Grr.... crack goes the transmission.....

[Oneslowz28]

I was pulling out of my garage this morning when I lost all power to move. The engine was fine but giving it any amount of gas would result in nothing but an engine rev. So I get out of the truck and that's when I smell the all too familiar smell of transmission fluid. There is a puddle of the stuff leading from my garage to where my truck quit moving. So I call my buddy who owns a rollback and have him come tow it to a trans shop. The guy there looks at it and agrees with me that it is more than likely a cracked case. (something simi common in the Silverado 2500HD series) This happened to a friend of mine during college once. The case cracks on a weak spot right on the casting seam. GM was supposed to have fixed this after the 2005 models were having a lot of problems with it.

The trans guy thinks it comes from the tranny fluid being thick from the cold and building up an excessive amount of pressure on this one spot. The metal also being cold becomes brittle and cracks at the weakest point.

So I am driving my moms suburban for the next week or so while the mechanic works things out with GM to have the trans covered under warranty. The thing that sucks about the suburban is that she smokes in it and it smells like cigarettes. I guess things could be worse though so I wont complain much.

[blueonblack]

That sucks for sure, but at least you're not going to have to get out your wallet for the repairs. I've never owned a vehicle with a warranty.

Here's hoping they complete the negotiations and the repairs quickly.

[Oneslowz28]

I have a 10 year 100,000 mile power train warranty so it should be taken care of. If I were an impatient man I would claim this truck under the lemon law. When I first got it the turbo went bad within a month, then back in the summer the rearend went out and now the trans. But I know things can and will go bad and thats what the warranty is there for. I can say that without a doubt, I will trade it in or sell it before the warranty is out though. If not for the warranty this could cost upwards of $6k due to the trans being an allison.

[Spawn-Inc]

well if the place and gm is anything like it is over at where my brother works, it will get fixed pronto and if your past your warranty it will get good willed.

[Oneslowz28]

I am sure it will get OKed by GM. When our local dealer was shutdown due to the GM restructuring this shop became a certified GM repair center.

[SXRguyinMA]

yea it could be worse...


























you could be driving a Dodge...


























or even worse a Ford :D

[OvRiDe]

LOL, I knew someone was going to go there!

Its funny 13 years ago, I would have said the same thing. Now I have just realize that EVERY manufacturer has there good cars and there "should have gone back to the drawing board" cars.

As for the Ford, I was never a Ford fan. We had a 1987 Taurus that was an absolute nightmare, but in 1997 I bought a brand new Ford F150 Super Cab. At the time I needed a 3rd door. In 1997 the 3rd door was an option on the Chevy trucks. The problem with the Chevy was I could not find one with the 3rd door and the options I wanted. Most of them with the extra door were so loaded that it pushed them higher then I wanted to spend for the truck. As for the Ford it was standard on the SuperCab and the XLT package had exactly everything I wanted, so it was just a matter of picking out the color. :) I did a little research and figured I would give the Ford a shot. The fact I got it for $5000+ under sticker didn't hurt either.

This Ford F150 has been the craziest vehicle I have ever owned. For the first 11 years, I did absolutely NOTHING to the truck except put gas, change the oil and oil filter, change the air filter, windshield wipers, and put a set of tires on it. (All of which are consumables that you would change anyway) I say 11 years because the first thing I ended up having to change on it that wasn't factory was the battery! Then a year later I put front brakes on it. In fact the thing still has the factory antifreeze in it. I have them check it every time I change the oil and they just say, "Its a little dark, but still registers good on the gauge". Oh and this summer I had to a little bit of R134A into the AC. I drive it pretty much everyday, but I only have a 15 mile commute to and from work, so its a pretty low milage truck at 73,000 miles. But still at just under 13 years old, it has been the most solid vehicle I have ever owned.

It just goes to show, that every manufacture has good ones and bad ones.

Oh, and sorry to hear about the transmission CJ, that sucks, but it sounds like you will be able to get it taken care of relatively pain free.:up:

[crenn]

If you want a truck that lasts.... get an good old Toyota Hilux!

[Oneslowz28]

My grandfather bought a 97 F150 back in 97 and it too was a solid little truck. He put over 100K on it before 2000 when he bought a new F250 that I later was given. In the 3 years I drove that truck I never once had a problem out of it other than having to replace the rear axel bearings because I was an idiot and loaded it down with a few thousand pounds of cement block.

