Lock up convertor?????????

[CbHeEaVsYt]

can anyone tell me wat the point of a lock up converter (i think its tourqe converter????) is i have no idea and i hear it all the time on this site

thanks

cb

[Slonaker]

Older automatics had some slippage all the time. The lockup converter, once you get up to speed, locks up. This means that there is no slippage, lowering RPM and saving gas. Later trucks, like my '86, had TH350c transmissions or 700R4 transmissions, which both use a lockup torque converter.

http://auto.howstuffworks.com/torque-converter3.htm

Earlier pages on this link explain torque onverters in general terms, and this page explains the lockup function.

Slonaker

[Tom]

Overdrives MUST be locked up while they are in the overdriven gear. Not only does it lower the cruising RPM and save gas, but it also keeps the fluid temps down [slippage = friction = heat] Modern overdrives cut some of the fluid supply to the trans while in the overdriven gear. This is to save on gas even more [not pumping as much fluid means less engine power used to turn pump] but it also means tranny fluid temp is much more critical.