Transmission

G

gary miller

New member
Aug 18, 1998
452
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117,000 miles on original transmission.
Fluids changed every 10K from what I can tell
by the records that came from the previous
owner. Just recently installed Ragusa pan
and Caspro shift kit. Now running Mobile 1.
Everything A-OK.
Gary
'77 Kingsley
North Bend, Oregon Coast
 
When you switched to Mobil 1 did you change the tranny filter??

J.R. Wright

>
> Okay, I need to weigh in here. My transmission, by all accounts, is the
> factory original with, now, about 77k on it. I have been a little conerned
> about the coaches ability to get away from a red light or stopsign when on
> any kind of grade, even in low gear. She wants to move but takes her sweet
> time. Things are better since switching to the alcoa's (smaller diameter),
> but not that much. On my recent trip to Texas, we were pulling out from a
> campground, onto an access road, and was glad I wasn't towing anything. So,
> to come to the point, I guess I have to come to grips that maybe, just maybe,
> my tranny is slightly anemic. There.......I said it. Whew! The problem that I
> have with this admission, is that, while the tranny is tryin', the engine is
> also working, so I am not sure the tranny is slipping, or what. When I back
> into my driveway, she doesn't want to back over the slight bump at the
> beginning of the driveway, gotta make a run for it. Does this trans use 1st
> or 2nd in reverse? Going to Golden, CO this summer and sure would like to tow
> my pick-up, but won't with things the way they are. BTW, the trans fluid was
> clean when I switched to Mobil1. Any of you experts can share your wisdom
> with me, now that I've come clean. Larry in MO, PB75
 
Arch--
The feature of the shift kit that I like most is that it stays in the
gear that you select (does not shift up). Almost like driving a manual
transmission. The modified shift points are nice too. I had the kit
installed in a transmission shop so I don't really know what all went
into it---don't even know if the modulator was replaced. Transmissions
(automatic) are a mystery to me.!!!!

Retirement for me was one of life's three big "life changing" events.
The first was getting married and the second was the arrival of the
first (of five) kids. Retirement is the best!!
But don't think that you will now have any more spare time; as a matter
of fact you probably will have less. Another mystery.

Gary
'77 Kingsley
North Bend, Oregon Coast

> Gary
>
> How do you like the shift kit? Can you tell if the tranny is running
> any cooler with Mobile 1? Did you happen to write down the #
> of the new modulator valve that came with the shift kit?
> I am all questions today.
>
> Take Care
> Arch Now counting days till retirement on one hand
>
> In a message dated 5/10/99 10:30:47 AM Central Daylight Time,

>
> >
> > 117,000 miles on original transmission.
> > Fluids changed every 10K from what I can tell
> > by the records that came from the previous
> > owner. Just recently installed Ragusa pan
> > and Caspro shift kit. Now running Mobile 1.
> > Everything A-OK.
> > Gary
 
Arch -
I looked in the instructions that came with the Caspro shift kit and note that
the original modulator is reused. A "green spring" is installed on the
modulator valve before reinstalling.
Gary
'77 Kingsley
North Bend, Oregon Cost

(snip)--if you put in a Caspro shift kit

> Please get the number off the modulator. It was different then the
> stock one on mine but I did not write the # down. We all might need it
> someday. Also any of you who have changed to Mobile 1 Please
> let us know if you can see a difference in tranny temp.

installed Ragusa pan at the time of installing Caspro kit; temp sensor
installed at this time so I have no previous history.

> Also say
> if you changed to Mobile 1 in final drive-----that will make a difference.

I installed a Ragusa final drive cover with sensor on it, too. --- used
synthetic oil (not Mobile 1 -- couldn't find the right weight).

> Take Care
> Arch 76 GB IL
>
 
Larry said...
> I have been a little conerned about the coaches ability to get away
> from a red light or stopsign when on any kind of grade, even in low
> gear.

Hate to say it but that sounds like my transmission before it failed
Larry. I put a lot of miles on the coach like that, though. It ran fine
on the flat. I didn't know what a 455 and good transmission felt like in
a coach, because that's the way it came to me. After it was repaired the
difference was awesome. 1300 miles after the repair I lost first gear,
and the pickup (in S ) from a standing start going uphill was still much
better than I was used to before the repair, even in first. They called
it slipping, but the engine would bog down trying to get going from a
standing start going uphill. That's how I learned about power tuning my
distributor and that's how I got out of some steeply graded campgrounds.

Hey, have you ever driven a friend's or another GMC for comparison.
That's what I needed to do. If you haven't Larry, I urge you to do
a comparison test drive before you go to Colorado this summer.

- --
"I do whatever my Rice Krispies tell me to..." John said, from inside a
1974 Glacier.
 
larry i8f it were mine I would go to a good tranny shop and let them run
thru the pressure checks on it. Peace of mind!

