So I picked up a 96 Winnebago Adventurer "QCG32WQ" on the chevy p30 chassis this past weekend on Craigslist. I test drove it and it seemed to drive fine, no major issues other than that u had to fiddle with the gear shift when in reverse to get the auto park brake to disengage.The seller did say to me however that in the nearly 20 years he had owned it, on a dozen or so occasions, the RV would not want to come out of 2nd gear. He said he found if you stopped, turn the rig off for 10 minutes, then restarted it, it always went away and would go for another many thousands of miles b4 it ever repeated itself. He said he could never get a dealer to replicate the issue so there was no fix for it. It didn't do this when on the fairly lengthy test drive. For me it shifted just fine. So here we are 2 days later and I'm taking it to a shop to have some minor things taken care of (oil change, have the auto park brake looked at, wheel bearing repacked, etc) and sure enough, it seems to not want to shift out of 2nd gear. I didn't have the time to stop and let it sit for 10 minutes as he mentioned, but is this normal for this model, and if not, am I looking at a shot transmission? If so, any ballpark figure on the rebuild cost for this rig?Any input would be much appreciated.

My first question would be, when was the transmission fluid changed?I have a 96 Southwind on the P30 chassis. I've never had a transmission problem.My AutoPark sometimes acts a little funny. Especially when it's cold.It takes it's time releasing.Other than that, no problems.

I would have your mechanic pull the transmission pan and inspect the pick up tube/trans filter. Sounds like stuff might be getting sucked up into the pickup and clogging. When it is shut off, the obstruction might be falling back into the pan.Just a thought.Good luck

Possibly a bad shift solenoid. Easy to replace.

Great, thanks for the replies, so teh fact that it drives normally other than this "hiccup" is maybe an indication that its something other than a major transmission failure I guess? Sorry, I'm really new to RV's but I'm a pessimist by nature so my first thought is that its the worst case scenario, lol.anyone ever had to pay to have a rebuild btw, just in case it is that bad?

If it does need transmission work it is probably a typical GM 4L80E/4L85E transmission which are available all over. $1200 or so should get you a rebuilt one, plus labor to drop the old one and install the new one.

Transmission Rebuild cost? | Good Sam Community

Dutch_12078
Explorer II
Jul 13, 2015
Skid Row Joe wrote:
JALLEN4 wrote:
And there lies the advantage to the factory reman transmissions. Three thousand Ford or GM dealers across the country to perform any warranty without all the hoops to jump through.

The problem with the Big Three is their prices are often off-the-charts. That is why it's best to find a reputable local to do certified transmission servicing/replacement(s).

The installed price we were quoted for a Ford remanned 3year/100,000 mile warranty transmission for our previous coach was only about $200 more than the price we were quoted by a rebuilder with a 30 day warranty. We went with the Ford remanned tranny.
Skid_Row_Joe
Explorer
Jul 13, 2015
JALLEN4 wrote:
And there lies the advantage to the factory reman transmissions. Three thousand Ford or GM dealers across the country to perform any warranty without all the hoops to jump through.

The problem with the Big Three is their prices are often off-the-charts. That is why it's best to find a reputable local to do certified transmission servicing/replacement(s).
JALLEN4
Explorer
Jul 10, 2015
rgatijnet1 wrote:
Jasper transmissions do have a good reputation but, like most companies, their warranty is written in their favor. YOU have to pay for repairs and after YOU send the parts back to them, at YOUR expense, then, after their review, they may reimburse you. Of course any work done must be done at their factory or some garage approved by them in advance. You are responsible for all towing charges. Here is a copy of their warranty which is probably the same as everyone else's if you read all of the fine print. Jasper warranty

And there lies the advantage to the factory reman transmissions. Three thousand Ford or GM dealers across the country to perform any warranty without all the hoops to jump through.
rgatijnet1
Explorer III
Jul 10, 2015
Jasper transmissions do have a good reputation but, like most companies, their warranty is written in their favor. YOU have to pay for repairs and after YOU send the parts back to them, at YOUR expense, then, after their review, they may reimburse you. Of course any work done must be done at their factory or some garage approved by them in advance. You are responsible for all towing charges. Here is a copy of their warranty which is probably the same as everyone else's if you read all of the fine print. Jasper warranty
jerseyjim
Explorer
Jul 10, 2015
JALLEN4: Thanks for the info. Regarding the 3 year warranty thing.....having the JASPER installed, the shop told me "3 years" (I forget the mileage). Great, eh? Well not quite.
Reading the small print in the brochure, I came to "exceptions". Among them were "commercial vehicles" and "motorhomes". Therefore, according to JASPER, what I got was 18 months and the same amount of mileage.
While I'm typing this, I think I recall the mileage as something like 100,000..but do remember that for me, anyway, the amount of mileage would be impossible to make in 18 months.

Anyway, it has been 3 years now, and all is well.
Sully2
Explorer
Jul 09, 2015
JALLEN4 wrote:
jerseyjim wrote:
SULLY2: The shop I used for the tranny replacement offered me two choices:
1- rebuild what I had, or
2- Jasper

They never mentioned a new one from Ford. I wonder why....that option never occurred to me...I'm courious if Ford even offers that.

The Jasper works OK....as expected.

Ford and GM both sell re-manufactured transmissions. Normally they have a three year warranty and are excellent units at competitive prices.

Yepper...they sure do!
JALLEN4
Explorer
Jul 09, 2015
jerseyjim wrote:
SULLY2: The shop I used for the tranny replacement offered me two choices:
1- rebuild what I had, or
2- Jasper

They never mentioned a new one from Ford. I wonder why....that option never occurred to me...I'm courious if Ford even offers that.

The Jasper works OK....as expected.

Ford and GM both sell re-manufactured transmissions. Normally they have a three year warranty and are excellent units at competitive prices.
jerseyjim
Explorer
Jul 09, 2015
SULLY2: The shop I used for the tranny replacement offered me two choices:
1- rebuild what I had, or
2- Jasper

They never mentioned a new one from Ford. I wonder why....that option never occurred to me...I'm courious if Ford even offers that.

The Jasper works OK....as expected.
fischer
Explorer
Jul 08, 2015
A sticky valve in the valve body will have those systems
Sully2
Explorer
Jul 08, 2015
jerseyjim wrote:
When my tranny failed, I had a choice: The shop could rebuild what I had...or get a "re-manufactured" unit from JASPER.
"Re-manufactured", I'm told, uses no "old" parts...new ones are installed and that is the main difference between "rebuild" and "re-manufactured".
I opted for the JASPER re-manufactured.
Cost$2300 + labor = 4 grand.

I broke down back in 1998 with a 1993 Southwind and costs to me at that time was the same as your Jasper rebuild OR I could get a fresh one from GM for the same price. In addition I paid $400 for overnight delivery