In my years of service as an Automotive Professional, I have seen too many reasons as to why you should torque those lug nuts.  I’ve seen wheels come off, brakes damaged, broken/stripped lug nuts, bolts and studs, etc., and I have seen this repeatedly by Technicians as well as the Do-It-Your-Selfers for one simple reason - they don’t properly torque the Lug Nuts on their vehicle…

Lug Nut, and Lug Bolts, are designed with a specific grade of bolt/nut with a certain amount of “stretch.”  Why do they Stretch?  Through proper torque, which stretches the bolt, stretching is what allows the threads of the stud/bolt to tightly mate and secure to the counter part nut or threaded hole (the axle or wheel mounting hub) without working themselves loose.  It’s almost like mechanically welding the nut to the bolt – except that you can remove and re-tighten it repeatedly.  Yet, most bolt grades for this purpose, will retain it’s original size and properties (un-stretched) when torqued to spec. and then loosened - the properties of the bolt have a slight spring affect when loosened.

The below are examples of bolts in the various stages of torque being applied.

1. The first example is a bolt that is loose and no torque applied – un-stretched.
2. The second example is a bolt that is torqued to spec.  There is a slight amount of stretch, but not enough to change metal/alloy properties of the bolt – thus returning back to it’s original shape for re-tightening.
3. The 3rd bolt example is a typical “Over-Torqued” bolt.  Note that the bolt is not only stretched, but stretched to the point of changing the properties and “Yield Strength” of the bolt.  The bolt now has a much lower Tensile/Yield strength and allows the bolt to flex, generate heat and fatigue – thus cracking, shearing, loosening, and breaking off are the result causing damage to the wheel and other related components.

Some other results of improper lug nut/bolt torque are as follows:

• Warped Brake Rotors – brakes grabbing, pulsating or overheated.
• Damage to the lug nut seating surface of alloy wheels.
• Wheel hub damage – threaded wholes stripped out.
• etc. 

It’s very important to tighten lug nuts, incrementally, to the final torque spec.  There are specific tightening sequences depending on what lug nut/bolt pattern you have – 4, 5, 6 or more…  The below example shows the 3 typical bolt patterns and tightening sequences for most automotive applications.

Moreover, It is always a good idea to test drive the vehicle, then recheck your wheel lug nut/bolt torque – especially with alloy or painted wheels.  I have seen too many times when you have a “false torque” due to paint, debris, corrosion, or a tight and binding centering hole over the wheel hub that allows the bolt or nut to come loose after driving.  The wheels of a vehicle is probably the “MOST IMPORTANT” safety feature of the vehicle.  Don’t take a chance of improper lug nut/bolt torque causing serious injuries to yourself, your family or other opposing motorists.

Below are a couple of great Internet sites to obtain free torque specifications for your vehicle.  Additionally, most (probably all) Owners and Repair Manuals have these specs as well.  So please, “Torque Those Lug Nuts!” 

Lug Nut Torque Spec Sites:

TorqueSpec.com

AutoZone.com

URL:  http://appliedauto.mypunbb.com

You can get current automotive news, articles, repair trends, repair tips, fundamentals, diagnostic procedures, DTC codes, consumer help, race events and results, items and parts for sale, looking for a job or business opportunities, etc.

This is a New forum and is targeted for Automotive Professionals as a placed to discuss various automotive topics on a level that we professionals are accustomed to.  Although, there are areas for discussions, assistance, and general viewing for fellow automotive customers and enthusiasts.

Although this forum is in the start-up phase, I welcome all of you to Join New Applied Auto Forum and stay up with the auto industry. 

Yours truly, forum Host and fellow Veteran Automotive Professional,

Jack Miller

Sometimes, depending on which bolts are loose and how the deformation of the valve body is, it can seal when cold, and leak, suck air and shift valves bind after warmed up  Symptoms are typically harsh or delayed shift during cold operation.  Quick verification of a drain-back issue is to check the trans fluid level “hot” the night before, then in the morning “before starting the vehicle,” check the fluid level again.  If the fluid level is high, meaning well above the cold full mark (a little high is typical), then you have a drain-back issue with the trans.  However, you can still have an improperly torqued valve body that may not exhibit drain-back and still allow binding shift valves.

