dbrannon79
I'm getting there!
Well, I started on the 93 and figured might as well drop the pan and have a look. good news is there is absolutly no debris in the pan, but the fluid is quite dark. what do yall guys think...
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What did you do with your GMT400 today...or yesterday....
- Thread starter deejaaa
- Start date
dbrannon79
I'm getting there!
before messing with my 93, I spent most of the day messing around with the Ole'Betsey the dodge ram. brought it in my work area and pulled off the throttle body. cleaned it up real good. then gave everything a good looksee. it needs quite a few parts. all of the hoses need replacing. the lower rad hose is rock hard. the radiator needs flushing as there is somekind of yellowish green growth on the inside of the cap. started cleaning her up. my boys helped me give her a good bath, then I pulled out the buffer and went to town on the red center stripe that was mostly pink now.
she looks good now with some lipstick... I am thinking about doing some gloss black rattle can to give the hood and roof a better look
Here is the before and after shots.
Before...
And After....
she looks good now with some lipstick... I am thinking about doing some gloss black rattle can to give the hood and roof a better look
Here is the before and after shots.
Before...
And After....
Big T
Well-Known Member
That’s not a bad color, but your toenails are another story.
dbrannon79
I'm getting there!
I replaced both the 1-2 shift and the TCC solenoids. the ones in there were not delco units looking at them the markings were different. I also noticed that the 3-4 solenoid is kinda loose on it's bracket. I think I will most likely order that one and the sensor plate that lives under the filter. poured the old fluid back into the trans so I can at least test if replacing the tcc solenoid fixed the problem of it not releasing.
while I was pouring the fluid back in, I noticed a leak!!! O-crap.. crawled back under the truck and found that the dipstick has a hole in it right behind the engine plus it's loose not secured to the back of the head. welp I bet the tab that's spot welded to the tube came off and now has a hole were it was spot welded. Great, grand, wonderful LOL
I guess I will add that to the list of repairs when I finish the other engine and when this one gets pulled. it didn't leak a lot, so I'm not pulling it out right now.
That pic I posted doesn't do justice as to how dark the fluid is. while I was pouring it back in it looked like used motor oil, you cant see through it.
I will make plans to change the fluid, though idk how to get what's in the converter out too. maybe when I pull the engine I can pull the converter and dump it and refill then.
while I was pouring the fluid back in, I noticed a leak!!! O-crap.. crawled back under the truck and found that the dipstick has a hole in it right behind the engine plus it's loose not secured to the back of the head. welp I bet the tab that's spot welded to the tube came off and now has a hole were it was spot welded. Great, grand, wonderful LOL
I guess I will add that to the list of repairs when I finish the other engine and when this one gets pulled. it didn't leak a lot, so I'm not pulling it out right now.
That pic I posted doesn't do justice as to how dark the fluid is. while I was pouring it back in it looked like used motor oil, you cant see through it.
I will make plans to change the fluid, though idk how to get what's in the converter out too. maybe when I pull the engine I can pull the converter and dump it and refill then.
Will L.
Well-Known Member
Reusing the old atf is probably the better answer.
When a trans is new and regularly gets the fluid changed, you get the longest life. If it goes way to long without a change- when you do it the new atf has so much cleaning detergent in it, that it will scrub the grime off everything and start to plug the filter and passages.
The detergent will also cause old overheated clutch plates to loose the layer of crud on them that is ready to wear away - actually come off in big chunks. The world is filled with stories of people who did the first atf fluid change at 125,000 miles and the trans fails in the next 3 months.
Other people swear by no matter how long- do atf oil & filter asap and often.
That just hasn’t been my experience on a neglected unit. Imo so long as it isn’t suler burnt smelling oil- stick with it. Pour back in and add as little new atf as possible. Then plan the rebuild, because I can’t remember many people saying they were religiously changing atf every 30k miles and ended up getting 450,000 from it. They all seem to nickel and dime or just blow up - so I really don’t see the point.
I suppose if you are towing heavy often, it could pay off. But even then I think spending same cost of first service on a trans cooler is smarter.
4l80e- in the fleet we NEVER did atf&filter change. 300,000 miles plus always. We learned when it’s a transmission you plan to keep for decades- run it 200k to 250k then just pull for a rebuild. Change any hard parts in question and all new sensors.
The longevity of an auto transmission- especially the GM transmissions - its all about keeping them cool. Big T can tell ya- I was hitting the panic button with my 2001 suburban towing a small camp trailer near his town. My atf got to 210 or 220 (can’t remember which) and set a cel. I went to his place so he could throw a scanner on for me. And he laughed at me because i am not used to my gm transmissions ever getting over 205. All my pickups had KILLER atf coolers on them, just not my suburban.
