more information. catalog for your shop, or to view it online, visit www.sonnax.com.
Circle No. 69 on Reader Card Circle No. 73 on Reader Card
April 2014 39
It’s Your Business
continued from page 37
or repair, your shop will flop. Yes, to be building one small business
it’s a simplistic example, but the that you personally operate and
“It’s easy principle behind it holds true: If run. Instead, you’ll be creating
your business doesn’t address and multiple, duplicable small busi-
to blame fulfill an unmet need, it’s not nesses that are constantly creating
going to be successful – period. new streams of income for you.
disappointments And in today’s highly competitive You’ll need to be able to hand off
world with a business on every tasks and duties to others. And
and failures on corner, it’s critical to identify what that means you’ll need a strong
everything other others aren’t doing (or aren’t will-
ing to do!) so that you can com-
team of the right people doing the
hard work for you.
than ourselves.” pete and win customers. Your team is the power behind
your skill as an entrepreneur.
“I will always be on time.”
That’s why it’s critical to evaluate
You might think rushing into an these people personally and make
appointment a few minutes late sure they’re right for the job. No
4% to invest it in something that isn’t a big deal. If so, you’re
makes 10%, that’s good debt. The warm bodies here. Everyone you
wrong. For one thing, lateness, es- pay money to has to enhance your
money is working for you. When pecially if it’s chronic, increases
you run up your credit-card debt opportunity to make money. If
stress levels and causes you to be they don’t, you don’t need them.
because you had to have that new in a more-frazzled state of mind
TV that you really don’t have the Go find people who will.
than might otherwise be the case, What it all comes down to is
money to buy and pay 30% inter- but – even more important – late-
est, that’s bad, destructive debt. that life is really just a series of
ness is a character issue. choices. We decide whether to
From this day forward, commit to When you’re late to a meeting,
using debt to invest and build watch TV after work or spend an
you’re being disrespectful to oth- hour on our action plan, whether
your wealth. Yes, debt can be fi- ers, because by not managing your
nancial quicksand. But used wise- to take the class or not take the
time well you’re wasting theirs. class, whether to hold the cards or
ly, it can also give you leverage Plus, if you’re late to a more-pri-
and make you rich. place the bet. Most people take the
vate appointment, you will have path of least resistance and go
“I will no longer listen to people to work through what is essential- with the herd. Those who don’t
who are not where I want ly a broken agreement before you are the ones who will create rich,
to be financially.” can progress any further. If you re- full lives that are truly worth liv-
The saying “Those who cannot call, not breaking agreements is a ing. TD
do, teach” does not apply to build- cornerstone of all the Universal
ing wealth. It would be foolish to Laws of Being an Entrepreneur. In these challenging times Terry wants everyone
take financial advice from some- When you’re not on time, you’re to have a copy of his 450-page book, “How to
one with one stream of income breaking your word to yourself Market and Sell Automotive and Transmission
who consistently lives paycheck to and the others in the meeting. Do Service and Repair.” For only $98.32 you will
paycheck (Newsflash: That’s most it a few times and they may never receive two copies of the industry textbook that
trust you again. will teach you all the techniques necessary to
people), or to adopt a wealth-
make profitable sales and retain your customers
building strategy from an entre- “I will become a master at for future business. Keep one and give the other
preneur whose business is creating systems and to an employee, a competitor or perhaps that
constantly in the red. processes.” account you’ve been trying to land or thank for
I’ve noticed that the people This is all about building a busi- their business. As a bonus (free of charge) you
with the least amount of money ness that runs, and can continue to will also receive Terry’s “$ales Help Screens”
tend to have the most advice. computer software to use as a training aid or
run, effectively and efficiently.
Don’t listen to them! Instead, seek when you need instant answers to your cus-
Why? Because you don’t want to tomer’s toughest price objections (may not be
advice only from those who are have to spend your oh-so-valuable compatible with the new 64-bit computers run-
where you want to be financially. time reinventing the wheel and ning Windows 7). Ordering will also make you
“I will fulfill the unmet micromanaging others. eligible to buy additional copies of the book at
needs of others.” only $49.16 each. Please call 914-882-3003 or
“I will build the right visit www.TerryGreenhut.com to order any of
You may have the best shop in relationships with the Terry’s training materials or take your 20-question
the area, but if the surrounding right power-team members.” self- and business-evaluation test. Although no
neighborhood doesn’t have If you’re truly working toward one can see the results but you, it’s a real eye
enough vehicles in need of service creating wealth, you’re not going opener.
