Posted: 3/14/2009 5:43:37 AM EDT
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I have a 2001 Chevy Silverado K1500. This morning, I was driving down the interstate at standard highway speeds, when all of a sudden my RPMs shot up to about 4k.
The automatic transmission wouldn't go past third gear, and third gear itself was hinkey. If I accelerated up to 65 miles per hour, I could maintain it at about 4000 RPM, but if I let off the accelerator and idled, it would fail to power the wheels. I would then have to slow down enough to drop to second gear, or manually shift it to 2nd, before I could get any power back to the wheels. I pulled off and checked my automatic transmission fluid, and it was bone dry. I hadn't noticed any leaks, but I don't park in the same location every day, so it's hard to tell. I added about 3 qts of gas station all purpose automatic transmission fluid, but it didn't seem to help. I ended up limping the rest of the way home in 2nd. First and second gears behave flawlessly. Any ideas? |
| Sounds like you smoked the frictions (clutches).... Drop the pan and inspect what is in it. If you find a bunch of 'corn flake' looking material in the pan or large metal parts drop it and rebuild it. If you find nothing in the pan clean or replace the filter and put it back together. Next would be to run pressure tests but I don't think it's a pump or valve body issue from what you've described. |
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pull the pan and give a look inside. if you got burnt fluid smell and chunks of stuff in the pan you going to have to have a shop fix it. Fix what? Entire tranny or just clutch? The first shop I talked to is trying to tell me it'll be $1800 for a new tranny, and that's the only option. This seems like a reasonable price for the tranny, but it seems like there's probably another option or two. Does that seem like a reasonable price for the fix? Thanks, LDL |
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pull the pan and give a look inside. if you got burnt fluid smell and chunks of stuff in the pan you going to have to have a shop fix it. Fix what? Entire tranny or just clutch? The first shop I talked to is trying to tell me it'll be $1800 for a new tranny, and that's the only option. This seems like a reasonable price for the tranny, but it seems like there's probably another option or two. Does that seem like a reasonable price for the fix? Thanks, LDL i doubt you need a new trans just a rebuild. you probably smoked the clutches inside and thats why it wont shift. sometimes it is cheaper to buy a new/rebuilt trans rather than having them rebuild yours. |
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Check your cooling lines.
You may have a slow leak and lost your tranny fluid over time so slowly you couldn't see it. Sometimes it will only leak while driving and under pressure. If thats the case you may still need a rebuild,no biggy. It's still a lot less than a new truck. If your one of these guys who at the mercy of mechanics it will suck for you. They will lead you around ,rip you off and in the end you will make up your mind that your band of truck or all mechanics suck. But if your IQ has more than one number in it(and I bet it dose)you can install a remaned tranny in an afternoon yourself. You'll need a new torque converter and a buddy to help line things up. |
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<snip> If your one of these guys who at the mercy of mechanics it will suck for you. They will lead you around ,rip you off and in the end you will make up your mind that your band of truck or all mechanics suck. Chill brother... There are a lot of techs right here on the site that spend thier time helping out the members. You shouldn't generalize an entire industry, especially in the auto section where hard working techs and DIYer's are doing exactly the opposite. This is the kind of stuff that gives our industry a bad name...well that and the few assh*les out there who claim to be honest techs. |
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This is one of those that I would need to feel.
Being that low on trans fluid would lead me to believe that you had a tranny issue. BUT Hear me out on this one before you go WTF? .I have seen fuel pumps on Chevrolets do the exact same thing.The problem is diagnosing it.It won't show up on a fuel pressure gauge,because pressure is relatively good but volume is very low.The only way I can get an accurate idea of what is going on is to drive the vehicle and watch the fuel trim/O2 sensor readings on a scanner when it is acting up.Almost feels like trans is slipping. |
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<snip> If your one of these guys who at the mercy of mechanics it will suck for you. They will lead you around ,rip you off and in the end you will make up your mind that your band of truck or all mechanics suck. Chill brother... There are a lot of techs right here on the site that spend their time helping out the members. You shouldn't generalize an entire industry, especially in the auto section where hard working techs and DIYer's are doing exactly the opposite. This is the kind of stuff that gives our industry a bad name...well that and the few assh*les out there who claim to be honest techs.  are you shit'n me?