When a trans is new and regularly gets the fluid changed, you get the longest life. If it goes way to long without a change- when you do it the new atf has so much cleaning detergent in it, that it will scrub the grime off everything and start to plug the filter and passages.
The detergent will also cause old overheated clutch plates to loose the layer of crud on them that is ready to wear away - actually come off in big chunks. The world is filled with stories of people who did the first atf fluid change at 125,000 miles and the trans fails in the next 3 months.
Other people swear by no matter how long- do atf oil & filter asap and often.
That just hasn’t been my experience on a neglected unit. Imo so long as it isn’t suler burnt smelling oil- stick with it. Pour back in and add as little new atf as possible. Then plan the rebuild, because I can’t remember many people saying they were religiously changing atf every 30k miles and ended up getting 450,000 from it. They all seem to nickel and dime or just blow up - so I really don’t see the point.
I suppose if you are towing heavy often, it could pay off. But even then I think spending same cost of first service on a trans cooler is smarter.
4l80e- in the fleet we NEVER did atf&filter change. 300,000 miles plus always. We learned when it’s a transmission you plan to keep for decades- run it 200k to 250k then just pull for a rebuild. Change any hard parts in question and all new sensors.
The longevity of an auto transmission- especially the GM transmissions - its all about keeping them cool. Big T can tell ya- I was hitting the panic button with my 2001 suburban towing a small camp trailer near his town. My atf got to 210 or 220 (can’t remember which) and set a cel. I went to his place so he could throw a scanner on for me. And he laughed at me because i am not used to my gm transmissions ever getting over 205. All my pickups had KILLER atf coolers on them, just not my suburban.
dbrannon79
I'm getting there!
This trans might have 10k - 15k miles on it now since it was rebuilt. the PO had it rebuilt back in 2018. I do have a temp gauge on it and have seen temps up in the yellow region of the gauge (don't remember the actual temp, but that might explain the dark color. there isn't a cooler on it other than what the radiator had built in. it might need an external cooler like my 95 has.
I was surprised to see nothing in the pan, even the magnet was still clean, though I have had the pan off trying to deal with the harsh 1 to 2 shift which I still have yet to figure out. it only shifts hard after the truck warms up, when cold it shifts smooth
I've not towed anything heavy but I do know the PO hauled around a travel trailer and did some hot shot work. if I can't figure out the TCC thing, I would assume it will be something in the valve body along with most likely the same thing for the harsh 1-2 shift and the trans will need to go back on a rebuilders operating table.
BTW would anyone know what trans would be in a 2003 1 ton chevy express van with a 6.0l gasser? if 4l80e, then I know where a good one is that might serve well for a replacement.
I was surprised to see nothing in the pan, even the magnet was still clean, though I have had the pan off trying to deal with the harsh 1 to 2 shift which I still have yet to figure out. it only shifts hard after the truck warms up, when cold it shifts smooth
I've not towed anything heavy but I do know the PO hauled around a travel trailer and did some hot shot work. if I can't figure out the TCC thing, I would assume it will be something in the valve body along with most likely the same thing for the harsh 1-2 shift and the trans will need to go back on a rebuilders operating table.
BTW would anyone know what trans would be in a 2003 1 ton chevy express van with a 6.0l gasser? if 4l80e, then I know where a good one is that might serve well for a replacement.
MrMarty51
Well-Known Member
Ball joints.
Screwed up and ground the rivet heads just a little too far , then could not get them to budge to get a sight of the corcular imprint.
Ended it by pulling the upper control arm.
Heaven forbid, I hope to get it back on close enough to get it about four miles to the alignment shop without destroying the new front tires.
if not then I’ll need to borrow a pickup, load the truck on the trailer and haul it acrost town.
And rented the ball joint puller tool from oriellys.
I was absolutely stumped how that thing fuctions.
Did it the oldt fashioned way. Solidly support the LCA then pound the crap out of the ball joint.
Installation is the opposite.
Support the ball joint, get it started into the LCA then pound the piss out if the LCA.
I dint hace a stick of round pipe so this square tube will work just fine.
NAPA fleet components.
Screwed up and ground the rivet heads just a little too far , then could not get them to budge to get a sight of the corcular imprint.
Ended it by pulling the upper control arm.
Heaven forbid, I hope to get it back on close enough to get it about four miles to the alignment shop without destroying the new front tires.
if not then I’ll need to borrow a pickup, load the truck on the trailer and haul it acrost town.And rented the ball joint puller tool from oriellys.
I was absolutely stumped how that thing fuctions.
Did it the oldt fashioned way. Solidly support the LCA then pound the crap out of the ball joint.
Installation is the opposite.
Support the ball joint, get it started into the LCA then pound the piss out if the LCA.
I dint hace a stick of round pipe so this square tube will work just fine.
NAPA fleet components.