40 Transmission Digest
TECHNICAL TRAINING R&R Tech
A
s a member of our team of technical advisers, I
One of the most-common complaints on the 46/47RE
have come across many different scenarios that
units is the torque-converter clutch (TCC) being com-
have been traced to the improper grounding of
manded on and off when the vehicle is being driven at
a component, or case. There are many different symp-
moderate speeds. In this case, we could see the sole-
toms, but all have a common cause and repair: They
noid being commanded on and off, causing the vehicle
are all related to a grounding problem in an electrical
to buck and the tachometer to fluctuate. In most in-
circuit of the vehicle. We always think about the im-
stances, the most-common repair is to direct the accel-
portance of source voltage, but the ground side of the
erator-pedal-position (APP) sensor signal from pin 3
circuit is equally important. As automotive design has
directly to the powertrain control module (PCM) at pin
evolved over time, the electrical integrity of all control
23, to bypass the circuit through the engine control
circuits is critical for proper function.
module (ECM). In this instance, however, this method
The following cases are some real-world examples
of repair was not successful. To complete the repair, the
of customer complaints, symptoms and repairs that
installer had to add another ground from pin 4 of the
were traced to faulty ground circuits.
continues next page
Can You
See the
Difference?
We didn’t think so. The fact is, with remanufactured valve bodies, what you see isn’t always what you get. Two
valve bodies may look the same, but it’s the work that goes into the remanufacturing process that determines how
well they perform. At Valve Body Xpress, we do one thing—remanufacture valve bodies—and we do it better than
anyone. Every single one of our premium products is individually tested and calibrated to ensure peak performance.
You can always count on expert product support and customer service when you need it.
This commitment to excellence and confidence in our product is why every valve body we deliver is backed by a
LIFETIME WARRANTY. The next time you're in the market for a remanufactured valve body, demand the
best. Demand VBX. Call (866) 2GET-VBX or visit us online at www.vbxus.com.
APP sensor directly to one of the battery negative ter- had no other issues afterward.
minals. This circuit normally goes from pin 4 of the
APP sensor to ECM pin 32. That ground had been Unit: GM 4L60-E
compromised, so the overlay cured the issue. Vehicle: 1993 K1500 pickup, 5.7L
Complaint: Harsh 1-2 shift, firm 2-3 shift
Unit: Chrysler 518 After installation of a remanufactured unit, the in-
Vehicle: 1999 Dodge R2500 4WD 5.9 gas staller called us with a complaint of a harsh 1-2 shift
Complaint: Third-gear starts, no shifts and a firm 2-3 shift. The previous unit was having the
We don’t see this complaint nearly as often as we same problem before it was finally replaced for a no-re-
did five (or so) years ago, but it still shows up in our verse condition. Scan-tool data showed an actual read-
shops on occasion. The transmission can have third- ing of 1.10 amps for the pressure-control-solenoid
gear starts with no upshifts or downshifts, or erratic command in drive at idle.
shifting and no TCC engagement, TCC cycling, and A pressure gauge was installed, and in drive at 650
various codes for the O2 sensors and/or governor sen- rpm the pressure reading was 130 psi. The installer did-
sor codes, or sometimes no codes. In the subject vehi- n’t have an amp probe available, so he placed the
cle, only two codes were present: P0133 (1/1 O2 sensor DVOM in amp mode and hard-wired in series to the re-
slow to respond) and P0152 (2/1 O2 sensor shorted to turn circuit of the PC solenoid at pin D, near the trans-
voltage). mission-harness connector. While the scan tool showed
The O2-sensor diagnostics revealed that the sensors 1.1 amps in the parameter identification data, the amm-
were good, but the ground circuit for them (through meter wired into the return circuit had an actual read-
splice S122) was found to have a lot of green corrosion ing of 0.09A. They did not match.
in it, causing all the related circuits to work erratically. This indicated that the ECM was not able to properly
All the circuits in the splice were cleaned up and re- ground the circuit to control the line pressure. A re-
sealed, and ground 125 at the front of the engine was placement ECM was readily available, but an updated
also cleaned for better contact. After these repairs, EPROM was not. After replacement of the ECM, the
both the O2 sensors and the governor solenoid func- unit had 72 psi in drive at idle, the shifts were smooth,
tioned correctly. and the vehicle was delivered. Since this case, I have as-
sisted in this diagnosis 20 times or more all across the
Unit: Chrysler 604 country.
Vehicle: 2004 Chrysler Town and Country FWD 3.8L
Complaint: Harsh, bumpy coast downshifts Unit: Allison 1000
This vehicle had a remanufactured transmission in- Vehicle: 2002 K2500 pickup, 6.6L Duramax
stalled in it. As per normal procedure, the pinion fac- Complaint: Code P0741 (TCC stuck off)
tor was reset, and the quick-learn procedure was After installation of a remanufactured transmission,
performed prior to the post-installation road test. code P0741 (TCC system stuck off) was set during a
Everything performed normally, with no warning road test. This code was also present prior to installa-
lights or codes, so the vehicle was delivered to the cus- tion of the replacement transmission. The previous unit
tomer. failed primarily from the loud grinding and crunching
Eight days after delivery, the customer brought the noises in the gear train but also had this code stored in
vehicle back with a complaint of harsh, bumpy down- memory.
shifts when coasting to a stop. The diagnostician con- The TCM data showed that the TCC circuit was
firmed the condition, performed the quick learn again being commanded on at a 100% duty cycle and had a
and found that the downshifts were acceptable. This slip reading of 160 rpm on a level road at moderate
cycle repeated itself four to five times over the course throttle. A continuity test of the voltage supply and re-
of a month, so the installing shop filed a warranty turn circuit was performed, and both circuits had little
claim to get assistance with diagnosing the problem. to no resistance. When the solenoid was bi-directionally
Starting with the basics, we had the alternator out- controlled with the transmission in gear at idle and ap-
put checked and the three-month-old battery tested. plied at 100%, there was an obvious load on the engine.
