Kelli was experiencing transmission problems in her 2007 Chevy Impala. The vehicle would “jump” awkwardly upon acceleration and then lurch forward violently when coming to a stop. It was also struggling to accelerate when over 40 MPH. The jumping and lurching could be a problem with slipping gears, or it could be something else. Kelli had been to Ralph’s Transmission before and she knew that we offered free transmission inspections, so she brought her car into our shop for an initial diagnosis.
The technicians at Ralph’s Transmission performed a thorough external inspection of the transmission. We also ran diagnostic tests and performed a road test. The road test confirmed the same issues that Kelli was describing. The vehicle definitely seemed to be slipping between gears at certain speeds. However, the jumping and lurching was clearly not a transmission issue. The diagnostics didn’t reveal any fault codes. Upon inspection, the transmission fluid was very discolored.
Further inspection found that multiple motor mounts were broken. This is what was causing problems as the engine shifted within the engine compartment. We recommended she bring her Impala to another general auto repair shop to get the engine mounts properly repaired. We also recommended a complete internal inspection of the transmission to find out why the gears were sometimes slipping and why the fluid looked so bad. This would require our transmission technicians to remove the transmission from the vehicle and open it up in order to determine the internal failure(s).
Kelli opted not to have the internal transmission inspection done just yet. She wanted to have the motor mounts repaired first, so we gave her a referral to a reputable shop in town. Even though she didn’t have any transmission repairs performed at Ralph’s Transmission this time, Kelli always gets a good feeling from her experiences here. She appreciated the friendly atmosphere and “family” feel of our business.
“The girls at front desk are super friendly,” Kelli says in her recent Google review. “The family at Ralph’s make you feel like you are a part of their family. They do great work. I go nowhere else.”
Ralph’s Transmission has always been a family owned and operated business since the shop first opened its doors back in 1969. We take pride in being a part of the community and we believe in treating all of our customers like part of our extended family. Thank you for your review, Kelli, and you can be sure that we’re always here to help whenever you need us.
For all your Central Valley transmission repair and maintenance needs—or to schedule a free transmission inspection if you aren’t sure what’s wrong—call Ralph’s Transmission today at 209.526.1909. You can also book your service appointment online.