trany flush woes

[Francesco Rizzo]

I was tempted to go for the D-I-Y tranny flush but decided to take it to the local isuzu to "get it done right" Well now seems like the clutch is gone and pops out of first or will take a while to to gear from 2nd to 3rd. I drove around today for abit and it seemed to go away.. but I have a feeling that I should have just saved the money for a new tranny.. stupid gm parts

[nfpgasmask]

I would take the time to crawl under there and check the tranny fluid level yourself. There is a good chance they might not have put enough fluid in there from the start. It is a bit of a job, but worth it if it is just low fluid. Did they change the filter too or just drain and refill?

Thats sucks man.

Bart

[Chopper]

Sounds like you're low on fluid, Frank....you still in O-town?

[Ldub]

I agree with Bart, if it's low on juice, it will make unpleasant noises & slip under acceleration.:_wrench:

[Francesco Rizzo]

wow, thanks for the quick replies! I will get under to check it out.. do I just remove filler bolt and poke finger in though?
I did notice a slow shift from 3rd to 4th before I brought it in; so when the service guy said my clutch was going because of slow shifts, I believed him. He continued saying I would need to replace my enitre tranny since these tranny's can't be opened up and worked on.. only swapped out. anyway, Thanks again

oh and yeah I'm in orlando doing what I do best.. working insaine overtime for airtran

[Ldub]

http://www.vehicross.info/gallery/data/500/fluid1.png

[nfpgasmask]

wow, thanks for the quick replies! I will get under to check it out.. do I just remove filler bolt and poke finger in though?
I did notice a slow shift from 3rd to 4th before I brought it in; so when the service guy said my clutch was going because of slow shifts, I believed him. He continued saying I would need to replace my enitre tranny since these tranny's can't be opened up and worked on.. only swapped out. anyway, Thanks again

oh and yeah I'm in orlando doing what I do best.. working insaine overtime for airtran

Somewhere on here is a scan from the manual about how to check the level, just do a search, but in a nut shell:

1) Park the VX on level ground
2) Start the engine and let it idle for a bit
3) Gen in the driver's seat and slowly shift through all the gears, from PARK all the way down and back again. Leave VX running and in PARK.
4) Crawl under the VX (yes, while the engine is still running)
and open the fill port (have a catch pan ready)
5) If fluid dribbles out, you should be full. If nothing comes out, add fluid until it dribbles out (and yes, while the engine is still running)

Its not fun, its messy and hot (especially in FLA) but not that hard. Use one of those funnels with a lid attached to some clear tubing from Wal*mart, works great for filling the tranny, but you need 2 people and some extra tubing to reach all the way.

We (Reno VXers) just did ours and my VX is shifting smoothly again.

Bart

EDIT: See, I knew Dub would beat me too it.

[nfpgasmask]

And oh yea, probably should mention, if you need to add fluid try to add the same stuff the shop did, I would think mixing (esp synth and regular) might cause issues???

Bart

[Chopper]

When you open the check hole, it usually runs out pretty freely (maybe a half pint) a flush machine usually puts it back in under some pressure. Glad you're still around:cool: We need to get together out your way this spring or summer....maybe out at Kermit Weeks' place....Joe is right there, and we three have aeroplanes in common, I'll see what he has going on out there this year. Wayne

[Francesco Rizzo]

wow.. nothing.. maybe like a a lil drizzle or like it was spitting a few drops.. nothing significant though.. I called and explained how I checked it. The guy told me to bring it in but I do not want to drive it.. too risky to drive about 10 miles?

[Ldub]

Follow the instructions...find out what's in there, get a pump that fits a quart bottle at the auto parts store where you get the ATF & fill it up.:_wrench:

Then print out the instructions & bring em' with you, so your so called "mechanic" knows how to check fluid level.:rolleyesg

It's the whole give a man a fish, teach a man to fish thing...

[LittleBeast]

Sounds like the exact thing that happened to me..... Do some searchs or just know that you need to get this taken care of or save up $4K for the rebuild

[Francesco Rizzo]

I guess forget the delaership, I'm gonna go buys some vexron vi and thorw a quart or 2 in there. I read all over the interent that it's backwards compat since the dexron iii is going no longer going to be produced. I will double check with the usermanual, but just wanted to say thanks for the input.

[nfpgasmask]

I guess forget the delaership, I'm gonna go buys some vexron vi and thorw a quart or 2 in there. I read all over the interent that it's backwards compat since the dexron iii is going no longer going to be produced. I will double check with the usermanual, but just wanted to say thanks for the input.

Yeah, the pump method Ldub was talking about works, but it can get really messy and frustrating. If you have a helper, the funnel method works like a charm. If you go to Wal*mart look near the trans fluid, you should find a funnel thing that has a lid and a tube attached. Buy that, plus some extra clear tubing from Home Depot (I think 3/4" is the size, iirc) and cut about 4 feet of that, and connect it to the funnel. You need a helper, but this way you can syphon the fluid right up through the fill port with little mess and no dreaded up-side-down, inverted, under the running, hot VX hand pumping.

:) Bart

[Ldub]

Not sure what pumping apparatus you're familiar with Bart, but with the one I use, the qt. sits upright on the ground, the hose friction fits into the fill/check hole & you pump it until the juice back flows into the hose...done.
I usually find working with a helper to be more frustrating.:smilewink

[nfpgasmask]

Not sure what pumping apparatus you're familiar with Bart, but with the one I use, the qt. sits upright on the ground, the hose friction fits into the fill/check hole & you pump it until the juice back flows into the hose...done.
I usually find working with a helper to be more frustrating.:smilewink

Well, then you found a better pump than I did. The one I found, basically fits onto a quart jug, but the threads aren't quite right and it doesn't create a good enough seal. You can still pump a good amount of fluid up into the tranny, but a lot spills out from underneath the cap, since it doesn't thread right. I'd like to know what type you have, because it does make doing it yourself a little easier. Luckily for me (and CrnCnn) we did our tranzies together in one day. In this case, the help was good ;)

Bart

[Ldub]

The threads on an Amsoil qt. may be a different pitch?...not sure.
But the one I have doesn't depend on being sealed at the top, it sucks from near the bottom of the bottle. There is always some left in the bottom, when it won't pull any more up. I just set the empties aside as I fill & combine them later.:smilewink

In any event, it's messy & not my preferred method of having fun.

[nfpgasmask]

The threads on an Amsoil qt. may be a different pitch?...not sure.
But the one I have doesn't depend on being sealed at the top, it sucks from near the bottom of the bottle. There is always some left in the bottom, when it won't pull any more up. I just set the empties aside as I fill & combine them later.:smilewink

In any event, it's messy & not my preferred method of having fun.

That must be it. The pumper I have just plain doesn't work with Mobile-1 quarts. And yes, the tranny is a freakin' whore of a job. Its not really all that hard, just messy, uncomfortable and time consuming.....and trans fluid makes the skin on my hands feel weird after they have been soaked in it for long enough :p

Bart