Both were functioning within specs. Next, we had the The idle speed dipped by 150 rpm but the engine did
battery output circuits tested with a voltage-drop test, not stall as expected.
and the results showed just over 2 volts being lost in We had the installer trace the transmission harness
the circuit. The cable to the starter had only a 0.10-volt from the TCM to the transmission, and a small black
drop, so the loss was apparently on the return side of box was found wired into the harness at the firewall.
the circuit. Wires were found coming out from and also back into
Simply replacing the negative battery cable restored the harness. When he removed the box from the fire-
the circuit and eliminated the excessive voltage drop. wall, it was noted that it was labeled as an “Engine
The vehicle was again delivered to the customer but Brake Controller.” The technician removed the wiring
42 Transmission Digest
from the box and repaired the circuits that were cut in A DVOM reading showed 9.3V. He then removed all
the harness. He then performed the fast-learn proce- the ground connections to the transmission case,
dure again and completed the relearn drive procedure. cleaned the terminals and the contact locations on the
The TCC operation then returned to normal and on the case and also cleaned the frame-contact location for the
same level road as tested previously had a 45% apply cables on the other end.
cycle and zero slip reading. Though this was not a true After these corrections, the voltage reading at the
ground repair, the return ground was altered to the case dropped to 0.3V, and the starter functioned cor-
TCM, and that is what caused the circuit to fail. rectly. After addition of an auxiliary ground cable from
the case to the negative battery terminal, the case volt-
Unit: Toyota U241E age reading dropped to 0.05V. The vehicle was then de-
Vehicle: 2001 RAV4 2.0L livered to the customer.
Complaint: No engine cranking; dash lights stay on As with any diagnostic process, it all comes down to
and heater fan runs with ignition switch off the basics. Modern vehicle electronic controls and sen-
This case also starts with a fresh installation of a re- sors rely on tiny levels of voltage to use computer logic
manufactured transmission. After the installation, the that controls engine, transmission and other vehicle
engine wouldn’t turn over, the dash lights stayed on systems. In turn, if circuits or components interfere
with the ignition switch turned off, and the heater with those tiny voltages, subsystems will become errat-
blower fan ran with the switch in the off position. The ic and can cause some puzzling vehicle behaviors.
battery checked good with 13.5 volts. Grounds are often overlooked, yet so simple to test and
As the technician was preparing to perform a volt- correct. TD
age-drop test on the starter circuit, the technician
working on the vehicle said his test light glowed when Jim Stokes is a warranty technical consultant for Certified Transmission. He
grounded at the negative battery terminal and with holds a current ASE Master Technician + L1 certification and has been with the
the positive probe connected to the transmission case. company more than 14 years.
44 Transmission Digest
Dan Maddox Transmission Parts 1532 Ford Genuine Parts 16800 Executive Plaza
Reeves St Dothan AL 36303-2842, Dr Dearborn MI 48126-4262 Ford or Lincoln
PH:334.794.6416, TF:888.762.3369, Dealers, TF:800.392.7946, FX:866.318.6448
FX:334.794.6027 WEB:www.fordparts.com
Complete line of domestic & import trans- Fatsco Transmission Parts PO Box 635 Pine Email:pac@ford.com
mission parts. New, rebuilt & used hard Brook NJ 07058-0635 337 Changebridge Rd OEM transmission & transfer case parts for
parts. Pine Brook NJ 07058, PH:973.227.2487, Ford, Mercury & Lincoln vehicles.
TF:800.524.0485, FX:973.227.5414
WEB:www.fatsco.com
‡Dartco Transmission Allison Sales & Email:fatsco@optimum.net
Service 4390 N Long Rd Columbus IN Domestic & import AT parts 1946-present.
47203-9010, PH:812.378.9599, New (from major manufacturers), used &
TF:800.371.7957, FX:812.378.9939 rebuilt parts.
WEB:www.dartcotransmission.com
continues next page
Email:jrsellars@dartcotransmission.com
Allison transmission new, used & rebuilt
replacement parts for on- & off-highway
applications
46 Transmission Digest
Nogalitos Gear Company 433 New Laredo Portland Torque Products Inc. 3039 NW Schaeffler Group USA Inc. 5370 Wegman Dr
Hwy San Antonio TX 78211-1925, Yeon Ave Portland OR 97210-1519, Valley City OH 44280-9700,
PH:210.923.4571, TF:800.929.5103, PH:503.228.2212, TF:800.640.0970, PH:330.220.4132, TF:800.274.5001,
FX:210.923.8205 FX:503.228.8581 FX:330.220.6529
WEB:www.ngparts.com WEB:www.portlandtorque.com WEB:www.schaeffler-aftermarket.us
Email:dennis@ngparts.com Email:dave@portlandtorque.com Email:customer.service@schaeffler.com
Automatic hard parts for domestic & import New, used & reman hard parts for domestic
cars & trucks to 1-ton. Remanufactured, & import AT units.
used, aftermarket & OE new.