Another area of cold shift issues, typically delayed shift issues, is the cooling system and related sensors.  Most newer transmissions rely on a engine temperature sensor input to determine the proper shift points of the trans during cold operations.  Commonly, shift points and are delayed as well as overdrive disabled until the trans reaches full operating temperature.  This allows the engine to heat up quicker, transmission to circulate fluid and heat up quicker with minimal stress on the transmission. 

The heaviest stress on an auto trans is when the trans is cold and it up-shifts quickly higher gears requiring heavy drive-train load.  If you have a bad engine temp sensor, or a thermostat that is stuck open cold, it will provide a simulated cold operation value to the ECU and Trans telling it to continue to delay shift points.

There are still many other reasons for cold shift issues, but the above are common reasons for cold failures.

Jack Miller – Manufacturers Representative

Applied Auto Forum

1. Warranty Claims – You take your car into a dealership and tell them you have a rattle noise at 35 MPH.  The dealer performs diagnosis and makes an educated diagnosis that the problem is a loose muffler hanger.  They tighten it, submit a Warranty Claim to the Manufacturer that gets processed to their mainframe as data.
2. Customer Relations – You have taken your vehicle to 2 dealers and your rattle at 35 MPH is still there.  You call the manufacturer’s Customer Relations department (known as CR) and you file complaint for resolution.  The CR department follows-up with dealerships to ensure a quick resolution of the concern.  These interactions are documented and processed as data in their mainframe.
3. Field Engineers and Reps – Nobody seems to know what’s wrong with your vehicle and you request a Field Rep, Technical Specialist or Engineer to investigate your vehicle for a problem resolution.  They investigate your vehicle concern, work with the dealership for a proper diagnosis and repair, determine that the cause is a deformed torque converter dust cover.  They replace the dust cover and the problem goes away.  They submit their report which is now processed and stored as data on the manufacturer’s mainframe.

These are the 3 primary methods that manufacturer’s hear your voice – individually that is.  However, does this mean that on a production level for a production change, field fix, TSB (Technical Service Bulletin) or recall that the manufacturer truly heard your voice?  Yes and no is the true answer…  Manufacturer’s response for a change follow these priorities – in which their primary goal is “Six Sigma”, which is basically the perfect vehicle with no customer complaints.

1. Safety Concerns – Safety concerns are the #1 priority of a manufacturer in order to comply with NHTSA (National Highway Transportation Safety Administration) requirements and minimize litigation expenses.
2. Repeated Failures – When enough customers have their vehicle fixed for the same complaint and same resulting fix, there becomes and increase in customer contacts to the manufacturers and a rapid spike in part sales for a particular part(s).  An investigation is now launched via data analysis to determine the rapid increase – that person would have been me in my previous professional career.
3. Undesirable Characteristics – There is an industry term known as “Normal Characteristic of the Vehicle.”  This means that the vehicle or component area is operating for functioning as designed.  However, with that design, there may be inherent characteristics that are undesirable to customers.  Example:  A piston noise when first starting the car in the morning due to increased piston skirt clearance designed into the engine.  It’s operating normally, and some engines may exhibit this noise, but the customer does not feel comfortable or safe hearing it every morning…
4. Undesirable Features – These are vehicle features that are designed and operate normally.  However, the ergonomics, appearance, smell, etc., may not be what many or most customer’s expect in a vehicle to purchase.  Thus a decline in vehicle sales.
5. Costly Production – Many manufacturers have many different models or components that use different part variations or designs.  This becomes very costly to produce tooling and job runs for each part.  A part consolidation is typically in order to combine various parts to one or two common designs in order to maximize production quantities and reduce tooling setup costs.  Bottom line is significant cost savings and increased profits – another common term is “Continuous Improvement” as part of the Lean Six Sigma or Lean Manufacturing concepts.

What does all this mean you might ask?  The Customer Voice, from a manufacturers point of view, is a very serious and complex business issue.  The dealership is responsible for the “Personal Touch” of the customer and addressing all of their concerns.  The manufacturer hears your voice through a very complex web of data that indicates vehicle sales, market share, production costs, and profits.  Through this analysis, and if out of line, and investigation is launched to determine its cause.  If a customer does not pursue the proper channels to report and resolve their concern, their voice is not heard by the manufacturer.  You might be thinking that “they don’t want to hear my concern,” but believe me they do.  Your voice prompts many actions on the manufacturers part.  The end result is a better, more attractive, more reliable, and more affordable vehicle when you are ready to purchase your next vehicle.