I expect to have my truck back by the end of the week if all goes well.

@crenn I dont think that Toyota could pull the weight I can with my Chevy ;)

[SXRguyinMA]

I've currently got a 99 silverado (new body style) ext cab (3-door) short bed with the 5.3L v8 in it, and its got 160k on her right now. I bought it 5 years ago with 66k on it and its been amazing. it always starts first try, runs perfect. I've done the normal stuff - ball joints, wheel bearings, brakes, water pump, etc. The most major thing I've done was rebuild the rear diff...but it was my lead foot that shattered the diff into pieces lol. now its all rebuilt with a detroit locker in it, and its bulletproof. I fixed the rusty cab corner, and both rocker panels will be getting done this spring :D

[Twigsoffury]

I was pulling out of my garage this morning when I lost all power to move. The engine was fine but giving it any amount of gas would result in nothing but an engine rev. So I get out of the truck and that's when I smell the all too familiar smell of transmission fluid. There is a puddle of the stuff leading from my garage to where my truck quit moving. So I call my buddy who owns a rollback and have him come tow it to a trans shop. The guy there looks at it and agrees with me that it is more than likely a cracked case. (something simi common in the Silverado 2500HD series) This happened to a friend of mine during college once. The case cracks on a weak spot right on the casting seam. GM was supposed to have fixed this after the 2005 models were having a lot of problems with it.

The trans guy thinks it comes from the tranny fluid being thick from the cold and building up an excessive amount of pressure on this one spot. The metal also being cold becomes brittle and cracks at the weakest point.

So I am driving my moms suburban for the next week or so while the mechanic works things out with GM to have the trans covered under warranty. The thing that sucks about the suburban is that she smokes in it and it smells like cigarettes. I guess things could be worse though so I wont complain much.


I know for a fact on the new Dodge ram dualies, The stop pin in the planetary gears falls out and slides along the casing till it wears away a slot and goes shooting out while your on the highway.

That was probably the craziest sound i've ever heard any automobile make.


Most Car wash places have those spray out smellies for 25 cents. Always made smokers cars smell good. I liked the strawberry..some sort of berry..well the red one was my favorite lamo.

That and a vacuum.

sucks about your truck though, maybe if GM won't cover it for some reason (you know how they can be) you can look into some sort of after market casing/bell housing or whatever. a lot of those AM parts are about the same price as OEM parts, but you get such a higher quality part (in general)

Transmission fluid radiators FTW. (add a 120mm fan foo')

[Datech]

I have the choice of a $800 replacement of the idle control valve, or leaking coolant and the rate of one full drain per month. And of course, when the coolant leaks, that means no more heat and no more constant idle. Oh, and yea, overheating....

All on a car I payed $3000 for...

[Oneslowz28]

wait its just the IAC? Thats like a $30 part

[Oneslowz28]

nevermind
See that its actually an idle control valve and a $300 part

[Oneslowz28]

You kno I am going to ask him to keep the case and see if that is not the cause of the problem here too. The pin digging a hole would cause it to break open.

[Datech]

With how old the car is, I'll gladly take a new one over a used one:

http://www.google.com/products?hl=en&client=firefox-a&rls=org.mozilla:en-US:official&hs=pas&q=idle+control+valve+93+acura+vigor&um=1&ie=UTF-8&ei=m7VKS6GLDM-UtgeA5M3kDQ&sa=X&oi=product_result_group&ct=title&resnum=3&ved=0CCUQrQQwAg

[crenn]

@crenn I dont think that Toyota could pull the weight I can with my Chevy ;)
Heh, I think it can, I'm pretty sure it's also lighter which means that's a couple tons it doesn't need to pull along ;P

[XcOM]

i have a 2001 ford focus (Euro version)

and the only work thats ever had to be done on it is new front discs (Minus ofcourse general wear like tires pads etc)

and yes a hilux could easily pull just as much, the BHP and Cubic Size might be alot lower at the fly wheel, but the fpt that it has is amasing, with less weight to drag around, better efficency, won't get as quick off the line, but the top speed will more or less be the same +/- 15 MPH, but with over twice the MPG

[Airbozo]

Sorry to hear about your baby bleeding all over the driveway. I have experienced that only once and it hurts...

