Trans Tune
 

Well, I tried something today that seems to work...

I purchased a can of SeaFoam Trans Tune..

I tried it in my C6 tranny and it seems to be working perfectly.

I'm not much on additive stuff,but thought I'd try some before having to pull the tranny..
It wouldn't move when you pulled it in Drive for a while.
If you let it warm up, it worked great..

Well, I put a can of this stuff in there and it works like new...

I'll see how it does over time as the tranny didn't slip,shifted great,etc..

Maybe, we'll see..
I'm going to give it a chance as I don't have leaks or any other problems..

Trav, I think the biggest thing is that it's where people don't change their fluids as often as they should. This results in gunk building up inside the transmission that can clog up the valve body and other related parts and lead to problematic shifting.

It'll be interesting to see what it looks like when you go to put fresh ATF in there and drop the transmission pan. I bet it'll look ugly.

Not sure but I would say 83-86 would be a good bet. Not sure when they went to using the multifunction stalk on the column, you might check some of the 87-89s.

My C6 shifts great now that I put a new modulator valve in it, fluid looks like brand new. But I don't like the slush-o-matic shifts, I'm gonna put a shift kit in it sometime. And probably a magnet in the oil pan if it doesn't have one.

I see that LMC truck sells new wiper switches for $30 new for a intermittent switch and $25 for a non intermittent switch. I'll check the auto parts store prices.

I had a C6 that sat for years, and when I started using it I found that it wouldn't take off in 1st unless I pulled the column shifter down. Manually it would shift fine, but not autmagically. I pulled into O'Reilly's and bought a can of that Seafoam, walked out and laid the can in the seat, started up, and it took off in 1st. Wow, that stuff works! But, then it didn't start in 1st, so I broke down and put the SF into the tranny. Within 500 miles of driving it had sorted itself out and never gave me a problem again.

But Ken Blythen, IIRC, said to drive in reverse as fast as you are comfortable doing for some distance, like maybe 1/4 mile although he would have said it in kilometers. That seems to flush things out as well. So, were I you, I'd put the Seafoam in AND drive backwards. Can't hurt - unless you run into something.

I just changed fluid and filter 2 months ago...Looked like a new tranny, no sludge,etc..

The problem is that this truck sat for over 4 years...(divorce,etc)
I bought it from the original owner in 95..I worked with him...

It has had the trans fluid and filter changed every 30K miles since new..
According to a Trusted tranny mechanic, a seal inside has dried out and let fluid drain back down from the converter(I think he said).

I am going to try this fix and see...If it don't work, I'll drop that baby and take it to him for a COMPLETE rebuild...torque converter, valve body, seals,clutches,servo, whatever it takes...

Either way,I am going to have it working right...I'm not a transmission fixer so I'll let him do his deal....At least I'll save BIG BUCKS by pulling it out and taking it to him...

Thanks for the input and reply.....Trav..:-wink

Yes, I'm going to give all of this a shot...Can't hurt anything that can't be fixed...
It it works,fine...If it don't, I will still get it fixed...

It won't be as big an issue as trying to install a ZF behind a 351M..
Seems I read a LITTLE Short story of someone trying to do that and actually made it work.....}>

You mean an 8-page short story? Yep, it can be done but it takes lots of help from your friends and what Dad called perseverance. Actually, when he was talking about me it was bull-headedness, but when talking about himself it was perseverance.

I would give everything a shot, including laying the can it the seat. Hey, it worked for me - at least for 6 blocks.

I will and try to get a road trip of 500-600 miles on it...Soon...just have to get the details worked out...make an appointment with a buddy to find out when (next week maybe)..

I put a new modulator valve in mine a few months ago..
I put the blue or purple one in...They are adjustable...Small screw in end where vacuum line plugs in...

You can adjust for firmer shifts or softer...

I put a purple one in, and I'm at 3-1/4 turns in to make it shift at around 13 mph at very light throttle. And it still shifts super smooth. It doesn't run like a slug anymore like it used to. The two things that were really screwing it over was the distributor curve and the transmission modulator. Takes off pretty good now and is way quieter and doesn't sound like it's running it's guts out at light throttle.

You also need the governor box.

Call me stupid, but what's that?

IIRC it was sometime in the late 70s, and the same basic setup was used until the early 90s.