Hoping it's not a full transmission failure

[regiment1]

'00 V8, 115,500 miles. Transmission was replaced at about 60k.

I drove the car from Atlanta to Asheville and back. It's about a 3 hour drive one way. On the return trip, after I'd exited the interstate, the transmission started to slip when i started from full stop under light acceleration. It was at the first shift point, but I don't know if that is 2 to 3 or 1 to 2 in these cars.

The thing I didn't notice in the many other "transmission slip" threads is that I could hear a slipping / whine or light grinding under the rear seats until the transmission "caught." It kind of sounds like my old Accord manual did when the clutch needed to be replaced.

From the other threads, the suspects are:
- Solenoid pack - I had this done three times on the original transmission, and this doesn't feel the same. Shifting to reverse is fine. There was no sound during those problems
- COP's - I can see the hesitation making sense, and it's similar to when I had COP's changed before, but how do you explain the sound?
- Torque converter (?) - When this has failed on our old Pontiac the car would die as you came to stop
- Transmission fluid - This one is making sense to me, probably because the last option is so bad
- General transmission failure - Hoping that's not the case

Any thoughts?

 

[oddball]

On Gen 1, light acceleration from a stop begins in 2nd and shifts to 3rd. It'll only go into first if you press the accelerator more than 60% down.

The second to third shift takes a while because it has to release the overdrive band (2nd is 1st+overdrive) and apply the intermediate band. If both are applied, the tranny locks up. So there's a time space in there. Also, at light throttle, the tranny will have lower line pressure for softer shifts. Higher line pressures can hide some friction problems.

So it could be the intermediate band is fried. Without friction material, it's just a metal band squeezed around a metal drum.

As always, check your fluid level. Also take a sample and see if it smells burnt or has chunks of material in it.

And, this tranny now has ~60k on it. Maybe that's just your personal tranny lifespan.

The tranny is mostly under the dash. With the sound so far back, you might want to take a look at your rear end. I hate the rears on these cars - having the mounting tabs on the rear cover makes inspection a pain. I don't think gear problems would present like this, but you never know.

 

[LS4me]

On Gen 1, light acceleration from a stop begins in 2nd and shifts to 3rd. It'll only go into first if you press the accelerator more than 60% down.

That's only in SST mode.

 

[regiment1]

Well, I just drove it to the shop and it didn't have the problem in the 15 minutes it took me to get there. So it may only be an issue when the tranny is hot, like it was after the three hour drive home yesterday.

 

[oddball]

That's only in SST mode.

On my '02 V8, that's the normal method in D5, D4, 3 and SST. (I swapped from the standard shifter to the SST and haven't had the dealer reprogram the PCM, so I used to have D4 and now have 3).

If you doubt this, start in D5 with light acceleration, then hit it before the first shift. There's a lag, a thud, then you're off. The lag is somewhat to be expected, but the thud is the downshift.

 

[oddball]

Well, I just drove it to the shop and it didn't have the problem in the 15 minutes it took me to get there. So it may only be an issue when the tranny is hot, like it was after the three hour drive home yesterday.

See if there's a bunch of junk in your multi-fluid cooler in front of the radiator. Or if there's a kink in the rubber cooling lines up under the bumper.

 

[LS4me]

On my '02 V8, that's the normal method in D5, D4, 3 and SST. (I swapped from the standard shifter to the SST and haven't had the dealer reprogram the PCM, so I used to have D4 and now have 3).

If you doubt this, start in D5 with light acceleration, then hit it before the first shift. There's a lag, a thud, then you're off. The lag is somewhat to be expected, but the thud is the downshift.

Not according to the guy that was responsible for the transmission calibration. D4 & D5 run through all the gears (1-4 or 1-5); in SST 1-5 only the selected gear is available. The second gear start was required to avoid the gas guzzler tax. In the '03+ first gear is available due to a revision in the EPA's testing (SST testing was no longer required). I added the SST shifter to my old V6 and did have the pcm reprogrammed.

 

[regiment1]

See if there's a bunch of junk in your multi-fluid cooler in front of the radiator. Or if there's a kink in the rubber cooling lines up under the bumper.

I'll take a look at that. Two shops have looked at this and found nothing.

 

[regiment1]

I'm bringing this back, because I had this problem again Sunday for the first time in a few months.

But this time, interestingly, the sound only came from the passenger rear wheel as I turned left while lightly accelerating from a stop.

So, I'm wondering if maybe my ABS / traction control is activating due to a failing sensor. The traction control light did not go on, though.