So, I have been seriously looking at a 2004 DAMON DAYBREAK 3295. It is in really great condition and only has 32,000 miles on it.My question is what do you think of the GM 8.1 and the GM 4 Speed Transmission? I was hoping for an Allison but it is what it is, this rig has no sign of any leaks. I got a chance to go through it right after we had a downpour.Thanks

I just bought a 28 ft 2002 Safari Trek with that engine / transmission combo or close to it. Mine is the 8.1 with the 4L80E transmission, the one you are looking at may have the 4L85E which has some different internal parts and a higher max power rating (externally they look identical). It had 74,000 miles on it when I bought it at the first of November, I drove it home from Florida nearly 1,100 miles then put at 450 mile round trip on it Thanksgiving weekend, so far the engine and transmission have not missed a beat. Sure I wish it had the Allison 5 or 6 speed, but so far the GM 4 Speed has been solid.

Sounds like it is on the P chassis, not W.

Check out this forumhttp://www.irv2.com/forums/f22/

I'm probably going to have to duck a lot of punches here, but I often think the Allison is (it's a great transmission don't get me wrong) so bragged about that it undermines other good transmissions. I do believe the GM transmission to be very good. The engine as well. Just take care of it, drive easy, you should be fine.

I have a 2001 Brave on a workhorse chassis with a 7.4 Vortec and the 4L80E transmission. The biggest complaint I have is that the transmission does not have a park pall in it, it has the Auto Park which works fine but I think they can cause problems. If they fail the park brake goes on and can burn up the brake linings. If you disconnect it then you have no park at all when stopped. Do a search on "Auto Park" to learn more.:E

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13 Replies

AJR
Explorer
Dec 08, 2016
Check out this forum
http://www.irv2.com/forums/f22/
wolfe10
Explorer
Dec 08, 2016
Sounds like it is on the P chassis, not W.
Isaac-1
Explorer
Dec 08, 2016
I just bought a 28 ft 2002 Safari Trek with that engine / transmission combo or close to it. Mine is the 8.1 with the 4L80E transmission, the one you are looking at may have the 4L85E which has some different internal parts and a higher max power rating (externally they look identical). It had 74,000 miles on it when I bought it at the first of November, I drove it home from Florida nearly 1,100 miles then put at 450 mile round trip on it Thanksgiving weekend, so far the engine and transmission have not missed a beat. Sure I wish it had the Allison 5 or 6 speed, but so far the GM 4 Speed has been solid.

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