3rd Gear Slipping And No Od

autobahn_clem · December 9, 2009

Hey guys,

I have a '99 GMC 5.3 that has shifting issues, it will not shift into 3rd gear. Also, my display doesn't show the odometer or shift indicator... are these issues related? Will I need a complete rebuild on my tranny? It has about 219k miles on it.

Thanks in advance!

Clem

rodram · December 9, 2009

... take your truck to a good transmission shop and get their opinion

... if you can, ask around to other gm truck owners about who they would trust to look at their transmission

... a transmission shop can pull some codes and tell what is wrong

.. based on what you describe I suspect that you are losing some shift clutches, and with the >200K miles I would prepare to hear the diagnosis..... 'recommend total transmission and torque converter rebuild'

.. and post back to let us know what the transmission shop had to say

.. at least the transmission shops get lots of practice on these 4L60E transmissions .. it is a common rebuild job for them .. the cost will depend on where you live ... I ended up paying $2700 total for parts, labour, and taxes for a complete rebuild with a 1 yr warranty ... I had this done with a 36 hour turnaround in and out of the shop because I needed the truck back, so I may have paid a little premium for that.... but it was worth it and it works great .

Ape0r · December 9, 2009

... take your truck to a good transmission shop and get their opinion
... if you can, ask around to other gm truck owners about who they would trust to look at their transmission

... a transmission shop can pull some codes and tell what is wrong

.. based on what you describe I suspect that you are losing some shift clutches, and with the >200K miles I would prepare to hear the diagnosis..... 'recommend total transmission and torque converter rebuild'

.. and post back to let us know what the transmission shop had to say

.. at least the transmission shops get lots of practice on these 4L60E transmissions .. it is a common rebuild job for them .. the cost will depend on where you live ... I ended up paying $2700 total for parts, labour, and taxes for a complete rebuild with a 1 yr warranty ... I had this done with a 36 hour turnaround in and out of the shop because I needed the truck back, so I may have paid a little premium for that.... but it was worth it and it works great .

Rod - just curious, what made you go for having yours rebuilt over getting a GM rebuilt trans? I know a lot of the trans shops and online sellers make nice promises, but its hard to argue against the 3 yr/60k warranty you get on a GM rebuilt trans for $1800 + labor.

219k is pretty high for a 4l60e, I agree on finding a good transmission shop to look at it.

You might find this interesting: http://www.s-10crewcab.com/og1/modinfo/stockspecs/4l60e.html

rodram · December 10, 2009

... take your truck to a good transmission shop and get their opinion
... if you can, ask around to other gm truck owners about who they would trust to look at their transmission

... a transmission shop can pull some codes and tell what is wrong

.. based on what you describe I suspect that you are losing some shift clutches, and with the >200K miles I would prepare to hear the diagnosis..... 'recommend total transmission and torque converter rebuild'

.. and post back to let us know what the transmission shop had to say

.. at least the transmission shops get lots of practice on these 4L60E transmissions .. it is a common rebuild job for them .. the cost will depend on where you live ... I ended up paying $2700 total for parts, labour, and taxes for a complete rebuild with a 1 yr warranty ... I had this done with a 36 hour turnaround in and out of the shop because I needed the truck back, so I may have paid a little premium for that.... but it was worth it and it works great .

Rod - just curious, what made you go for having yours rebuilt over getting a GM rebuilt trans? I know a lot of the trans shops and online sellers make nice promises, but its hard to argue against the 3 yr/60k warranty you get on a GM rebuilt trans for $1800 + labor.

219k is pretty high for a 4l60e, I agree on finding a good transmission shop to look at it.

You might find this interesting: http://www.s-10crewcab.com/og1/modinfo/stockspecs/4l60e.html

The main reasons I paid for a rebuild:

1. I know and trust this garage and the service manager, he knows my truck, and he does all the service on our company fleet trucks

2. the quote was for $1600 plus labour, trans fluid, taxes, etc.. ended up being $2700... apparently it was an SOB to get out of there

3. I took it to the service manager on a Monday morning and I was leaving on vacation the next day after work... (and needed the truck to pull the travel trailer on our vacation) ... no time to find a wrecker trans (really did not want one anyway) and no time order one from GM

4. despite the fact that there is a good warranty on the so-called "GM rebuilt" transmissions, many of these are rebuilt for GM by high volume transmission shops and I have seen reports that not ALL valves and moving parts are actually replaced.. OK there is a warranty, but I did not want anything that I could not speak to the rebuilder in person.

... to be honest I hate automatic transmissions (my previous three trucks all had 4-sp standards) as I see them as a huge weakness in what should be otherwise a reliable truck... but you essentially have no choice anymore

... thanks for the link on 4L60E problems... I've seen that link before and have it bookmarked for reference

KCXLT · December 10, 2009

Hey guys,
I have a '99 GMC 5.3 that has shifting issues, it will not shift into 3rd gear. Also, my display doesn't show the odometer or shift indicator... are these issues related? Will I need a complete rebuild on my tranny? It has about 219k miles on it.

Thanks in advance!

Clem

Sometimes the ignition cylinder can cause shifting problems, especially when you say your display is messed up.