Welcome to POWERTRAIN PRO

Jan. 1, 2020
Welcome to Powertrain Pro. I’m Wayne Colonna, president of employee-owned Automatic Transmission Service Group (ATSG) and publisher of the new Powertrain Pro.

Welcome to Powertrain Pro. I’m Wayne Colonna, president of employee-owned Automatic Transmission Service Group (ATSG) and publisher of the new Powertrain Pro. We are here to bridge general repair and transmission work through collaboration, education and diversification.

Like this article? Sign up for our enews blasts here.

In the last 10 years, many automotive repair facilities, particularly specialty shops, have experienced a need to broaden their services to remain profitable. Diversifying the repairs offered to the public is no exception to transmission shops. One of the largest automatic transmission franchise chains (representing 1/10 of all transmission shops) broadened its services to total car care.

Additionally, we are seeing increased use of remanufactured transmissions as an alternative to rebuilding them in-house. Combining these factors, a specialty shop could output more automatic transmission repair work in a week than if it could not complete other repairs.
Because of this, specialty shops need increased training beyond their specialties. Diagnostic assistance also is needed, should a remanufactured transmission be installed and does not operate correctly. Is it the transmission or is it malfunctioning because of some other failure in the vehicle?

Powertrain Pro not only will provide helpful information regarding automatic transmission diagnostics and repair, it also will point to digital training beyond for other areas of the vehicle. Besides our featured transmission related subjects, companies that desire to help you grow your business will sponsor free webinars regarding a wide range of vehicle maintenance and repair.

Motor Age already has a great deal of content related to engine management, brakes, air conditioning, exhausts, tune-ups, maintenance, radiators and cooling systems, just to name a few.

All of these resources, as well as previous transmission-related content, will be harnessed, catalogued and listed in the Powertrain Pro section of MotorAge.com as a free, one-stop, bumper-to-bumper information outlet accessible 24/7.

With computers now controlling all aspects of the vehicle and interacting with one another for fuel economy, emission control and safety, what part of the car can you afford to not work on? Specialty shops need the training on how to diagnose and work on other aspects of the vehicle, as well as knowing the correct tools needed to perform these repairs. Powertrain Pro aims to bring awareness to these other areas of the vehicle to aid shops in diversifying their services effectively.

Over the past 10 years, we all have seen this powertrain concept develop. I am sure many of us have experienced odd effects of powertrain strategy, including reasons one would never think of.

An example is over-inflated, underinflated tires or three worn tires and a spare with increased tread as the fourth wheel causing a curve recognition program to be initiated while driving straight. This causes problems like a no up-shift condition with medium to heavy throttle or very late erratic up shifts and kick-down shifts. As a result, different tire sizes cause the wheel speed sensors to send a signal to its module, which interprets it as a vehicle in a turn. This is just one example of what we will bring to light in Powertrain Pro.

We will share insights on problems with transfer cases, manual shift transmissions, CVTs and powershift transmissions. While all of this transmission information is added to the Powetrain Pro content, Motor Age will continue to provide training content beyond transmission diagnostics and repair.

All of this is designed to help your shop grow through collaboration, education and diversification.

Have articles like this sent to you weekly by signing up for our enews blasts here.

Sponsored Recommendations

Best Body Shop and the 360-Degree-Concept

Spanesi ‘360-Degree-Concept’ Enables Kansas Body Shop to Complete High-Quality Repairs

ADAS Applications: What They Are & What They Do

Learn how ADAS utilizes sensors such as radar, sonar, lidar and cameras to perceive the world around the vehicle, and either provide critical information to the driver or take...

Banking on Bigger Profits with a Heavy-Duty Truck Paint Booth

The addition of a heavy-duty paint booth for oversized trucks & vehicles can open the door to new or expanded service opportunities.

Boosting Your Shop's Bottom Line with an Extended Height Paint Booths

Discover how the investment in an extended-height paint booth is a game-changer for most collision shops with this Free Guide.