>Okay, I need to weigh in here. My transmission, by all accounts, is the
>factory original with, now, about 77k on it. I have been a little conerned
>about the coaches ability to get away from a red light or stopsign when on
>any kind of grade, even in low gear. She wants to move but takes her sweet
>time. Things are better since switching to the alcoa's (smaller diameter),
>but not that much. On my recent trip to Texas, we were pulling out from a
>campground, onto an access road, and was glad I wasn't towing anything. So,
>to come to the point, I guess I have to come to grips that maybe, just maybe,
>my tranny is slightly anemic. There.......I said it. Whew! The problem that I
>have with this admission, is that, while the tranny is tryin', the engine is
>also working, so I am not sure the tranny is slipping, or what. When I back
>into my driveway, she doesn't want to back over the slight bump at the
>beginning of the driveway, gotta make a run for it. Does this trans use 1st
>or 2nd in reverse? Going to Golden, CO this summer and sure would like to tow
>my pick-up, but won't with things the way they are. BTW, the trans fluid was
>clean when I switched to Mobil1. Any of you experts can share your wisdom
>with me, now that I've come clean. Larry in MO, PB75
>
>
Tom & Marg Warner
Vernon Center NY
1976 palmbeach
"The beautiful Mohawk Vally"
 
According to the mechanic who babied my coach hile it was being operated
by Executive Express, the transmission had been rebuilt 6 times during
the 8 years they added 450,000 rough miles to the old girl.

I had to have it rebuilt once about 5 years ago and I added a Ragusa pan
and an analog temp gage. Rebuild cost was $1,200 when I broke down in the
upstate NY boonies.

I use regular fluid and watch the gage pretty closely since I started
towing last year. The temp (in the pan) runs around 140 in highway
driving which should equate to about 190 out of the torque converter.

I check the fluid, which was changed at 566,000 miles, for color and
smell about once per month or so. I use a transmission cooler also and
may add an external filter but am not sure it is necessary.

David Lee Greenberg
GMC Motorhome Registry
200 Macfarlane Drive PH 4
Delray Beach, FL 33483-6829
800-827-9989
 
Just a suggestion based on experience and the instruction that come with
the Ragusa pan.....Go over speed bumps VERY slowly as the new pan is
deeper and when the front wheels clear the speed bump, the pan is just
over the bump!

David Lee Greenberg
GMC Motorhome Registry
200 Macfarlane Drive PH 4
Delray Beach, FL 33483-6829
800-827-9989
 
Dave I hope you are using the word "upstate NY boonies" in a nice way!

>According to the mechanic who babied my coach hile it was being operated
>by Executive Express, the transmission had been rebuilt 6 times during
>the 8 years they added 450,000 rough miles to the old girl.
>
>I had to have it rebuilt once about 5 years ago and I added a Ragusa pan
>and an analog temp gage. Rebuild cost was $1,200 when I broke down in the
>upstate NY boonies.
>
>I use regular fluid and watch the gage pretty closely since I started
>towing last year. The temp (in the pan) runs around 140 in highway
>driving which should equate to about 190 out of the torque converter.
>
>I check the fluid, which was changed at 566,000 miles, for color and
>smell about once per month or so. I use a transmission cooler also and
>may add an external filter but am not sure it is necessary.
>
> David Lee Greenberg
> GMC Motorhome Registry
> 200 Macfarlane Drive PH 4
>Delray Beach, FL 33483-6829
> 800-827-9989
>
>
Tom & Marg Warner
Vernon Center NY
1976 palmbeach
"The beautiful Mohawk Vally"
 
> This one is sort of sneaky. The stator clutch is hidden inside
> the torque converter, and if it fails, the only symptom is sluggish
> take-off. (If the stator clutch slips, you get only the ~2.5:1
> reduction the gears provide at drive-off, instead of the ~5:1 ratio the
> gears PLUS torque converter should provide.)

When Larry said he needed a running start to get over the bump at the end
of the driveway, that brought back old memories of my case. In my case,
if I could keep the ground speed high enough, I could get up a pretty
good hill, but not over a speed bump from a dead start.

- --
"I do whatever my Rice Krispies tell me to..." John said, from inside a
1974 Glacier.
 
Dave...

>The temp (in the pan) runs around 140 in highway
>driving which should equate to about 190 out of the torque converter.

Dave how do you approximate that? That sounds like a useful thing to
know?

- --
"I do whatever my Rice Krispies tell me to..." John said, from inside a
1974 Glacier.
 
It looks cool :-)
...sorry, couldn't resists [vbg].

I've had the Ragusa on for quite a few miles (almost forever) and have yet
to hit it (hope I'm not jinxing myself here). I do go over speedbumps
slowly, just as a matter of course to keep dishes and computers intact and
perhaps the IPD bars makes for somewhat less bounce, don't really know.

With reference to cooling, I do think it adds a little, especially when no
airflow exists, such as in slow moving traffic. The pan temp certainly does
go up during those stop & go periods of stuck on the freeway.