RE: Ford. People like to bag on fords, but in my experience they are very dependable vehicles. My dad has owned several ford pickups and all of them were tough sturdy vehicles that took any abuse and never failed. The pickup he owned while I was in high school had over 300k miles on it when he traded it in (at least 50k of those were mine and I tried to kill that truck...). The only problem was it needed a new set of rings to stop the oil burning...
I owned a 91 taurus, put 200k miles on it and only ever had to fix the brakes. My 2001 mustang is pushing 90k and no issues so far.

[slaveofconvention]

I've been warned in advance that if and when I move to the states, because of the low population density near where the wife hails from, if I want a manual gearbox, and I DEFINITELY do, I'll basically have to buy whatever car/truck/van happens to be around it lol

I have a 2002 Peugeot 306 diesel car and as far as I know, it's never had anything major wrong with it - I just changed the timing belt at 78k (meant to be done at 70 but I didn't trust the previous owner to have done it) and the only thing wrong with it is that the rear wiper doesn't work - and I know that's just down to wear on a nylon gear

[Snowman]

I must say I am pretty much fed up with any american car at this point. The cheap manufacturing is horrendous, anything in the last 10 years or so have been made to be throw away cars and not something worth investing in. Last year I bought my first car and so far I have loved it. I picked up a 99.5 VW Jetta GL, I gave 4k for it and had to put a little in right after I bought it because a sensor shorted out but other than that I love it. At the time I paid about 400 under book for it and after cash for clunkers its increased in value about 1500 dollars. Little extra curricular work in the exhaust and motor and I have a car that is damned near impossible to break. Now I feel obligated to bag on ford, but I will give them a compliment at the same time: Atleast when ford made their vehicles they circled the problem. Dodge is notorious for their transmission issues and my father in law has told me that its a simple fact of they tie to weak of a transmission to their motors and they just give up. Must say I like chevy pick ups and blazers especially. I am not talking about the new s10 blazers I am talking the ones that sat on an actual truck frame. Grandpa had one and sold it to the neighbor who ran the mileage up around 500k before the tie rod went out and it proceeded to commit hari kari on an overpass abutment.

[Datech]

Got my car back today, and the price was only $443 which is a heck of a lot less than $800. Woot!

[Oneslowz28]

I wont know anything until Thursday. Then if GM agrees to pay he will order the new trans case.

[SXRguyinMA]

hey at least you dont have the KDP issue the 12V Cummins has lol

[Twigsoffury]

You kno I am going to ask him to keep the case and see if that is not the cause of the problem here too. The pin digging a hole would cause it to break open.

yea man f@#$king cuts itself a line in the casing, you can see it really good on the inside, its a well defined slot thats rounded on either end. on others the pin snaps and rattles around in there till it gets stuck or explodes the planetary gears and itself.

see i think ford and the others have a calder pin or some sort of stop pin to keep that from happening, but some manufacturers opted for the heat tension style where you heat it up or cool it down alot, then ram it in and friction (supposedly) keeps it in place.

All that whole fleet of work trucks, any 2002-2006 (newest we have) dodge that pulls any mighty (with in spec) load from oklahoma city to tulsa alot ends up with that problem of that pin slipping out and starts eating itself a hole.

well dude drilled,tapped and threaded every one of those pins. I guess they couldn't be welded for some reason, I think its because of the type of metal used he was saying.. but i dunno thats just above my head lol.


Honestly can't say if thats your exact problem, maybe so maybe not. but i bet its worth a look at if they already had a recall about it.

could get some lols out of it at least.

best of luck with dealing with GM, if they put up a fit just say "I'm a tax payer i own 1:320,000,000 of you fool, thats 300$"

Say american cars are **** you must not have driven a Ford Taurus,500 or a Lincoln.

man Lincolns are ultra luxury lol.

it's like a couch with a gas pedal and steering wheel.

I agree chevy cars are rather crap, but i mean...whens the last time chevy HAS put out a decent car? 1973? 1984?

its like they've turned themselves into a fleet vehicle provider and mostly nothing else.

[crenn]

yea man f@#$king cuts itself a line in the casing, you can see it really good on the inside, its a well defined slot thats rounded on either end. on others the pin snaps and rattles around in there till it gets stuck or explodes the planetary gears and itself.

see i think ford and the others have a calder pin or some sort of stop pin to keep that from happening, but some manufacturers opted for the heat tension style where you heat it up or cool it down alot, then ram it in and friction (supposedly) keeps it in place.

