Extending Transmission Life

[imp]

I wrote programs for computers (Programmable Logic Controllers, PLCs) which operated machines in a factory. Wish I could find out more about the programmers' whims when it comes to Engine Control Computers; several quirks they employ, I disagree with. The big one concerns our Torque Converter Clutches (TCC).

At road speeds, every time we take our foot off the gas pedal (close the throttle), the TCC disengages; then upon giving it "gas" again, the TCC must engage. So, the driver who constantly is "on and off" the gas causes that clutch to operate "on and off" needlessly; that's one thing. The other is, upon pushing the pedal after closed throttle, most of the time the engine speeds up beyond the point needed for cruise, due to the torque converter operating, and then the TCC must re-engage under power to bring the engine speed down to transmission speed; this involves slippage within the clutch.

I have found that if I practice pushing the gas pedal slowly after beig "off it", the engine speed will come up slowly enough to allow the computer (PCM) to command re-engagement of the TCC as the engine speed is coming up to match the transmission speed. This imposes less stress on the TCC, I believe. Try it both ways while watching your tachometer; maybe you will not agree with me.....

The other thing here was pointed out to me by a neighbor; surprisingly, I was already doing it. If you drive the same route often, perhaps daily to work, and it includes several hills which normally will cause your transmission to downshift out of Overdrive Gear, again "seeable" on the tach, that downshift occurs while the engine is working comparatively hard, thereby involving some wear to the transmission's internals, as they must "slip while grabbing" to achieve the lower gear ratio. If you anticipate that downshift, and manually cancel Overdrive by pushing the selector lever button before the downshift happens by itself, you can do this with the throttle closed, or nearly closed, thereby placing less stress on the transmission; topping the hill, simply push the button again.

Am I splitting hairs? Maybe. Having read numerous pleas for help on this Forum, regarding transmission problems, it just seems to me that anything simple that can be done to extend their life ought to be looked at. imp

 

[2000StreetRod]

custom tune

My stock SOHC V6/5R55E would upshift from 1st to 2nd almost as soon as the wheels started rotating. Also, the shifts were so soft that it was hard for me to tell when I purchased the vehicle if it had 4 speeds or 5. One advantage of a custom tune by James Henson is the transmission shifts up and down at about the time you would do it manually.

 

[robcarz]

Imp When I tore apart my wife's Aerostar a4ld at 212.000 (turns out I didn't need to it was broken splines in the torque converter) it was almost like new inside. Clean, no metal,no chunks,no damage. She said she had never changed the fluid.

Maybe it was because she never used the overdrive .