animalcrackerzrgood

I have a 2000 4.3l/4l60e Blazer with 144k. I had it loaded up traveling last night on the highway and 4th started slipping a bit under a load or incline then after about 10 minutes I went up a steep hill, revs climbed and it just let go. Free revs in 3-4. Drove home on side roads in 2nd gear. I have 1-2 and reverse. I do not know the maintenance as I got it about 10k miles ago. I only know fluid was changed right before I bought it. Does this indicate 3-4 clutches are done or could it be something somewhat easy? What should I check first to troubleshoot? I have a very short commute to work and do not normally go over 40mph...Is there a reason I can't/shouldn't limp through the week in 2nd? Right before I got home I did 2 short WOT hits and it holds with no slipping.

MaroonMonsterLS1

likely the 3-4 clutches

You can drop the fluid and pan and look for the signs. If the fluid has been changed recently it will probably be harder to tell

mrvedit

Just to be sure, is it slipping badly in 3rd and 4th or just in 4th?
If in both, they yes the 3/4 clutch is shot.
If only 4th, then then band is worn and lengthening the servo pin might get you a few more thousand miles before it needs a rebuild.
Sure, driving under 40 mph in 2nd should be fine.

Roarin_8

iTrader: (5)

Same thing I have, it's the 3-4 clutch pack. I'm also just driving in 1st and 2nd since commuting is only 4 miles away with 30mph speed limits. Currently saving up for a built trans. Crazy thing is that I can manually shift the car from 2nd to 3rd and 4th but those gears won't hold past 2000rpms so probably still have some clutch material left over just not enough to hold at higher rpms.

animalcrackerzrgood

Ok thanks. It does not hold any tq in 3-4. What special tools do I need? I recently purchased a 2WD 4l60e with under 40k that I was going to rebuild and swap into my Solstice. I hope this doesn't sound too ghetto...but can I tear that down and reuse the parts in the blazer 4WD trans? I was just going to throw everything out otherwise because it was getting upgraded.

woodwright

Is there ANY chance something else could cause this? I just picked up an 01 Suburban that is doing the same thing. Absolutely nothing for third and fourth. I scanned it and got P0446, And P0453. Both of which are Evap related. Before i drop the trans i just want to make sure.

mrvedit

A worn out 3/4 clutch is the most common problem reported here.
While a bad (stuck) solenoid could prevent the 2-3 shift, the symptoms are a bit different and are explained in post #4 here:
https://ls1tech.com/forums/automatic...-problems.html

woodwright

Thanks. I read somewhere that if you disconnect the trans wiring harness it'll default to third. I'm thinking that if I try that and it works, then it could be solenoids. Would you recommend that?

mrvedit

It might be worth a try.
On a Gen 4 F-body the trans typically has to be dropped quite far before you can reach the connector.
However, on many trucks and SUVs it can be reached more easily.

woodwright

Thanks. I'll try that.

animalcrackerzrgood

Ok. So I have my other low mileage 4l60e apart and everything appears to be in very good shape, but the 3-4 clutches don't look so nice. The steels are brownish and I see some hot spots. There is good clutch material left, but I am not chancing it. Can someone advise a kit to install? I want to do this on a budget so if below is over kill LMK. I am assuming when I tear into my Blazer that I can use any hard parts from the current transmission I have if needed. So far I don't think I need any special tools to do this.


I was thinking this kit for rebuild:


http://www.jegs.com/i/TCI/890/379110/10002/-1


And a vette servo:


http://www.jegs.com/i/ATI/085/705030/10002/-1


I am also experiencing another issue I thought was normal or drivetrain windup, but it is getting worse. When coasting in D at low speeds(like rolling through a stop) the transmission will sometimes slip slightly then grab or even grab hard/slip/grab. When I research any symptoms like this even close, I find others have issues with the sprags or one way bearings not catching as they should. This goes away completely when driving in 1 2(not tried in 3). Also when driving in 1 or 2 should I feel engine braking immediately when off throttle? It seems to coast for a bit before the engine braking grabs.

mrvedit

The rebuild kit is very basic - something a trans shop buys for $100 plus $10 for the band and $5 for the filter. $190 is very high for that, especially for likely cheapo frictions.
I always recommend a 4L65E rebuild kit which at least comes with 7 frictions for the 3/4 clutch (and that is the only difference).