All that whole fleet of work trucks, any 2002-2006 (newest we have) dodge that pulls any mighty (with in spec) load from oklahoma city to tulsa alot ends up with that problem of that pin slipping out and starts eating itself a hole.

well dude drilled,tapped and threaded every one of those pins. I guess they couldn't be welded for some reason, I think its because of the type of metal used he was saying.. but i dunno thats just above my head lol.


Honestly can't say if thats your exact problem, maybe so maybe not. but i bet its worth a look at if they already had a recall about it.

could get some lols out of it at least.

best of luck with dealing with GM, if they put up a fit just say "I'm a tax payer i own 1:320,000,000 of you fool, thats 300$"

Say american cars are **** you must not have driven a Ford Taurus,500 or a Lincoln.

man Lincolns are ultra luxury lol.

it's like a couch with a gas pedal and steering wheel.

I agree chevy cars are rather crap, but i mean...whens the last time chevy HAS put out a decent car? 1973? 1984?

its like they've turned themselves into a fleet vehicle provider and mostly nothing else.

It's an aluminium press fit. The best way would be to heat the 'hole' evenly
and put the pin in and let it cool down, 'clamping' down around it.

[billygoat333]

speaking of breaking things in cars... my car cd player just died. i bought it fall of 2003, and it traveled through 4 cars with me before it croaked. RIP Pioneer cd player, you will be missed.

now I am musicless with a long commute to work and school everyday. lamesauce. oh well probably gonna invest in a pioneer premier deck. :)

[Twigsoffury]

It's an aluminium press fit. The best way would be to heat the 'hole' evenly
and put the pin in and let it cool down, 'clamping' down around it.



some manufacturers opted for the heat tension style where you heat it up or cool it down alot, then ram it in and friction (supposedly) keeps it in place.

??? like that style

thread the hole, and the pin itself. it seems the whole shi-bang will heat up under a heavy tow and that pin gets loose and falls back out, threading them seemed to fix the problem at work.

[Oneslowz28]

GM is covering it under warranty. It will be ready by Friday.

[Twigsoffury]

GM is covering it under warranty. It will be ready by Friday.

Hell yea!!!1

Only suck problem is you know it'll likely happen again down the road with those tension held pins. even with a replaced casing.

All i'd say is, Don't tow any heavy loads for over 100 miles, every one of the work trucks that has to take crap from OKC to Tulsa (about 190 miles one way) after awhile will develop that problem... you can hear it.

hahaha theres a old 1993 Chevy that tows 2x the loads those 2005 dodges do, its got 234k miles on it as well(might of already rolled once).

Don't build em like they used to apparently

[Oneslowz28]

I mentioned the pin to him on the phone and he seems to think this is a pressure problem not a pin problem as the trans is cracked right on the casting seam. Not saying that it is not a combo of both but he has only seen one other like this on a Silverado and it developed a 5" crack right on the same casting seam. He has to send the case in as a core so I wont be able to keep it but I hope to get up there in time to take a few pics of the crack.

[crenn]

??? like that style

thread the hole, and the pin itself. it seems the whole shi-bang will heat up under a heavy tow and that pin gets loose and falls back out, threading them seemed to fix the problem at work.

To me, it sounds like their interference fit is too loose. So they're not using a big enough pin for the job! No threading needed.

[Twigsoffury]

I mentioned the pin to him on the phone and he seems to think this is a pressure problem not a pin problem as the trans is cracked right on the casting seam. Not saying that it is not a combo of both but he has only seen one other like this on a Silverado and it developed a 5" crack right on the same casting seam. He has to send the case in as a core so I wont be able to keep it but I hope to get up there in time to take a few pics of the crack.


yea i bet its just a problem isolated to dodge/Jeep transmissions.

What im talking about isn't a "crack at all" its a slot big enough to fit your finger through.

I'm no master mechanic either, probably know just enough to be dangerous hahahahaha.

[SXRguyinMA]

what ever happened?

[Oneslowz28]

I got my truck back. He replaced the casing and threw in fresh parts so I basically have a new transmission. I didn't get to see the old case as he had sent it off to the scrapyard before I picked up the truck. He said a mechanic from a Chevy dealer came and took a look and took a few pics and told him he could scrap it. The trucks running fine now. Haven't towed anything yet but the summer is almost here.