Alky kit install went well, but something really bad happened!

[bishir]

I think I may have lost my transmission... The car only has 55k miles on it and I was running about 17lbs boost. I was trying out the SMC kit while it happened. I was thinking how wonderful the car is running with the kit then boom! I was going up-hill at full boost. It was as if I were in Neutral. The engine revved freely and I was coasting. I pulled over to a safe area to check out the car and it was running fine and no leaks. I tried all gears and every gear was gone even reverse. Fortunately, I could put the car in drive, rev to about 3 grand, and the car would inch along. I drove about 3 miles home this way. Does this sound like a torque converter problem to you, a rear end going out, or general transmission carnage. There was no noise from the rear end, but I did notice kind of a rattle near the transmission when I got home and shut the car off. Oh man.... I didn't think it could be the rearend or I wouldn't have been able to drive home would I? Could it possible be the transmission pump too? Grrr.... all I can say is the wife isn't happy. Remember, this is my daily driver!


On a side note the SMC Alky kit made the car run better than ever. It felt like a true rocket ship and I watched the scanmaster read 0.0 degree the whole time! It did jump to 15 degrees when the the transmission went boom but that's understandable. I'll be setting up a webpage devoted to the install soon...

James

 

[turbo buicks]

when my tranny went out it would move the car forward at like 1/4 throttle but any more the tranny would slip and the car would just rev. my max speed was like 20 MPH. i had a ghetto aamco tranny and a bunch of parts were bad like the pump and what not and some pats were rusted too. bands were messed up also. i got the broken parts in the garage and i can see the damage i just dont know what the parts are, LOL. hope its nothing too serious tho.

 

[Snorman]

Sounds exactly like the symptoms when my tranny went away.
I was at E-town, staged at ~5psi, the lights dropped and I got about 5 feet then bang...the motor was revving and the car wasn't moving.
I also had to rev to 3-4k just to get rolling.
I broke the torque converter and my car only had 44k miles.
Eric Schertz (sp.) at Dynotech did a street/strip tranny with a Pro-Torque 2800 convertor for me.
IMO, I wouldn't waste my time (or $$$) taking the car anywhere except a shop with extensive experience with these trannies/cars.
S.

 

[WFO]

i'd say your pump went bye-bye.

 

[Two Lane]

Our board member Chris Taylor was testing his new ETOH system on his way to/from Bristol (BOP) and began losing his tranny, also.

Sure am sorry to hear that, James...wish you were local...could loan you a DD while you checked the tranny.

Hope the cure is "quick & simple".

 

[Hyper]

I think he broke the stator shaft. the make harden ones and it it brakes you have no gears?? does the fuild smell bad?

 

[bishir]

Not familar with that, but if it broke could I still limp home like I did?

 

[Phatman]

No....

If you broke the shaft you'd be walking, been there done that...
Rollerized with the billet goodies thanks to Bruce.

 

[matt87]

average lifespan for a stock tranny was only around 50k or so. time for a rebuild!

 

[b231v6]

That's what happened years ago to me when my torque converter went south. Save money now and get it built from someone with the right parts. Good luck.

 

[bishir]

Hey, the alky install page is now up! http://www.members.cox.net/bishir/id39.htm

Also, I found a place that specializes in 200-R4 transmissions. I won't know if I can get in until Monday. I haven't decided on if I want to beef up the tranny, but I'm sure I have to do something. This thing is a monster on the street with this alky kit!

 

[TurboJim]

I'd lean more towards the fwd drum, but could be a converter OR stator. In any event its gotta be OH'd, so it really doesnt matter now.

 

[GNVAIR]

I'd put money on the convertor since it still moves. This happened to a friend recently and the convertor took a dump.

 

[Crazi]

Another vote for the converter. Same thing happened to me. Got a 9x11 and never looked back.

 

[bishir]

9X11? I'm sorry, but I'm not familiar with other options for torque converters. I do plan on asking for one with a 2800 stall if this one is toast.... Any suggestions or links?

James

 

[bishir]

Okay, I found the 9-11 converter on Bruce's? site. If my convertor is toast this may be a viable option.

BTW, I know a way to make a lot of money.....

OPEN AN AUTO REPAIR OR TRANSMISSION SHOP ON THE WEEKEND!!!

 

[Bill_Ritter]

Originally posted by bishir
BTW, I know a way to make a lot of money.....

OPEN AN AUTO REPAIR OR TRANSMISSION SHOP ON THE WEEKEND!!!

Did your trans shop give you an estimate yet? If so how much was it? I have worked at a family owned trans shop since i was 15 (i'm going on 20 now) and have since rebuilt many transmissions, including my own 2004R. I put Blue racing clutches w/ colined steels, an upgraded pump, and a transgo shift kit. The converter is factory stall rebuilt D5. If you are tight on money and cant afford all of the other hardened goodies, then at least consider these.

 

[Bill_Ritter]

oh yeah, if you want an easy way to tell if its the pump, just start the car up and check the fluid level in the trans. If it looks like it is WAY over full (like a 1/2 in. on the stick) then there is a good chance that it could be the pump. I have found that this is a pretty safe way to diagnose a bad pump, but there are exceptions.

 

[bishir]

No, I haven't been able to get in touch with a shop yet since it's the weekend. Fortunally, I have tomorrow off work because of MLK day. I'll let everyone know how much when I talk to someone.

Thanks for the suggestions I'm going to take those with me,

James

 

[BoostedBug]

I bet it is the stator shaft. Mine was almost gone when I had my tranny rebuilt. Very thin on the splines......If you can't get it done right down there for a reasonable price ride up here to Columbus GA. The man that did mine is un-real when it comes to transmissions..Race Transmissions that is...