Seal Aftermarket Products 2315 SW 32nd
Portland Transmission Warehouse 1016 SE Ave Pembroke Park FL 33023-7709,
Northeastern Transparts Co. Inc. 5727 S Hawthorne Blvd Portland OR 97214-3611, PH:954.364.2400, TF:800.582.2760,
Park Ave Hamburg NY 14075-3022, PH:503.233.4966, TF:800.444.4556, FX:954.364.2401
PH:716.646.4500, TF:800.876.0321 FX:503.233.2642 WEB:www.sealsap.com
WEB:www.northeasterntransparts.com WEB:www.portlandtrans.com Email:customerservice@sealsap.com
Email:sales@northeasterntransparts.com Email:sales@portlandtrans.com Full coverage of foreign & domestic drums,
Large inventory of quality inspected used Full line of remanufactured, OE & aftermar- planets, shafts & shells. Large Ford OE
hard parts for all domestic & most imports. ket new domestic & foreign hard parts. inventory & global sources for foreign appli-
cations.
Precision International PO Box 540 Yaphank
NY 11980-0540 14 Todd Court Extension
Yaphank NY 11980, PH:631.567.2000,
TF:800.872.6649, FX:631.567.2640
WEB:www.transmissionkits.com
Omega Machine & Tool Inc. 2949 Email:sales@transmissionkits.com
Promenade St Ste 100 West Sacramento CA ‡Slauson Transmission Parts 15407 S
95691-6412, PH:916.372.6001, Broadway Gardena CA 90248-2207,
TF:800.601.7722, FX:916.372.6020 PH:310.768.2099, TF:800.421.5580,
WEB:www.omegamachine.com Quality Parts Supply LTD 15844 S Interstate FX:310.768.8298
Email:info@omegamachine.com 35 Bruceville TX 76630-3444, WEB:www.slauson.com
Remanufacturer & repackager of AT trans- PH:254.379.7734, TF:800.527.2914, Email:sales@slauson.com
mission parts. FX:254.857.9296 See Our Ad Page: 51
WEB:www.qualitypartssupply.com Complete line of new, used & rebuilt hard
Email:carllondon@qualitypartssupply.com parts.
Domestic & import used hard parts.
www.transmission-specialties.com
Circle No. 20 on Reader Card
April 2014 47
HARD PARTS SUPPLIERS
TeckPak/Fitzall 3386 S Westwood Blvd
Poplar Bluff MO 63901-7375,
PH:573.785.8238, TF:800.527.2544,
FX:573.785.3303
Sonnax PO Box 440 Bellows Falls VT 05101- WEB:www.teckpak.com ‡Transtar Industries Inc. 7350 Young Dr
0440 1 Automatic Drive Bellows Falls VT Email:customerservice@teckpak-fitzall.com Cleveland OH 44146-5390,
05101, PH:802.463.9722, TF:800.843.2600, PH:440.232.5100, TF:855.TRANSTAR,
FX:802.463.4059 FX:440.232.0632
WEB:www.sonnax.com Texas National Transmission Parts 9812 N WEB:www.transtar1.com
Email:info@sonnax.com Houston Rosslyn Rd Houston TX 77088- Email:info@transtar1.com
See Our Ad Page: IFC 2132, PH:713.983.0463, FX:713.983.9845 See Our Ad Page: 13
Extensive line of valve body & pump parts. Email:myoder127@yahoo.com Full line supplier of domestic & import OEM
OEM & aftermarket hard parts, electrical New, used & rebuilt hard parts for domestic new, aftermarket new, remanufactured &
components. High-performance transmis- & foreign cars & light trucks. used hard parts.
sion & driveline components. Worldwide
distributor network.
‡VBX - ValveBody Xpress 150 Mid Atlantic
Pkwy West Deptford NJ 08066-1858,
Stellar Automotive Group 4935 Panther PH:856.848.0908, TF:866.2GET.VBX,
Pkwy Seville OH 44273-8930, FX:856.848.1080
PH:330.769.8484, TF:800.458.5487, WEB:www.vbxus.com
FX:330.769.8483 Toledo Driveline LLC 1110 Napoleon St Email:jrink@valvebodyxpress.com
WEB:www.stellargroupinc.com Fremont OH 43420-2328, PH:419.355.1200, See Our Ad Page: 41
Email:nhowsare@stellargroupinc.com TF:888.604.9811, FX:419.355.1230 Full line of remanufactured valve bodies &
Supplier of AT parts for domestic & foreign WEB:www.toledodriveline.com Aisin Warner linear solenoids.
