If You Drive It, We Take Care Of It!

Tri-City Transmission of Phoenix Services

Tri-City Transmission, family owned and operated, has specialized in transmission repair and drivetrain repair in the valley for over 45 years.  Transmission repair to most consumers is scary as they realize they are complicated.  Frankly, they are.  But to us, they are not!  We have been servicing, diagnosing, repairing, overhauling, and remanufacturing thousands of transmissions each and every one of those 45+ years.  So you can rest assured, we are qualified to take care of your transmission with not only depth of knowledge, but a track record of repair.


Transmission Maintenance
Transmissions come in all different shapes and sizes.  From the 8 to 10 speed automatic transmissions, to the Constant Variable Transmissions (CVTs), to the relatively new Direct-Shift Gearbox (DSG) including Porsche’s Doppelkupplung (PDK) to the standard transmissions, aka manual transmissions, to the traditional 2, 3 and 4 speed automatic transmission.  We regularly service them all.  Dozens every week.  It’s what we do! There is so much myth and confusion around servicing transmissions that simply stems from bad advice from your neighbor, unknowing well-intentioned general auto repair technicians, old out of date wives’ tales, and so on.  We stock over 40 factory transmission fluids so you can rest assured your transmission is serviced right, meeting or exceeding factory specifications.  No one is doing that, in some cases, not even the dealers!!  We do not utilize falsely marketed “fits all” transmission fluids that cause transmission issues down the road.  It’s one of our coined sayings, “a bad transmission service is worse than no service at all”. Read more.

Automatic Transmissions Maintenance, Repair, and Rebuilding
The original fully automatic transmission was a four speed automatic used in the Cadillac in 1939.  Yes, we have rebuilt more than one of these old dinosaurs.  However, most of the early automatic transmissions were generally 2 and 3 speeds.  While our founders were in transmission school in the late 1950’s, and Tri-City Transmission opened in 1972, our business has lived this progression of transmission development all the way up to the modern 9 and 10 speed transmissions, including the mysterious CVTs.  We love the transmission technologies and we have built our name not only on knowing how to accurately diagnose an automatic transmission, but how to fix them without costly overhaul or replacement when it’s possible.  From minor leaks, to maintenance service, to solenoid and valve body repair.  We do it all. Read more.

Manual Transmission Maintenance, Repair, Rebuilding and Remanufacturing
As automatic transmissions become more efficient, the demand for manual transmissions has decreased. However, manual transmissions still hold a place and some people, as a personal preference, would choose the manual transmission over the automatic. As simplistic as they may seem, because of the lack of frequency in which shops work on manual transmissions, they often get misdiagnosed causing the customer spends money needlessly and failed attempted repairs.  Remember, there are transmission technicians who have never used a pay phone, much less, driven a manual transmission. Read more.

Clutch Service, Clutch Maintenance, Clutch Repair and Clutch Replacement
Clutches can be such a simple technology, really too simple, so often they are diagnosed and repaired wrong.  At Tri-City Transmission we replace 2 – 3 clutches every week.  This is regardless of make and model. Where mistakes often happen is when a technician has limited experience.  Automotive Generalist in more cases than not, only replace 2-3 clutches in a single year. With our experience of 100 clutches to that of the automotive generalist’s 2 clutches we know them like the back of our hand.  If you were picking a surgeon for shoulder surgery, which one would you want?  With our experience, we know, which suppliers to use, how, when or do we replace a flywheel.  We know clutches from the dual mass flywheel type and flywheel conversions kits to dealing with clutch hydraulics.  When it comes to clutches, we’ve got you covered. Read more.

Transfer Case Repair and Maintenance
Whether you use the four wheel drive or not, the transfer case plays a huge role in the vehicles drive train.  When we receive a vehicle from a tow truck with a failed transfer case, customers are shocked to find out they have a transfer case or 4wd issue.  Their first comment, “how could it be bad, I never use four-wheel drive”?   Whether your vehicle has four wheel drive, all wheel drive, or traction on demand – You have a transfer-case that needs service to avoid major repairs.  Never, ever ignore a transfer-case fluid leak.  They hold so little fluid, any leak, is a big leak.  So whether preventive maintenance service, a small leak or a transfer-case major repair, we can handle all of these concerns. Read more.

Drive Shaft, Driveline, Constant Velocity Joints (CV Joints) Shaft, Repair and Replacement
Drive shafts and Constant Velocity Joints are at the center of premature transmission failures and repairs.  What starts as a simple vibration ignored becomes a full blown transmission break down.  If you get lucky ignoring this issue, it simply results as a trip to the side of the road, inconvenience, a tow bill and then the cost of repair.  If you’re not so lucky, and a driveline or CV joint comes apart, it can severely damage the transmission, if not the vehicle in its entirety.  As vibration experts, we like to spot these issues early preventing an unnecessary trip to the side of the road. Read more.

Differential and Axle Shaft Service and Repair
The Differential or Differential(s) in the case of four wheel drives are a major component in your vehicles drive train.  Although there are several different configurations of components, the differential changes the direction of rotational power flow from the driveshaft which traditionally runs from front to back in the vehicle, splitting the rotation power to the left and right drive axles and tires.  A single differential traditionally utilizes 6 different gears and in some cases a set of clutches when positraction is involved.  These gears are described as the “Ring and Pinion” plus the four “Spider Gears”.  Being the differential gears handles the heaviest of stresses in the automobile, the tolerances and set up are crucial.  Novices can’t repair or rebuild differentials properly.  It’s a skill set of its own.  True differential people are a bit of a rare find.  Fortunately, we have these people who perform differential repair on a regular basis. Read more.


Other Services Include: 

  • Electrical Diagnosis
  • Check Engine Light or OD Light Flashing
  • Almost all Other Driveline Services

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