So the next time you have a concern regarding your vehicle, don’t get mad or upset, Just Speak UP!

Jack Miller – Manufacturers Representative

In today’s computer and data-mining capabilities, many may think this would have been an easy task.  Actually it couldn’t be further from the truth…  Many trend and customer analysis data request were being done by mainframe programmers – such as I was a mainframe SAS programmer/analyst for a major automotive corporation.  This could take weeks to get a data request granted to acquire such data, then you would have to manually count stacks of paper for a spreadsheet.  A final analysis and vehicle production change could take anywhere from 6 months to 1 1/2 years and the production changes were typically not customer focused.

Lean Six Sigma and Continuous Improvements have been a primary concern over the past Five years as well as the “Customer Voice.”  Through better and higher quality data, manufacturers are able to not only identify production improvements and consolidation efforts, but with company data like JD Powers, Consumer Reports, Motor Trend, etc., manufacturers are able to closely identify customer issues and take prompt action on them.  All manufacturers have their own Customer data, but many of the truly dissatisfied customers will go to a third party and may never hear the customer’s voice. 

NHTSA is one of those third parties where customers can submit a vehicle complaint.  Their primary concern is Safety Related issues and their data will not reflect the full customer experience.  This article is a trend analysis of NHTSA’s customer complaint data to demonstrate that vehicles are truly getting better, and the customer’s voice, or actually the dramatic reduction in the customer voice is proof in the pudding so-to-speak…

Below is the first chart showing the Top Five companies by total NHTSA complaints over the five year period from 2003 to 2007.  Although the chart looks grim in 2003 and 2004 years, there is a steady and dramatic decline in complaints over the Five year period.  A close tie between Chevrolet and Ford might be alarming as having almost twice the complaints of the other three companies, but keep in mind that if there are more vehicles in circulation, you are going to have a higher number of complaints.  Failure rates may be in-line with other companies if you were to compare the number of complaints with N/A vehicles sold.  Note:  Non-OEM complaints were excluded from the analysis. 

The top five Models that received complaints are highlighted for each of the top five companies below based on total quantity over a 5-year period.  Is this significant?  Yes.  There are two primary factors in rating a vehicle, short-term durability and long-term durability.  Short-term durability is typically within 120 days of vehicle purchase and commonly would not show up on NHTSA’s database yet – meaning the customer is still at the dealership trying to get their vehicle fixed.  Long-term durability is commonly a 4 – 5 yr cycle, or when that manufacturer warranty expires.  Many failures show up two to three years, or more, into the life cycle of a vehicle and the NHTSA data below reflects this.  The top five models overall are Toyota Camry with 1,291 complaints, Chevrolet Silverado 1,171, Ford Explorer 1,152, Ford Focus 1035 and Dodge Durango with 946 complaints.

The Top five complaint categories are highlighted in the next chart over a Five-Year period.  Ford had the most prominent concerns with Power Train at 1,199 complaints, Engine at 1,058 and Brake System at 1,053.  Following is Chevrolet with Brakes at 1,112 and Steering at 1,102 complaints.

This chart of percent improvement by Year Versus Previous Year is very interesting.  Toyota and Nissan indicated a significant drop in improvement, then bounced back in 2005 and have had a steady climb since.  Note:  2003 improvement is based on 2002 data.

The rank of makes for this most improvement in 2007 compared to 2003 are shown below.  Ford had the largest improvement in reduced customer complaints at 91.4%, while one of the leaders in Lean Six Sigma and Continuous Improvement business strategies came in last with an improvement of 52.1%.

Regardless of the Analysis results, there is a clear indicator that vehicles are definitely getting better and manufacturers are finally hearing the customer’s voice and appropriately acting upon their concerns.  NHTSA customer complaints have reduced to an acceptable level for all companies.  There are many reasons for this such as Prompt resolution of customer concerns, Better Trained Technicians, Constant and Rapid Improvement in production – parts are truly getting better…, better data analysis and data- mining capabilities that are Business User Friendly, etc.  Even as I write this article, there are more new concepts for improvements being developed to achieve Lean Six Sigma goals.  In return, this just flat out indicates better vehicles for a better society.