applications. Email:info@toledodriveline.com
OEM & aftermarket new. Reconditioned for
select applications. VTP South LLC 7025 Camden Ave
Superior Transmission Parts Inc. 3770 Pennsauken NJ 08110-1509,
Hartsfield Rd Tallahassee FL 32303-1121, PH:856.488.4451, TF:800.873.9770,
PH:850.574.2369 Ext 2, TF:800.451.3115, FX:856.488.6125
FX:850.575.9097 WEB:www.vtpsouth.com
WEB:www.superior-transmission.com Email:vtpsouth@verizon.net
Email:info@superiortransmission.com Foreign & domestic OEM & aftermarket new,
Fixes & updated components, specialty Transmission Exchange Co. 1803 NE Ml rebuilt & used A/T parts & rebuilt valve bodies.
installation tools & related items. King Blvd Portland OR 97212-3926,
PH:503.284.0768, TF:800.776.1191,
FX:503.280.1655
TCS Transmission Products 6217 205th St
WEB:www.txchange.com
Langley BC V2Y 1N7 CANADA,
Email:mail@txchange.com
PH:604.533.8675, TF:800.960.1177,
Used, reman & new hard parts for AT &
FX:604.533.7894
transfer case applications.
WEB:www.tcsproducts.com
Email:sales@tcsproducts.com ‡Whatever It Takes Inc. (WIT) PO Box 547
Manufacturer of HD high horsepower, high Hillview KY 40129-0547 4282 E Blue Lick Rd
torque shafts, drums & associated hard Louisville KY 40229, PH:502.955.6035,
parts for North American working & per- TF:800.940.0197, FX:502.955.6077
formance vehicles. WEB:www.wittrans.com
Email:sales@wittrans.com
Transmission Parts Unlimited (T.P.U.) PO See Our Ad Page: 5
Teal Automotive Inc. 450 Industrial Dr Box 1104 Forest Park GA 30298-1104 4788 Full-line distributor of new, used & remanu-
Dunkirk IN 47336-9607, PH:765.768.7726, Highway 42 Ellenwood GA 30294, factured hard parts. Import & domestic
TF:800.722.0215, FX:765.768.1607 PH:404.366.1455, TF:800.241.3880, applications.
WEB:www.tealautomotiveinc.com FX:404.366.6428
Email:bethfallis@tealautomotiveinc.com WEB:www.transpartsunlimited.com
See Our Ad Page: 45 ZF Services LLC 777 Hickory Hill Dr Vernon
Domestic & import OE & aftermarket new,
Complete line OE & aftermarket new & used Hills IL 60061-3182, PH:847.478.6868,
used & remanufactured hard parts.
hard parts for domestic & import applica- TF:800.321.0784, FX:847.478.6843
tions. WEB:www.zf.com/us
Email:passcarinfo@zf.com
Complete line of OE hard parts for 5HP, 6HP
& 8HP transmissions for ZF-equipped
European vehicles.
TD
48 Transmission Digest
TECHNICAL TRAINING Bonus Tech
Engineering a
Solution
How to calculate working area
By Irvin Gers
M
odifying a transmission to increase its torque So, the question is, “How do we measure that?”
capacity can be a tricky thing. To do this The simple answer is, with a depth micrometer.
properly you should know what you have to The method is similar to how we measure for a
work with. As with building a house, you need to Chrysler rear-wheel-drive overdrive-piston shim.
have a good foundation or the house will crumble and Tools needed are a bar stock of known thickness
fall. with a hole drilled through, a depth micrometer, a mi-
In this article we will work with the Allison crometer, and an understanding of math and how to
LCT1000 transmission. Keeping in mind that there are accomplish our goal.
many factors involved in building a bullet-proof The method is this: Measure all we know and sub-
transmission, there is always Newton’s third law of tract what we don’t want, and what is left is what we
motion, basically stated, “For every action there is an continues next page
opposite and equal reaction.” For the trans-
mission rebuilder this means that for every
increase in horsepower and torque there is a
1
need for increased capacity in the clutch
packs.
Many times our engineering department
at Raybestos Powertrain is asked to come up
with a solution to a problem in a clutch pack
or drum. One common way is to increase
friction-plate count. Increasing friction
count in some transmissions is not always
easy, so let’s explore the foundation and see
what kind of house we can build.
To modify a clutch pack beyond OE speci-
fications, we need to know what the work-
ing height of the clutch pack is.
This is the total area we have to work Courtesy of ATSG
with, which will include the following:
A. An apply plate
B. The reaction (steel) plates 2
C. The friction plates
D. The top pressure plate (backing plate)
E. Clutch-pack clearance
We will start with how to identify the Working
area
portion of the drum needed to measure.
Figure 1 is an Allison LCT1000 C1/C2
drum without the C2 clutches. Notice the
stack-up of the C1 clutch.
Figure 2 shows one half of the C1 clutch C1 balance piston
Snap ring
removed for illustrative purposes. It illus- C1 piston
trates the working area of the C1 clutch.
