NACE Automechanika 2017 in Chicago is truly an international event, with vendors and exhibitors from all over the world participating in a trade show that covers all segments of the automotive industry with a focus on the grassroots members – the technicians, shop owners and educators. Coupled with the trade show is a selection of training events; some offered for a fee, and others offered at no cost to the attendees.
And NACE Automechanika, held at McCormick Place West in downtown Chicago, offers transmission guys the best in the business to learn from. Among them is Wayne Colonna, president of the Automatic Transmission Service Group, a company well known to those in the transmission rebuilding arena and becoming increasingly popular with general repair technicians who want to up their game and become more competent in diagnosing issues that are often tough to tell apart from engine or electrical concerns.
One transmission design that can lead to misdiagnosis is the “CVT,” or Constant Variable Transmission, design — it is almost similar to the old over-running clutches we used to see on our Briggs and Stratton “minibikes” when we were kids! And no CVT design is less understood than the 0AW Multitronic DSG transmission used by Audi. Colonna’s session will focus on this specific design, and he will lead attendees through an intensive dissection of the trans, including a detailed explanation of its electrical and hydraulic systems.
According to Colonna, “There is very little information available for this transmission. The handout alone is worth coming (to NACE Automechanika) even if no other seminar was attended!”
Considering Colonna’s (and ATSG’s) 25-year history of writing articles, seminar material, technical service bulletins, and even repair/diagnostic manuals for transmissions of every design, I tend to believe him. If transmissions are your bread and butter – or you just want to have a better understanding of how this type of transmission functions, be sure to keep your Saturday, July 29 morning free for this class!