Thread: Did my transmission just die?

I was returning to work after taking my wife to lunch for her b-day and as I pulled out of the parking lot, I began accelerating at a normal speed. Right when the car shifted into third I heard a squeeking/ping sound almost like the tires just chirped. The car acted totally fine after that and didn't do anything weird at all after stopping at a few lights. THEN when I got on the freeway I found that the car would not shift into fourth gear. Did my trans just die? Am I suck having to replace the whole thing?

sounds like you lost 4th gear, slick.
No 4th Gear

4th gear is a problem with sub 03' cars. I drove around for almost a year with no 4th, then i got tep trans

Yeah, that blows. 99prixgt, if you don't mind my asking, what was your final out of pocket cost on your TEP trans?

He's got prices on his website. I think it's around 1700 for a built one.

If it's just a 4th shaft. That can be done w/o taking the trans totally out.

Yeah, I saw the prices, but I wasn't sure what it end up costing to have it shipped out and to have the old one shipped back.

Originally Posted by BillBoost37

If it's just a 4th shaft. That can be done w/o taking the trans totally out.

So far everyone I've talked to said that the cost in labor to tear it apart and replace the 4th shaft would meet or exceed the cost of a brand new trans.... No?

Originally Posted by BillBoost37

If it's just a 4th shaft. That can be done w/o taking the trans totally out.

if you will, please share how exactly that is done. i'm interested.

Originally Posted by SliceTheRice

Yeah, I saw the prices, but I wasn't sure what it end up costing to have it shipped out and to have the old one shipped back.



So far everyone I've talked to said that the cost in labor to tear it apart and replace the 4th shaft would meet or exceed the cost of a brand new trans.... No?

hm, not sure, probably so because tranny shops charge a fortune. by the time it's said and done they'll probably say it needs a rebuild and cost you the same as a TEP or you'll end up back at the shop cus they dont know wtf they're doing. just speculating though...

my uncle used to be a transmission mechanic, not sure if he's had experience with 4t65e's or not but i could ask. he might have some insight for all of us.

I'd appreciate it. If I got a TEP, I'd have to pay someone to put it in for me, and TEP's warranty is only one year. The GM rebuild has a 3 year warranty and is about the same cost in the end. ugh.

well i'd personally go with TEP. who knows what all GM rebuild come with? TEP uses parts that will not wear out and break as fast. quality.

Well.. you may have heard that you can lower the drivetrain a bit and swap the EPC/PCS soleniod? ... Same way.

Jack and support the body of the car.
Hook an engine support up (I use a 4x4 and chain)
Drain the trans fluid and put the pan back on with a new filter in it. (20 10mm bolts, 120inch lbs)
Unbolt the engine mount and trans mount from the subframe (4 15mm nuts)
Unbolt the ps rack from the subframe (2 bolts)
Unclip the ps lines to the subframe and a couple other 10mm bolts
Pop the driverside balljoint and remove driverside axle (18mm wrench)
Lower the subframe (18mm)
Put a jack under the motor with an angled block on it (I like an atv jack personally, the block allows the driverside to aim down more than engine
Remove the chain and lower the drivetrain enough to get the bolts holding on the side cover of the trans (torx and 13mm typically)
Remove the wiring harness from inside the trans
Remove a few selected bolts and the valve body/channel plate come out as one piece.
4th clutch hub is right in front of you. Swap it and if the gaskets for the channel plate to case got torn...replace them. Reassmeble with the proper torque. Lift drivetrain..put subframe back up...and finish reassembly.

It'll take a few hours the first time. I did Daggers enough when redoing a hybrid trans for him that I got it down to about 2-3 hours at most to lower do whatever and get it back together.

TIP: IIRC the bolts that hold the channel plate in the area where the gasket are were... M6 x 1.00 thread. Have a couple spares on hand with the heads cut off. The gaskets are a pain to keep in place on their own. Put the bolts through a hole on each end of the two gaskets to hold them. Then use your finger to feel those as you bring the channel plate/vb assembly back in place and it'll line you right up. Put a couple other bolts in and remove your alignment/gasket holding "tools"

There is no way I want to risk trying to fix this one myself. I'm nervous about just chaning out my control arms in a couple weeks. haha. I'm going to call a couple shops and see if any of them can make this repair for less than the cost of a new trans and I'll go from there. Otherwise I think I'm going to go with a GM rebuilt.

Are you aware that GM rebuilds have a very poor repuation in the last 4-5 years?

I was not aware of that, no. But I don't plan on keeping the car for longer than 3 years anyway so the warranty kind of solves that problem. If I was mechanically inclined enough to install a TEP on my own, I'd go for it, but I'm most definitely not. If I got a TEP and something went wrong with it, I'd be up a creek.

Low cost you could probably find a JY trans and have it installed for around 400-500

Yeah, I thought of that too, but then I have no assurances it won't fall apart a few months later. If TEP's had a longer warranty, I'd be sold, no questions. GM's could fall apart in a few months too, but it'd be on their dime.
I'm not horribly concerned about the GM trans because I really do trust my shop and they said they've had the least amount of problems with those trannies compared to other builders.