The working area is between the C1-pis-
ton point of contact and the bottom of the
snap ring that holds the clutch components
Courtesy of ATSG
inside the working area.
April 2014 49
Bonus Tech
50 Transmission Digest
B USINESS TRAINING A. Little Help
•Issue: Technology
Slauson now brings a full line of Hard Parts, Soft Parts & Electrical to the
3DFLÀF1RUWKZHVW Available now at Perfection Plus in 3RUWODQG25
Call for delivery & free shipping options!
Used, New & Rebuilt Hard Parts, Soft Parts, Electrical Components & Flywheels SLAUSON
TRANSMISSION
PARTS
Phone Hours: Open 7:00 am to 5:00 pm/ PST
Call (800) 421-5580 • Local (310) 768-2099 • FAX ( 310) 768-8298
52 Transmission Digest
If you are a working shop owner saying that you don’t go to the smart, not hard. Be nice to your-
you can use today’s technology to shop; I am just saying there are self. Give yourself a break once in a
help you get your life back. Go to a times when the security camera while. You deserve it. TD
ball game with your son. Take your can take that burden off you and
wife out. Go see some old high- keep you from burning out. Art Little is the founder of TransTeam. His website
school buddies. There is no reason For example, you could sleep in is the home of the National Employment
to spend 65 hours a week in the some mornings. That’s right; sleep Headquarters for the transmission industry. He has
shop anymore. If the shop is start- an extra hour, drink your coffee at been an industry pioneer in Internet technology
since 1997, and his background in shops goes
ing to feel like a prison, every day home and watch the employees
back almost 30 years. He is respected nationwide
is like groundhog day and you come into work on your computer as an owner and manager who specializes in mul-
have no life outside the shop, it or smart phone; maybe drive in tiple-shop management. Today he is a software
might be time to consider in- after the traffic clears. Most securi- developer for the transmission industry, offering
stalling some security cameras and ty cameras have an audio feature apps that make everyday tasks in a transmission
free yourself up. also. You can listen to conversa- shop easy by using today’s technology.
Take some well-meaning advice tions and also talk with employees TransTeam’s mobile technology puts transmission-
from a guy who spent way too though the camera device. So, it is shop production on a smart phone. Art invites all
much of his life inside the four just as if you were there, except Transmission Digest shop-owner fans to go to his
website and become a TransTeam fan. This month
walls of a transmission shop. Stop you are not. You simply answer
go to the site, register as a shop owner and get
running from technology and start questions and issue your instruc- your first month free by entering the code # ILOVE
running to it. A security-camera tions to start the day. TDIGEST3. Employee registration is free. Vendor
system can dramatically reduce the It just makes sense to invest in registration is free to the Parts Club and includes
time you have to spend in the technology that creates a way for free advertising at the TransTeam online Trade
shop. Cameras pay for themselves you to spend more time with your Show. Visit www.transteam.com or call Art at 888-
many times over. There is no ex- loved ones and provide customers 859-0994 for details.
cuse for not having them. I am not the same or better service. Work
Rostra
www.RostraTransmission.com
See the story behind OE-quality parts.
54 Transmission Digest
in Bellows Falls, Vt. With the pur- VF-4 five-axis CNC vertical ma-
chase of three new machines, the chining center, used to machine
company said it has accelerated complex housings and detailed
production time, optimized accu- parts. Production time is acceler-
racy and improved overall quality ated when parts can be rotated
and efficiency for a variety of within the machine, allowing ac-
transmission, torque-converter and cess to multiple surfaces all in
drivetrain products. one setup. Higher stiffness facili-
tates machining of hardened ma-
terials to improve both product
TECH/TALK
precision and service life. READERS KNOW
THE ANSWERS
ZF Services Releases ALREADY!
Training Video for 6HP Transmission
Transmission-Oil Changes TM
April 2014 55
Products featured on these pages include those from aftermarket suppliers and are not necessarily of OE design or sourced from OE manufacturers.
56 Transmission Digest
Rebuilt Valve Bodies ATC700 Transfer-Case Chain
EVT Parts has added rebuilt valve bodies to its product line. Cobra Transmission Parts carries a wide range of parts for
The valve bodies are available for transmissions including the ATC700 transfer case found in 2010-up BMW X5 and X6.
09G, AW55-50SN, 09A/JF506E, 096/01M, TAAT and The chain is 43 links with a rocker-pin design and is 1.25
5HP19/FLA. Same-day delivery (limited area) or shipment inches wide. The part number is ATC700-111102.
directly to your shop is available, the company said.
Circle No. 105 on Reader Card Circle No. 108 on Reader Card
Circle No. 106 on Reader Card Circle No. 109 on Reader Card
Circle No. 107 on Reader Card Circle No. 110 on Reader Card
Circle No. 111 on Reader Card Circle No. 114 on Reader Card
58 Transmission Digest
MARKETPLACE
Electronics Parts Parts
Performance
•
Multiple Distribution Locations
Custom Built to
Your Truck’s Specifications!