- Jack Miller (Click to View Business Card)

We hear the terms “Voltage Loss” and “Voltage Drop” test frequently in the Automotive industry.  But most refer to it as what’s is really a Voltage “Drop” test.  This is incorrect, these are two separate test with two separate purposes – however, many-times the same failure result can be determined with both test.  So what is the difference between the two test, and why do we perform them?

Well, it’s actually what it states:

A Voltage Loss test is testing for a voltage “loss” across one or more connections or components.  This test is performed on ”one” side of the circuit at a time - meaning to test the Positive side of the circuit, and / or then test the negative side of the circuit. 

A Voltage Drop test is to test for a voltage “drop” across one or more connections and components.  This test is performed across both sides of the circuit and requires a component – meaning to test from the positive side of the circuit to the negative side of the circuit.  This requires some sort of resistance through a load component like a light bulb or resistor, etc…

The below circuit examples shows a voltage loss test.  This test is typically not performed across a component – although you can in some cases.  It is typically used to test circuit hard wire connections – like a starter cable, or for a lose ground with lights flickering or dim on one side.  A “General” rule is 0.5 volt allowance across each connection.  If you are testing across several connections, it would be 0.5 Volts “per connection.”  Three connections would be 0.5 Volts X (3) Connections = 1.5 Volts loss allowance.  Now this is a general rule, realistically it would be typically in the 0.35 to 0.37 volt range depending on wire length, gauge, number of connections, quality of connection, number of components and the resistance or voltage loss value of each component (any resistance equates to a volt loss value).  I will not be going into formulas, however below is a link to a great site that explains Ohms law and formulas.

See This Site on Ohms Law

Volt Loss Examples (Click Examples to View Full Size):

  Example 1 checks volt loss from the battery terminal to the fuse power input.  With the positive volt meter lead on the actual battery post, you will test for a loss of the terminal, wire, and connection to the fuse.

  Example 2 checks volt loss across the power input and output of the fuse.  A poor connection to the fuse or open fuse would be the result.

  Example 3 checks volt loss from the fuse power output to the positive lead of the light bulb.  The result of this test would indicate a bad wire or terminal /connection for the fuse / bulb.

  Example 4 checks volt loss on the ground side of the circuit after the components (the light bulb in this case).  The fail result of this test would indicate a bad battery terminal, wire, terminal/connection to the light bulb.

Keep in mind that all of the above tests are assuming that battery voltage is being applied to the circuit in the first place.  If there in no (“0 Volts”)battery voltage (12 volts normal in this case) test results of a voltage loss test will test OK on all connections.  So be sure to check basics first…

The next four examples are demonstrating a Voltage Drop test.  The same rule applies, but instead of a 0.5 volt loss per connection (general rule again) you are allowed a 0.5 volt drop per connection.  So if your battery voltage is 12 volts, your allowable voltage would be 11.5 volts – 11 volts for 1 connection would indicate a problem.  Also, you are checking the circuit under load from the connection back to the battery, not across the component as it may appear in the examples (the light bulb in this case).

Voltage Drop Test Examples (Click Examples to View Full Size):

  Example 1 checks volt drop across the two battery terminals, if the test leads are actually on the terminals.  If the test leads are on the actual batter posts, then all you are checking is initial battery voltage.  The failed result (possible 11 volts or less for two connections based on the general rule), if leads are on the battery terminals, would be bad, corroded or poor connection of the battery terminals – assuming battery voltage is 12 volts to start with.

  Example 2 checks volt drop from the battery terminal to the input lead of the fuse.  The failed result (possible 10.5 or less voltage for 3 connections), would be a battery terminal, wire or fuse connection (if checking on the fuse itself). 

  Example 3 checks volt drop from the battery terminal to the output lead of the fuse.  The failed result (possible 10 volts or less for 4 connections), would be a fuse, terminal, wire or battery terminal.