I'm probably going to change my external tranny cooler to one with a fan.
(Perma-Cool). At last tranny overhaul we bypassed the radiator so as to be
sure that no metal got back into the fresh tranny. I had quite a bit of
metal in the pan.

My penny's worth :-)

Heinz
www.bytedesigns.com/gmc

>REALLY stupid question:
>If one adds the required xmission cooler, what does the Regusa pan do
>besides make a guy paranoid about hitting a speed bump or bad spot in the
>road too fast?
>Just askin'.
>Dick 75 PB in Atlanta
>

>>Just a suggestion based on experience and the instruction that come with
>>the Ragusa pan.....Go over speed bumps VERY slowly as the new pan is
>>deeper and when the front wheels clear the speed bump, the pan is just
>>over the bump!
>>
>> David Lee Greenberg
>> GMC Motorhome Registry
>> 200 Macfarlane Drive PH 4
>>Delray Beach, FL 33483-6829
>> 800-827-9989
>>
>
>
 
Not only do they look cool, but they also have a larger fluid capacity, and
fittings for drain plug and temperature sensor.

Chuck
77 Kingsley
North Idaho

From: Heinz Wittenbecher Date: Tuesday, May 11, 1999 10:40 AM
Subject: Re: GMC: Transmission

>It looks cool :-)
>...sorry, couldn't resists [vbg].
>
>I've had the Ragusa on for quite a few miles (almost forever) and have yet
>to hit it (hope I'm not jinxing myself here). I do go over speedbumps
>slowly, just as a matter of course to keep dishes and computers intact and
>perhaps the IPD bars makes for somewhat less bounce, don't really know.
>
>With reference to cooling, I do think it adds a little, especially when no
>airflow exists, such as in slow moving traffic. The pan temp certainly does
>go up during those stop & go periods of stuck on the freeway.
>
>I'm probably going to change my external tranny cooler to one with a fan.
>(Perma-Cool). At last tranny overhaul we bypassed the radiator so as to be
>sure that no metal got back into the fresh tranny. I had quite a bit of
>metal in the pan.
>
>My penny's worth :-)
>
>Heinz
>www.bytedesigns.com/gmc
>
>
>
>
>>REALLY stupid question:
>>If one adds the required xmission cooler, what does the Regusa pan do
>>besides make a guy paranoid about hitting a speed bump or bad spot in the
>>road too fast?
>>Just askin'.
>>Dick 75 PB in Atlanta
 
>Not only do they look cool, but they also have a larger fluid capacity, and
>fittings for drain plug and temperature sensor.
>
>Chuck
>77 Kingsley
>North Idaho
>

Thanks Chuck,
Trust me to forget the important stuff :-)

Heinz
 
On Tue, 11 May 1999 09:38:03 -0400 (EDT) Tom Warner
writes:
>Dave I hope you are using the word "upstate NY boonies" in a nice
>way!
>

I was (surprised and) happy to find a transmission shop where I did. I
didn't have enoigh oompf to get inside the shop...they had to push me in
the rest of the way.

Boonies can be positive or negative but I didn't think of the area
negatively once I saw the transmission shop!

Dave Greenberg
 
>Dave...
>
>>The temp (in the pan) runs around 140 in highway
>>driving which should equate to about 190 out of the torque
>converter.
>
>Dave how do you approximate that? That sounds like a useful thing to
>
>know?
>The 50F diff comes from tech seminar notes from GMC MI rallys. I have no
way of knowing how accurate but have no reason to challenge the fellows
who said so and the info came from different sources over time.

David Lee Greenberg
GMC Motorhome Registry
200 Macfarlane Drive PH 4
Delray Beach, FL 33483-6829
800-827-9989
 
>If one adds the required xmission cooler, what does the Regusa pan do
>besides make a guy paranoid about hitting a speed bump or bad spot in
>the
>road too fast?
>Just askin'.
>Dick 75 PB in Atlanta
>
Welllll, for me it gave me an extra quart of fluid capacity, a tapped
hole for a sending unit and with the aluminum fins, a little extra
cooling surface.

David Lee Greenberg
GMC Motorhome Registry
200 Macfarlane Drive PH 4
Delray Beach, FL 33483-6829
800-827-9989
 
REALLY stupid question:
If one adds the required xmission cooler, what does the Regusa pan do
besides make a guy paranoid about hitting a speed bump or bad spot in the
road too fast?
Just askin'.
Dick 75 PB in Atlanta

>Just a suggestion based on experience and the instruction that come with
>the Ragusa pan.....Go over speed bumps VERY slowly as the new pan is
>deeper and when the front wheels clear the speed bump, the pan is just
>over the bump!
>
> David Lee Greenberg
> GMC Motorhome Registry
> 200 Macfarlane Drive PH 4
>Delray Beach, FL 33483-6829
> 800-827-9989
>
 
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