DODGE CUMMINS Cobra Transmission
Trans Pans, Billet Flex Plates, Torque Converters & Valve Bodies
Triple Disc Torque Converters have Limited Lifetime Warranty!
Performance and Quality... Delivered ™
Allison Torque Converters and Trans Pans Also Available!
Dyno Tested & Developed on Our In-House
2400 lb. ft. Chassis & 500 HP Trans Dynos
563-778-2719
To view our equipment go to www.goerend.com
Over 35 Years in the Transmission Business!
Parts
We carry transfer case parts
and reman units for BMW,
Mercedes Benz, Range Rover,
VW and much more.
1-800-293-1848
info@CobraTransmission.com
www.CobraTransmission.com
Automatic – Standard – Transfer Case
Pat. #6,192,567
SERVO BORE
REPAIR KIT
Save the caaske,
1285 Embarcadero 500 UCCI Way
stop the le
Oakland, CA Spartanburg, SC 5R55W/S/N, AODE/4R70W, AOD
A4LD/E, CD4E, AX4S/N O.D. & int.
F4, 4F27, 4L30E rear case
4L60, 4L80, 4T60 - fwd, 4T60 - rev
NORTHLAND TRANSMISSION INC.
715-458-2617 ▼ www.servobore.com
April 2014 59
MARKETPLACE
Parts Parts Parts
For over 20 years
Stellar Group has been Stellar Group (East)
HYDRAMATIC
a trusted-name supplier 4935 Panther Pkwy.
of transmission parts to Seville, OH 44273
POWER GLIDE
distributors throughout T: (330) 769-8484
the world. F: (330) 769-8483 DYNAFLOW
JETAWAY
Stellar Group (West)
7441 Anaconda Ave. ROTO
Garden Grove, CA 92841
1-800-458-5487 X158 FM 2
Contact us: Toll-free Etc.
or by Email
1-(800) 458-5487
www.stellargroupinc.com
Hablamos Español U.S. Mfg. From 1946 to Date Automatic Car and Light Truck
TRANSMISSION PARTS
1-800-524-0485 P.O. Box 635, Pine Brook, NJ 07055
www.fatsco.com
E-mail: fatsco@verizon.net
M A R K E T P L A C E A D S R E A C H T H E S H O P S T H AT
BUY THE PRODUCTS
Call Mike Anderson at 1-800-274-7890
BRIAN OR ALBERT
866-571-GEAR
4 3 2 7 stedave@earthlink.net
www.stecouplers.com
BUFFALO ENGINE
COMPONENTS
263XHD/261XHD and
Noww
246/149/261HD/263HD
available to
shops. 3000
HEAVY GRADE ALUMINUM
already in REAR CASE HALF
use. NOT THE WEAK FACTORY MAGNESIUM
ERIKSSON INDUSTRIES
SPRINTER Transmissions
H
E
12025(³2,/380358%´,668(6
No Adapter Plate Needed
H
E Remanufactured
1-800-388-4418
A A Authorized Parts Distributor
V V Sprinter Remanufactured Units DYNO TESTED
Y Y
722.6 Transmissions
G G ■ 1 YEAR UNLIMITED MILE WTY ■
R
SPECIAL R Updated with latest Sonnax ■ Hard Parts: NEW / USED / REMANUFACTURED ■
A
D PRICING A
D
performance parts
Soft Parts / Friction Kits / Steel Kits / Repair Manuals
E E ■ Lifetime Fluids / Rebuild Kits / Valvebody Kits ■
3-year/100,000-mile warranty
A
L
A
L
1-800-388-4418
U U Fax: (860) 395-0047
M M 866-464-1871 www.erikssonindustries.com
I I www.sprintertransmission.net
N N
U U
M Transfer Case Express,Inc. M
1-800-MUDROAD (800-683-7623)
62 Transmission Digest
MARKETPLACE
Remanufactured Units Tools & Equipment Tools & Equipment
Axiline transmission dyno tester. Honda Bushing Tool
Barely used. Comes with USA import adapter Arizona Transmission Machine, manufacturer of
package and computer. Quiet electric motor. Part # award-winning 6L80-E pump alignment clamp and
97000-ECRH. You wonʼt find a better deal! Honda 4- and 5-speed bushing R&R tool kit.
516-859-2287 Available @ www.ez-driver.com or call Mike
dolphintrans@verizon.net Tilley @ 602-992-2961.
DON’T BE
FOOLED BY
CHEAP
IMITATIONS!
TEMCO
Simply The Best
2YHUKDXO6\VWHP
MADE
IN USA
1-800-245-1869
&DOOXV Email: temco@washparts.com
ZZZDWLUDFLQJFRP
RATES
Classified Word Ads
Twenty-five words or less
(no charge for name, address and phone number)
$95.00
Each additional word $2.50
Check or money order (U.S. Funds only)
must accompany ad copy. Publisher reserves the
right to reject any advertisement.