  Example 4 checks volts drop from the battery terminal to the power lead of the component (the light bulb in this case).  The failed result (possible 9.5 volts or less for 5 connections), would be a light bulb connection, fuse, terminal (s), wires (2 possible) or a battery terminal.  Note:  if you were to now put the positive volt lead on the ground side of the bulb, you would be performing a voltage “loss” test and not a voltage “drop” test.

When doing a voltage drop test, the assumption is that the component (light bulb in this case) is good and drawing a load on the system (load meaning an “Amperage” draw).  You would not normally test for a drop across a component unless you knew the actual volt drop value of the component – referring to ohms law again and determining the formula for the draw and volt drop.  If there is no load on the circuit when doing the volt drop test, result will show system or battery voltage – test OK.  Check the resistance of the component, the bulb, or incorporating the use of an amp meter when performing this test would verify appropriate system load.

On a realistic note on the above tests, drop and loss tests, typically a good system under normal load, will only show a max of 1 volt loss across all connections - unless you have a lot of connections and components on one circuit, or have really lengthy wiring, or a really heavy load like a starter circuit drawing 200 and 300 amps with sub-standard gauge wire.  If I see more than a 1 volt loss or drop, I’m going to investigate the circuit further to see if there might be a problem.  Many time this results in a loose bolt, slightly corroded or contaminated terminal, etc…

You see many technicians waisting unnecessary and valuable time testing specific components in a circuit.  By performing the voltage loss and drop test, you can accurately diagnose a circuit at easy access locations to determine if further specific test are needed based on your result.  Thus, hours saved with unnecessary component testing by removing hard to get panels and parts.

- Jack Miller (Click to View Business Card)

Well, what is the darn thing?

A planetary gear set is gear assembly that consists of 3 primary components.  A Ring Gear (the outer most gear), 3 planetary gears that are housed by a Planetary Carrier assembly (the middle gears), and a Sun Gear (the gear in the center of the gear set.   All three gear sets are splined in order to connect or mate to a band, clutch, and/or splined to the main shaft.  Through an intricate collage of these various types of connections and brakes, various components of the planetary gear set can be allowed to spin free, be held, or transmit applied power or torque to an output member – commonly referred to as the transmission assembly or power plant.  The bands or brakes can be applied in several ways such as Hydraulics, centrifugal clutches, electronics, servos, etc., and can be done automatically or manually.

Below is an example of a Simple Planetary gear set.

With this Simple Planetary gear set, there are “7″ gear possibilities (8 if you count neutral) in a Simple Planetary Gear Set (meaning only 1 planetary gear set).  Although technically you can have seven gear possibilities, typically only “4″ gears are commonly used due to how the planetary gear components are applied for output.

Below is  chart that shows the seven possible gear ranges in a simple planetary gear set.  Note that if any “two” gears are held together in a planetary gear set, the result is a 1:1 gear ratio applied to the output.

  Click on chart to view

To show you how old and amazing a Simple Planetary gear set is, take a look at this next example – I’m sure we’ve all seen, used, maintained and repaired this next gear set…  An old fashion Pencil Sharpener.

Now that we have discussed a simple planetary gear set, lets discuss the more typical and common use of planetary gear sets.  If you apply two or more gears sets together, sharing a common member between one output as the input for the next, you now have a compound planetary gear set.  By combining two or more gear sets with varying gear sizes and tooth counts, you can create a multitude of gears and gear ratios.  Thus the typical Automotive automatic transmission.  A typical Automatic transmissions use three or more planetary gears sets to achieve the desired gears and ratio results for output members.

However, simple and compound planetary gear sets are not limited to the automotive industry.  They are commonly used throughout manufacturing and in the general market for common household items – you’ve just never looked inside of it to realize it…  In manufacturing, they are used in many of the industrial machines to provide quite, quick, and multiple gear ranges.  There are also many mini gear sets used in many house hold tools and appliances.

Below is one of the most amazing uses of a mini compound planetary gear sets.  A Rechargeable Drill Motor or Screw Driver.  You ever wondered as to when you screw or drill into a hard substance that the drill motor or screw driver slows down and increases torque in order to get the job done, and speed up with less torque when it’s smooth sailing.  This is done with a friction type of clutch that applies or free up members of the compound planetary gear set for gear reduction, one-to-one or over-drive if necessary – not to mention reverse when then reverse switch is applied.