I'm a mechanic myself. You and I both know the level of tech. most shops have around these days. 9 times out of 10 the customer will pay out the ass while some bonehead trys in vain to find the problem adding work,time and money to the bill. From the customer's stand point it sucks. |
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<snip> If your one of these guys who at the mercy of mechanics it will suck for you. They will lead you around ,rip you off and in the end you will make up your mind that your band of truck or all mechanics suck. Chill brother... There are a lot of techs right here on the site that spend their time helping out the members. You shouldn't generalize an entire industry, especially in the auto section where hard working techs and DIYer's are doing exactly the opposite. This is the kind of stuff that gives our industry a bad name...well that and the few assh*les out there who claim to be honest techs. are you shit'n me?
I'm a mechanic myself. You and I both know the level of tech. most shops have around these days. 9 times out of 10 the customer will pay out the ass while some bonehead trys in vain to find the problem adding work,time and money to the bill. From the customer's stand point it sucks. its crucial to find a local mechanic that you can trust if you dont do your own work. luckily i have an excellent diesel shop that is less than a mile from my house. i send all of my vehicles at work to them and when i cant do something on my own rig ill take it to them. excellent service and quality work. on a side note. i had an 67 international scout project truck when i was in HS. me and dad put chevy axles and suspension under it and replaced almost every part on the front end. i took it in to a well known alignment shop to have it aligned. the mechanic got it up on the rack, took a quick look and came in to talk to me. he told me i needed new ball joints, tie rod ends etc because most of the front end was shot. i smiled and said thats funny because me and my dad just replaced all of those items. shit some of the parts still had the stickers on them! anyways i walked out to the rack got in my truck and drove it out of there. guy knew i was young and was just trying to pull a fast one on me... |
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Quoted: Quoted: Quoted: need new tranny It is a notorious problem for higher mileage Silverados, Tahoes and Suburbans of that year. Specifically to 01? late 90's to present. Check out some of the Tahoe and Silverado owners forums out there and you will see this is common at around 100k. |
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<snip> If your one of these guys who at the mercy of mechanics it will suck for you. They will lead you around ,rip you off and in the end you will make up your mind that your band of truck or all mechanics suck. Chill brother... There are a lot of techs right here on the site that spend their time helping out the members. You shouldn't generalize an entire industry, especially in the auto section where hard working techs and DIYer's are doing exactly the opposite. This is the kind of stuff that gives our industry a bad name...well that and the few assh*les out there who claim to be honest techs. are you shit'n me?
I'm a mechanic myself. You and I both know the level of tech. most shops have around these days. 9 times out of 10 the customer will pay out the ass while some bonehead trys in vain to find the problem adding work,time and money to the bill. From the customer's stand point it sucks. Sure there are some shops that I wouldn't even trust to check my tire pressure, but these shops won't last long today. 
Shops everywhere are closing down like the plague, times are tough for a lot of businesses, some established shops are even feeling the crunch, but the good ones will always survive. As far as being the customer, it can be tough if you just moved to a new town, you need to do your homework, but most folks already know which shops to stay away from and have developed a trust with a particular shop/tech. If they haven't already found a good shop, I would ask friends, family, or co-workers where they go, and ask if they are happy with the work and service they get there. With the economy in it's current state, I look at it as a positive time for the consumer. This will be the 'cleansing' - if you will- of our industry...and of many others. When it's all said and done, the rip off shops will mostly be gone, it's already happening around here. I see shops closing, parts stores moving out of town, empty service bays, specials on everything from brakes to state inspections, but nothing is going to help them once the word is out that the shop is ripping off it's customers. Besides the economy, technology is the other shop killer. If the techs can't keep up with new systems put in place by mfgs they will phase themselves out by ignorance. Vehicles are not getting simpler and Independent shops like mine that work on every make/model out there, have to either know wtf they are doing or become extinct. Either way it's good for the customer. |
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<snip> If your one of these guys who at the mercy of mechanics it will suck for you. They will lead you around ,rip you off and in the end you will make up your mind that your band of truck or all mechanics suck. Chill brother... There are a lot of techs right here on the site that spend their time helping out the members. You shouldn't generalize an entire industry, especially in the auto section where hard working techs and DIYer's are doing exactly the opposite. This is the kind of stuff that gives our industry a bad name...well that and the few assh*les out there who claim to be honest techs. are you shit'n me?