Since you are in a hurry, I would suggest either checking Summit/Jegs for a 2004 4L65E rebuild kit, or maybe see if a local trans shop will sell you one for a good price.
While not a sponsor, I recommend contacting Jeff at TruTechTrans and having him put a kit together for you. It may cost a bit more, but will come with excellent frictions. Lots of members here have been very happy with them.

animalcrackerzrgood

I ended up buying a kit from trutranstech. Lvl 1 rebuild with 7 frictions for 3-4. I put this on the back burner for a bit and just got it back together and I have forward gears, but no reverse when running through gears on stands. Fluid is at proper level. Any ideas? Thinking it has to come back out. What a PITA. Thinking I mucked up the teflon seals...I hear a very light click when I shift it into reverse but not enough pressure to move the wheels even. I really thought everything went well, but trans says otherwise. Hopefully I can get it right so this isn't a complete fail thread.

mrvedit

If you resized the stator staft rings with hoseclamps and overtightened them, it sometimes takes a day for the rings to open up enough to seal.
So wait until tomorrow, let the engine and trans warm up for a 10 minutes and try reverse again.

animalcrackerzrgood

No go. Testing on stands... I did notice that I hear that slight whine noise similar to the rear one way when in neutral...not sure of the significance of that, but if I rev a little in neutral I get forward motion so I must have a cross leak? I also periodically get a soft shift into reverse, but then it stops after about 2-3 sec. I think I need to pull it out and replace the teflon seals on the input and the stator and be more careful. I replaced the bushings on the reverse input drum, but not the stator because it looked ok, but I will do that this time as well. If im not on the right track LMK.

mrvedit

Slight forward motion in Neutral is normal. You will notice it on stands, but not on the street.
Sorry about Reverse. Did you resize the teflon rings on the stator shaft?

Jays_SSZ28

iTrader: (2)

An easy fix might be the reverse servo piston in backwards. Or valve body bolts in the wrong place. Does it have a solid first, second, and third?

animalcrackerzrgood

Well...it could have been an easy fix, but inexperience was working against me...the c clip holding the boost valve slipped out of the groove. I clearly did not have it seated at all. There is a small step right before the groove for the clip and I think I just stopped there the first time. FML. What a waste of time. As soon as I popped the pan off I saw it sticking out of the bore part way. While it was out I pulled the pump and just replaced the seals again anyway. I made a nice resizing tool with a thick piece of rubber and hose clamp this time and it sized the rings nice and even and had the pump back in 10 minutes. I still didn't get that bushing in the stator, but it has very little wear and time is not on my side... not to mention those bolts on the stator are threadlocked because I twisted my torx bit off. I put it back together and it'll go back in later tonight if I have time.

If there was any blessing in this its that I would not have changed the fluid again for at least 5k miles. When my 3-4 failed the clutch material was gone and the steels were chewing into the steel on a couple of the clutch rings. I could not see the glitter because the fluid was so black. When I drained this fluid it was glitter city. Had no idea there could be so much residual crap in the cooler, TC and other things I did not tear down and clean thoroughly. 11 more qts of fluid and a new filter.

I am just hoping everything works when I fire it up again. What a learning experience.

animalcrackerzrgood

Road test. G2G! Shifts much faster from PRND. I had a very annoying lag before and I'd have to wait sometimes 2 sec or so before it'd switch even when hot. That weird slip/grab feeling is gone as well from coast to throttle in 1-2 gears. Not sure if I can attribute that to the check ball getting stuck in the plate. It looked like it was a few more pings away from slipping through and was lodged in the plate when I took it out. In the end I think I had a few issues sneaking up on me. I hope I did the rest right and don't have to mess with this for a while. Thanks for your suggestions.