Level 3 Transmission Rebuild

[BOSS]

Got my 02 Tahoe in the shop right now, she's undergoing a transmission rebuild. I'm preparing her for a supercharger, cam, headers, and a couple other mods that will easily push her over 500hp next year. If you are like me, and have never had a transmission rebuilt, it can seriously hurt your head and hurt your wallet. My situation was I had a warranty on mine, so I took advantage of it. My transmission was doing what they call a subtle "flare". That is basically where the tranny is not quickly shifting to the next gear crisply. It will rev the engine ever so slightly higher, rev it back down a fraction, and then go into gear. It took 3 transmission shops to diagnose this problem because it was so faint. I'm a serious ass perfectionist to a fault....

Basically, as I understand it, transmission rebuilds are rated on the amount of hp and torque you gain from the aftermarket heavy-duty parts you install. The more robust parts, the higher the level. There are an enormous amount of things you can do to a transmission to upgrade it. Not being a mechanic of any sort, I was truly overwhelmed by it all.

I undertook the same strategy that I always do with things I know nothing about, I talked to A LOT OF PEOPLE! After calling a couple shops locally, hanging out at the local transmission wholesale parts warehouse, and chatting for about an hour with the master builder who is rebuilding it, I chose to do the following to support the power I'm going to add and minimize the hit on my pocketbook:

(RedEagle Master Rebuild Kit)
Alto RedEagle PowerPack 8 RedEagle clutches
7 Kolene full thickness steel plates and 1 thin backing plate
Red Eagle 2-4 Wide PowerBand with hardened anchors
Shift kit with boost valve
13 vane pump
unbreakable Pump Ring Set
3/4 4th apply super-servo
1/2 intermediate super-servo
Five Pinion Front Planet Gears
Five Pinion Rear Planet Gears
intermediate servo release check valve
performance 1-2 accumulator spring
high output pump slide spring
Longest intermediate servo pin
29 element Borg Warner forward input sprag
double reinforced Roadmaster torque converter
beast reaction shell
Servo Valve
gaskets
filter

This is by no means a comprehensive list of things you can do, it can go on and on...one thing I will add later this year is a tranny cooler. Any suggestions please send!

B O S S

 

[JKmotorsports]

Cool man. Get her ready for the s/c and all the added power. It's going to be worth it.
Check out Fluidyne tranny coolers. They offer stacked plate fin designs which is superior to the tube fin styles that are commonly used. I installed one of their HD trans cooler on mine a while back. You can either replace your original or use one in conjunction with your stock cooler. The cooler you can keep the tranny, the better.

 

[BOSS]

Cool man. Get her ready for the s/c and all the added power. It's going to be worth it.
Check out Fluidyne tranny coolers. They offer stacked plate fin designs which is superior to the tube fin styles that are commonly used. I installed one of their HD trans cooler on mine a while back. You can either replace your original or use one in conjunction with your stock cooler. The cooler you can keep the tranny, the better.

thanks brova

 

[Rivieraracing]

If you don't mind me asking, how much is all of that gonna set you back???

 

[Max]

I'm about to build mine as well, warranty should cover almost all of mine. I want one that can handle 10psi from a tvs daily driven.

 

[BOSS]

If you don't mind me asking, how much is all of that gonna set you back???

I bought all my parts at a local wholesaler for around 1k. The "extra" labor you incurr beyond the normal rebuild process is about 3-400 bucks to build it out properly with these parts.

At a minimum, the warranty covers the removal and install of the tranny itself from the vehicle. If the rebuild cost is significantly higher than a used transmission, then the warranty doesn't cover the labor to breakdown the transmission to see the internals. I know it sounds messed up but most are like this - all they want to do is fix the minimal possible. So the shop must get the customers approval to do the breakdown in case it becomes a customer responsibility - which it almost always does because the labor plus "broken" parts ends up being more than a used tranny. This strategy allos the warranty company to minimize exposure and properly forecast costs associated with tranny replacement under policy based on the estmated ones that break down in a given make of vehicle pool. If you want to put on a used/rebuilt tranny, make sure it has it's own warranty that is significant. If it's 3 months - run! Find another used one~!

The issue will most often end up being that the customer wants to rebuild the entire tranny - doesn't make sense to put in a couple new parts and pay for the labor only to wait for the other parts to wear out. You'd pay labor again when the other parts wear out! You might as well buy all the parts and do it all at once. Not only that, but the new parts may change the dynamics inside the tranny and cause premature wear on the existing parts.

B

 

[chistoso]

It makes absolute sense.. I see you're working your way up with the big boys huh? Nice.. It won't be long from what I gather and read..

 

[BOSS]

It makes absolute sense.. I see you're working your way up with the big boys huh? Nice.. It won't be long from what I gather and read..

Ha! True..I say next year on the SC but you know damn well I'll buy it if the opportunity presents itself!

 

[chistoso]

I know. Next year could be later on today or tomorrow afternoon. Me too, I plan for shit but if shit plans itself for me earlier, i'm there..

Keep up the good work..

 

[BOSS]

As luck would have it, I've blown the 3/4 clutch pack twice now....so this is the 3rd rebuild since I took it in. I'm not sure what to think at this point other than the builder isn't doing something right. Like I said, there are so many different approaches to building a tranny it's ridiculous. I'm wondering if he's not using enough clutches in the 3/4 clutch pack...gonna find out more tomorrow - pulled it back from Austin today and he started tearing it down this evening. More to follow...

BOSS

---------- Post added at 09:44 PM ---------- Previous post was at 09:40 PM ----------

Also forgot to mention, when I got this thing back...HOOOOLY SHIT! The shifts are HARD!!! The 1st to 2nd shift will knock your ass out of your seat WOT! Even Justin from Blackbear during my tune gave me a "Woah!" when I first hit that 1/2 shift. I had him loosen it a little bit from the bang it was when I drove away from the shop...if they could only get the 3/4 fixed


B