I'm a mechanic myself. You and I both know the level of tech. most shops have around these days. 9 times out of 10 the customer will pay out the ass while some bonehead trys in vain to find the problem adding work,time and money to the bill. From the customer's stand point it sucks. Sure there are some shops that I wouldn't even trust to check my tire pressure, but these shops won't last long today.
Shops everywhere are closing down like the plague, times are tough for a lot of businesses, some established shops are even feeling the crunch, but the good ones will always survive. As far as being the customer, it can be tough if you just moved to a new town, you need to do your homework, but most folks already know which shops to stay away from and have developed a trust with a particular shop/tech. If they haven't already found a good shop, I would ask friends, family, or co-workers where they go, and ask if they are happy with the work and service they get there. With the economy in it's current state, I look at it as a positive time for the consumer. This will be the 'cleansing' - if you will- of our industry...and of many others. When it's all said and done, the rip off shops will mostly be gone, it's already happening around here. I see shops closing, parts stores moving out of town, empty service bays, specials on everything from brakes to state inspections, but nothing is going to help them once the word is out that the shop is ripping off it's customers. Besides the economy, technology is the other shop killer. If the techs can't keep up with new systems put in place by mfgs they will phase themselves out by ignorance. Vehicles are not getting simpler and Independent shops like mine that work on every make/model out there, have to either know wtf they are doing or become extinct. Either way it's good for the customer. Well I hope so. It all may be well worth it if we could weed out a lot of the bull shit in this industry. |
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depending on the size of the motor it can be a 4l60e or 4l80e...if you can get any fluid out of it at all, smell it...if its got a burnt smell its your clutch patchs...probably, could also be the torque converter...generally chevy trannys hold up, in all honesty your going to be dropping some money, unfortunely in a automatic transmission people just dont break it down and only fix one thing, like you can in a manual...at least they shouldnt be doing that....this time around go with a bigger cooler and dex6 fluid instead of dex3...will prolong the length of the new tranny...
just for reference...I own 2 gm vehicles, a truck with a 4l60, and a car with a different 4l60  lol
ive built these trannys and ran a mechanics shop for a bit... |
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need new tranny It is a notorious problem for higher mileage Silverados, Tahoes and Suburbans of that year. Specifically to 01? late 90's to present. Check out some of the Tahoe and Silverado owners forums out there and you will see this is common at around 100k. Any preventative action that can be taken besides routine maintenance and fluid checks? |
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need new tranny It is a notorious problem for higher mileage Silverados, Tahoes and Suburbans of that year. Specifically to 01? late 90's to present. Check out some of the Tahoe and Silverado owners forums out there and you will see this is common at around 100k. Any preventative action that can be taken besides routine maintenance and fluid checks? a larger tranny cooler...B&M make them easy to install, worth weight in gold...40-50 bucks...go with a synth. fluid....dex6....only if the tranny is brand new, get them to put it in before hand...also always change the fluid on time...tranny fluid is different that any other fluid in the truck...its a lubricant and a detergant... |
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need new tranny It is a notorious problem for higher mileage Silverados, Tahoes and Suburbans of that year. Specifically to 01? late 90's to present. Check out some of the Tahoe and Silverado owners forums out there and you will see this is common at around 100k. Any preventative action that can be taken besides routine maintenance and fluid checks? synthetic fluid and routine checks of the fluid. if you pull heavy loads or are in a lot of stop and go traffic i would get a bigger cooler... |
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So the 4l60E of 1993+ is the same as the 4l60E even in the 2000+ models?
I have an 01 Tahoe with 90K on it, hopefully my tranny will last. We don't do alot of towing or stop and go traffic plus I replaced the fluid and filter at around 70K. My wife works 2 miles from home so the tranny never even gets the hot with 1/2 of the overall miles we drive. My fingers are crossed. I had a 92 S-10 blazer that was the last year of the 700R4, I sold it about 3 years ago and it still had the factory tranny in it. |