The Sunday News
My MPV Mazda car recently started revving very high at low speeds like 7 000 revs to 60km/he. Could it be something to do with the gearbox?
IF there’s a car that I’ve seen with a gearbox that notoriously without warning decides to give up the ghost, it’s the Mazda MPV.
You definitely are facing a possible transmission failure but not all is lost, you could possibly get your car to work again depending on the extent of the damage. We will look at a few things that cause transmission failure and how you can possibly reverse the problem and avoid it in future.
Many factors can lead to transmission failure including design flaws, lack of maintenance, misuse or use of the wrong transmission fluid. We tend to neglect transmission service but it is as important as engine service especially if you have an automatic type transmission. Mazda MPVs seem to have a weak transmission that tends to fail prematurely. It has been noted by many people and car reviewers that MPVs have transmissions that fail prematurely. That however, is something Mazda has never admitted. It could be a possible design flaw that has caught up with you as well but let’s not rule out other factors as yet.
Besides design flaws maintenance is importance. Be religious about it. If you do not service your transmission sooner or later it will give you problems. It does not need to be serviced as often as the engine does but it does need service occasionally. You have to consult a vehicle manual to get the transmission fluid change intervals.
For every 40-60 000km that you drive you need to do a “flush and fill” job on your transmission meaning you need to drain the old fluid and fill up with new fluid.
Over time the fluid gets too dirty to do its job which is to lubricate and cool the transmission. Your transmission fluid (ATF) should be wine red in colour when you pull out the dipstick. If it gets darker for any reason you may have to change it even before time. Dirty old transmission fluid can cause transmission failure. Always be mindful of that.
Know-how is important when dealing with automatic transmissions because they tend to be sensitive. A flush and fill job would require you to drain all the old fluid, change the filter then add new fluid to your transmission. Note that not all cars have filters in the transmission but Mazda MPVs do have and they need to be changed whenever you do your flush and fill job.
A good job always involves reassembling everything back exactly the way the manufacturer assembled. That means you will need to put back even those little magnets you find in the transmission sump. They are there for a good reason, to trap metal filings that can harm your transmission.
You have to clean them of all the fillings and put them back just the way you found them. I say this because in Zimbabwe we have some very clever shade-tree mechanics that remove some things they reckon are useless and there only for decoration, do not be like them. All parts are useful.
Repairing or replacing a transmission is quite expensive therefore it is wise to give due attention to any behaviour that seems strange before it gets out of hand. Mazda MPVs do not really give much of a warning when they pack up so brace yourself when it comes to maintenance of these cars.
Hoping that if you service it, it will kick back to life. Lastly do not abuse the car by overloading it or towing heavy loads. All that strain goes straight to the gearbox and that’s why sometimes these cars break down. Coming back to the question at hand, the car revs high without picking up speed that matches the high revs. It’s probably stuck in first or second gear and failing to change upwards. It is a sign if transmission failure. Seeing that your transmission has not completely failed, it may still have some life in it. So the first thing you need to do is check your transmission fluid.
You need to ascertain whether you have enough fluid in your transmission and if so how good is it? Is it still in its wine red form or it has turned brown and dirty? In that case, it needs to be changed. Also make sure your transmission is not leaking fluid. Is your driveway clean? Is your radiator working well, because it cools the transmission fluid as well . . . Till next time, mail me your car problems.
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Disclaimer: This material has been prepared with the intent to provide reliable information; no warranty either expressed or implied is made to its accuracy or completeness. No liability is assumed for any loss, injury to persons, property or other damage resulting from either the use of or reliance on the material presented. Always consult the professionals.