1-800-274-7890
TORY
LARGE INVEN
Quality Remanufactured Transmissions
& Transfer Cases plus 261 HD, 263 HD, 263 XHD
12
12 Month
Month Warranty
Warranty -- unlimited
unlimited miles
miles
April 2014 63
MARKETPLACE
Valve Bodies Help Wanted Index to Advertisers
NATIONAL EMPLOYMENT Advertiser Page Reader
# Card #
HEADQUARTERS
Maxx Fluxx™ for the transmission industry
We make it easy to relocate.
Alto Products .........................................9 .............1
ASA NACE/CARS Show .....................27 ...........99
Bushings Employees and shop owners
Certified Transmission ..........................3 .............3
REAM
REAM MAN VALVE BODIES Transtar Industries ..............................13 ...........22
877-337-4681 RATES
TransTec by Corteco...........................21 ...........23
Keep on
VBX-ValveBody Xpress ......................41 ...........24
REDUCE COMEBACKS!
Whatever It Takes .................................5 ...........25
INCREASE PROFITS!
●NATIONWIDE SHIPPING
Shops Need Your Products
TO YOUR FRONT DOOR
READY TO BOLT ON.
●Complete Remanufactured
Moving Sales You Want ’Em!
We’ve Got ’Em!
& Tested, Sonnax Updates.
●1 Year Warranty ●Tech Support
www.reamman.com
www.reamman.com
64 Transmission Digest
Shop Management Package of Eight 2013 Management CDs: $99 or $19 each
13-MO1 Process Management for Technicians & Service Advisers Bill Haas, ESi 13-MO5 Selling the VALUE Nobody Can Compete With Bill Haas, ESi
Process management, the application of knowledge, skills, tools, techniques Tips to help when you are pressured to discount or match
and systems to define, visualize, measure, control, report and improve pricing. How to ask powerful questions, create presentations
processes with the goal of meeting customer expectations profitably. that communicate value and differentiate your solutions from
those of your competition.
13-MO2 Google – Driving You Business or Driving You Crazy™
Danny Sanchez, Autoshop Solutions 13-MO6 Internal Sales from Technician to Service Adviser
The search giant controls much of what you depend on every day Maylan Newton, ESi
to bring business in the door. Demystify the practices of Google, Knowing how to do your job is one thing – having service advisers
learning to work within its framework to build your business. communicating successfully with your technicians to generate sales is
a different ballgame. A look at processes and procedures between
13-MO3 Supercharging 2013 – Five Keys to Growing, Enjoying and Living service advisers and technicians that make shops successful.
Tom Langer, Undercar Digest
Five important insights for the year: How to improve your 13-MO7 Telematics Malcolm Sissmore, Delphi
horsepower, finding power in your people, living with family The aftermarket can increase revenue through the use
members in your business successfully, four markets to consider of this cutting-edge shop-to-customer communication
for your shop, and planning for the year to come. technology.
13-MO4 Handling Internet Misinformation Terry Greenhut, Transmission Digest 13-MO8 Branding Brings in the Bucks!™
Today’s customer is self-diagnosing vehicle repairs using Danny Sanchez, Autoshop Solutions
information found on the Internet and other sources. Learn The best brands in any industry get paid a premium because they are
how to address this misinformation and guide potential the most-trusted brand. Your shop is also a brand; you can charge a
customers to your shop. premium and have customers who will gladly pay.
Transmission Technical Package of Seven 2013 Transmission Technical CDs: $99 or $19 each
13-TO1 GETRAG DCT 450 Wayne Colonna, ATSG 13-TO4 GETRAG DCT 470 Bob Nuttall, Autotech
Diagnostics and rebuilding information for the double wet-clutch There are very important differences between the DCT 450 and DCT
unit found in Ford and Volvo applications. 470 units.
13-TO2 PCM/TCM Burnouts “G” Jerry Truglia, ATTS – 2 Discs 13-TO5 TASC Force Tips Bob Warnke, Sonnax TASC Force
Finding causes for the PCM/TCM and other computer components A focused collection of savvy technical information from the Sonnax
to burn out as well as a lesson in sensors and actuators, test TASC Force team.
procedures and the proper diagnostic tools to use.
13-TO6 The Builder’s Bench ’13
13-TO3 ZF 6HP 19/28 Jim Dial, ATSG John Parmenter, Precision International Advisory Board
The differences and parts exchange possibilities between these John presents hands-on, right-now knowledge that’s crucial for
related and yet significantly different members of the 6HP family. everybody who’s overhauling a unit.
Visa and MasterCard Accepted • Make Checks payable to: M D Publications, Inc.
U.S. Orders: Includes Postage & Handling Mail: PO Box 2210 Springfield, MO 65801-2210
Allow 4 to 6 weeks for delivery E-mail: editor@mdpublications.com
International Orders: Please inquire for shipping charges Phone: 417-866-3917 or 800-274-7890 / Fax: 417-866-2781
Circle No. 8 on Reader Card