Planetary gear sets is very old technology, but still widely used in a versatile market of products.  One of the most cost effective methods of manufacturing these gear sets is through a process called Powdered Metallurgy.  A leading manufacturer in this process is Fansteel-AST.

The next time you use a rechargeable screw driver, see if you can notice the smoothness and multitude of gear ratios used when drilling or screwing.  It’s truly amazing!

- Jack Miller (Click to View Business Card)

Many transmission component manufacturing is going to a process called P/M (Powder Metallurgy).  This is a process where ferrous and non-ferrous metals and alloys are in a powdered form.  These powders are then fed into a die, and then pressed into shape.  The part is now ejected out and sent through a sintering furnace where the part is hardened.  Unless a resizing or finishing process is needed, basically you now have a net-shape or near net-shape part.  The first part is basically a duplicate of the last part…

What types of transmission parts are manufacturered with P/M?

• Torque Converters
  • Turbine Hubs
  • Stators
  • One way clutches
• Pump Systems
  • Gear Pumps
  • Gerotor Pumps
  • Vane pumps
• Clutches
  • Clutch plates
  • One-way clutches
  • Clutch Hubs
• Gears and Drive
  • Planetary Carrier and Gears
  • Drive & Driven Sprockets
  • Output Flange Hubs
• Speed sensors (Alloy Portion)

Not to mention many other small parts that can be produced by P/M.

What are the advantages of P/M?

P/M is Versatile: The basic versatility of P/M is applied in numerous industries including automotive, business machines, electronics, small and major appliances, agricultural and garden equipment, hand and power tools, recreational vehicles and heavy truck. Thousands of different cost saving, reliable P/M designs now serve these industries in a wide range of engineering applications. 

P/M components have become far more stable than in the past and is becoming more cost effective in automatic transmission production, and yet provides net-shape green parts.  No burrs, no contaminating flashings that block screens, ports and shift valves, pre chamfered, aids in lubrication to friction plates, pretty much a perfect part every time.  A leading manufacturer of P/M technology is Fansteel-AST.  When producing high volume parts, P/M is the best choice.

 If you have further questions regarding P/M, feel free to contact me.

- Jack Miller (Click to View Business Card)

Although leather looks and smells nice, especially if you are a leather lover like me, it has many properties that are not the best choice for today’s customer demands.  Customer satisfaction and NVH (Noise/Vibration/Harshness) concerns have been a primary focus for the past decade.  Customers expect a Sherman tank to drive quiet and smooth like a Cadillac – thus the Hummer…

One primary port of entry for related Power-train noise and Transmitted Resonance Frequencies is the shift boot.  Leather boots have many porous entries for NVH.  They are sewn and the stitching holes provide an entry as well the shaft seal and base mount.  Costly additional processes are required to add further sound deadening substances to the shift boot assembly – which typically include foam, rubber, and plastic fillers.  All-in-all, Leather just does not provide good sound deadening properties and is very costly to produce due to the multiple processes and materials required to make the part.

Rubber, on the other hand has many advantages in production that is a significant cost reduction, provides excellent NVH properties, meets Lean Six Sigma and Continuous Improvement requirements, and commonly only requires one or two processes and materials to produce.  Why and how is this possible?

One of the Leaders in manufacturing rubber shift boots is a company located in Deckerville, MI called Midwest Rubber Company.  They are pioneers of many new rubber manufacturing processes for the Automotive Industry and have been doing this for over 60 years.  Their innovative designs and processes provide reduced manufacturing costs with significant savings – commonly %10 to 40% cost reduction compared to conventional processes.

Rubber has excellent sound deadening properties for shift boots.  There is virtually no porosity, it form fits to mating components, flexible for a good base seal, and can be molded to look and feel like Leather.  Yes, it will smell like rubber… 

Real Leather Shift Boot

Rubber Molded Shift Boot

These Shift boots are commonly Roto Molded, as well as other applicable processes, and consist of a variety of elastomers depending on the specific application and resist environmental conditions such as oil, low and high temperatures, water, dust, dirt and ozone.  Many manufacturers are increasing production with the use of these new style of shift boots.  If you have further questions on Rubber Shift boots, you can contact me with the information on the Business Card Below.

- Jack Miller (Click to View Business Card)

- Jack Miller (Click to View Business Card)