Almost too fresh for 178K on the clock, and there are multiple codes stored in several modules. This customer had stated that he had not had any repairs done recently, so let’s move on with our initial inspection.įluid levels are good and the transmission fluid looks pretty fresh. Our front office staff is pretty good about prying information out of the customer, but a lot of times the information that the customer provides is grossly inaccurate and that can make a difference between having an accurate concern identified on the repair order or what I like to call a, “search warrant”. We ask a specific question: have you had any other work done on your vehicle in the last year? You may or may not be surprised at the answers you will get. Possibly not that it is relevant at this point, but something to make note of.Īnother of our routines starts at the counter when the service advisor is getting information from the customer. While checking fluid levels I noticed this: A new/reman PCM (figure 1). The customer’s complaint was “It feels like it’s slipping once in a while.” We have a routine for our initial evaluation like everyone else: check fluid levels, scan for codes, test drive, and perform an undercar inspection. Trucks like these are our bread and butter being located on the border of a big city with lots of farming and commercial operations on the other side. Such was the case with a 2005 Dodge Dakota that rolled in to our shop equipped with 4WD, 4.7L engine, and a 545RFE transmission. Anyone that’s been around this profession for any amount of time probably knows that the next ticket in the queue has a good chance of being anything but a routine repair. Sometimes they are the fabric that holds us together, sometimes not so much. They help us get things done faster and more efficiently. We live, eat, sleep, play and work by them. Dan has a college background in electronics engineering and specializes in diagnostics and computer controls for Certified Transmission. Dan has been in the automotive industry for over thirty years and is an ASE Certified Master Technician.