Question on 4l80E

[ceasefire49]

I own a 1999 GMC Suburban SLT with the 454. The other day the OD just stopped working. It was working fine the day before and the other gears all appear to shift and work just fine no slippage or other problems what so ever. I ran the codes and nothing popped up .The fluid does looks a little burnt and about a month ago I noticed a whirring sound that raised or lowered in conjunction with the application of the Accelerator. This noise occurred if it was in park or any other gear, it wasn't a loud whir but a soft type whir sort of like what some power steering pumps give out. I have noticed since the OD stopped working that the whirring is also gone. The vehicle has 87,000 miles on it and has been well maintained. I have been told it could be more than likely the Torque converter as I was told they have been klnown to fail. Like I said everything works just fine except for overdrive and there is no noise,slippage,jerking or anything in the other gears. Any advice would be appreciated. Thanks.

[batty1214]

Does your fluid have a burnt smell?

Oh, and welcome to the forum!!!

[mudseeker]

did you use a scanner to pull the codes? i don't think a normal code reader can access the trans. anyways, it's probably just your converter not going into lockup and could just be a simple solenoid problem.

[stumpuller454]

there are many possibilities, bad seal, jammed piston, worn out plates, broken overun clutch housing (maybe that noise?) 3-4 vavle stuck, or module failure. this is just wha the gm service manual says...

[silverhairdeere]

first step after scanning is fluid and filter change and add lucas transmission treatment .

shd

[ceasefire49]

Okay thanks..I'll do the fluid change first w filter and see what happens. The fluid looks to be a little dirty and not perfectly Red. If that doesn't work I'll take it in for a check. Thanks. I'll let you know what i discover.

[ceasefire49]

Finally got a honest Tranny guy..The first 6 said I needed a new transmission which would cost me anywhere from 1200-2000 Fun tickets. Went to a fella who had a small private shop in Mesa Stage 1. Anyway he put me in the passenger seat listened to what I had to say checked the Tranny fluid then he hooked up his code reader put it on his lap and off we went went up the freeway and back the result; it seems the solonoid has a short in it he said it could be just a bad connection or the solonoid could be bad. The code said there was an open circuit so he would not know what exactly it was until he opens it up but the total cost to fix if it needs a new Solonoid is around 200 bucks total 100 bucks if he just has to repair a bad connection. So there you go. Thanks to those that responded. In addition he stated that the solonoid was the one that would not allow it to lock up into overdrive. I hope that makes sense to everyone. Lesson learned long ago when dealing with tranny guys get more then one opinion. Thanks again. One guy even told me The pump was bad..I thought the Torque converter was the pump he said no..**** the guy from stage 1 was the only one to run codes.

[ceasefire49]

The guy said in my year that most of the earlier problems had been resolved and with the condition the vehicle was in unless I was seriously abusing it then there probably wasn't to much wrong.

[mudseeker]

just a lucky guess. that'll be $29.95 for my services, i take check and money order.

J/K bud, glad you got it figured out and were able to save some money.

[hotrodpc]

Sounds like you found a tranny man Cease. Thats the kind of guy you tell your friends and coworkers about. So when and if you ever do need a complete tranny rebuilt, you know who to take it to. I think your situation shows alot about his charachter and pride in his work, so even if his price for a complete rebuild would be $100 or $200 more, you are probably going to get your moneys worth in a thorough proper job. I also like that he gave you a best case and worst case on the repair. Some guys would have just told you it would be $200 and it needed a Solenoid, and then twist a wire for you and take your money. Just curious how much did he charge you for the diagnostic?