July 16, 2023
Here at AutoNetTV, we have national viewers, like your neighbors in Fort Myers, who write to us with questions or feedback. One common question we're asked is: "What is a differential and what does it do?" You may have been told by your Tuffy Fort Myers (McGregor Blvd) service advisor that your differential needs serviced, or it's seen it as an option up on the service menu. Differential service at Tuffy Fort Myers (McGregor Blvd) covers a lot of things, so let's first talk about what a differential does.
As you drive through a turn, your outside wheels and inside wheels turn at different speeds. Kind of like the cars going around a race track - the ones driving in the outside lanes have a greater distance to travel than the cars in the inside lanes. The differential is what allows the outside and inside drive wheels to rotate at slightly different speeds so that the tires don't hop or skip while taking corners, or lose traction in dirt or snow on Fort Myers area roads. Differentials have gears in them that transfer the power from the drive train to your wheels - which is why they're often referred to as gear boxes. The gears need to be very strong to do this work, and they need to be properly protected so that they'll last.
All vehicles in Fort Myers have some form of differential. If you have a front-wheel drive car, your differential is sometimes called a transaxle and is located in the front. If you have rear-wheel drive, the differential is in the back of the car. Fort Myers auto owners with a four-wheel drive vehicle have a differential in the front and the back - and in the middle as well. The center differential adjusts for differences in speed between the front and rear wheels.
Differential fluid lubricates and cools the gears. Over time, the fluid can get dirty from bits of the gears grinding off. The additives that keep the fluid clean and protect the differential break down over time. So your vehicle manufacturer has scheduled intervals for you to have your differential fluid changed. Talk to your friendly and knowledgeable Tuffy Fort Myers (McGregor Blvd) service advisor if you are not sure about your recommended schedule.
Tuffy Fort Myers (McGregor Blvd)
13061 McGregor Blvd
Fort Myers, Florida 33919
239-437-2993
https://www.tuffymcgregorblvd.com
April 13, 2025
You probably never thought about it, but your vehicle is like a rolling weather station. It can check the outside temperature, let you know when the roads are slippery and help you deal with rain. And how it does all those things is pretty cool. First, just like any weather station, a vehicle ha... More
April 6, 2025
If you have a vehicle with an automatic transmission, you probably never think about gear shifting. When motor vehicles were invented, all of them had to be shifted manually. But that wonderful self-shifting transmission, referred to these days as simply an automatic, changed everything. Automa... More
March 30, 2025
Your vehicle's brakes wear out. It's inevitable. You'll notice it when you step on the brake pedal and feel it harder to stop, or there's vibration when you are braking. Most modern vehicles have disc brakes that each use a brake pad that press on a disc (disc brakes!) called a rotor. The fric... More