Lost the Transmission Today - WED 10/2 Update
*Update at end of thread* Well at 144K miles it finally gave up. Had a great drive today down to Western KY for some camping. Campsite was challenging to say the least...trees on both sides of th...
Forum Discussion
Ironically just changed the fluid and filter a few months ago..Dex VI full synthetic.
I used to use 4-LO all the time on the beach when siting the camper for exactly that reason, it was much less stress on the transmission. Unfortunately I was making tight turns on asphalt so would have been too much binding on the drivetrain to be in 4WD, let alone LO range.
I got a good recommendation on a local shop from a fellow RV.net member who lives here in Murray, KY, and they are also a Jasper dealer. So have decided to go with a Jasper reman unit installed by the local shop. Not a transmission shop per se but a good mechanics shop. A little pricey at $3200 (that's all in, unit and labor), but Jasper units come with a 3 year 100,000 mi warranty and have over 2000 dealers nationwide. Buddy who owns a shop back in NY is also a Jasper dealer and he advises that they are very good at honoring warranties, not nitpickers like others. If the unit goes south during the warranty period, just take it into a Jasper dealer, Jasper send out a new unit and pays the local shop to install it, no questions asked.
The 4L80E is a strong unit and since the engine is stock, really no need for a custom rebuild with "bulletproof" parts. Most of the specialized hot rod 4L80E builders tune these to hold 750+ HP for racing applications. That said, there are few "weak" parts in the 4L80E that Jasper supposedly addresses in their rebuilds. This trans has performed well towing for 144k miles. Temps have never been over 200 even in stop-n-go NYC traffic at 90* towing the TT, so not sure I would gain anything from an aux cooler.
So I drop it off at the shop this morning and start looking for a rental car...and there are none in town. Wind up calling the local shop back and he advises that he wasn't planning to tear it down until Monday afternoon, and should be done by Tuesday. So I wind up going back to get the truck so I can get around down here over the weekend.
Truck runs absolutely mint, shifts great and pulls strong off the line....just won't go backwards. If you want to have some fun, drive around and every time you go to make a turn ask yourself "If I make this turn will I have to back up at some point?"....LOL....fortunately the CG is not crowded and I can loop through a few adjacent sites and park on the site next to mine. Hopefully it stays relatively empty through the weekend.
Fortunately I work remote and brought my laptop and aircard, Verizon has 4G coverage here at the CG, so I can hang a couple extra days and get some work done.
Was thinking that you need to break in a rear axle for 500 miles before towing...do you need to break in a transmission before towing? Current plan is to roll the truck out of the shop and connect it to the trailer...should I spend a day driving around first?
I used to use 4-LO all the time on the beach when siting the camper for exactly that reason, it was much less stress on the transmission. Unfortunately I was making tight turns on asphalt so would have been too much binding on the drivetrain to be in 4WD, let alone LO range.
I got a good recommendation on a local shop from a fellow RV.net member who lives here in Murray, KY, and they are also a Jasper dealer. So have decided to go with a Jasper reman unit installed by the local shop. Not a transmission shop per se but a good mechanics shop. A little pricey at $3200 (that's all in, unit and labor), but Jasper units come with a 3 year 100,000 mi warranty and have over 2000 dealers nationwide. Buddy who owns a shop back in NY is also a Jasper dealer and he advises that they are very good at honoring warranties, not nitpickers like others. If the unit goes south during the warranty period, just take it into a Jasper dealer, Jasper send out a new unit and pays the local shop to install it, no questions asked.
The 4L80E is a strong unit and since the engine is stock, really no need for a custom rebuild with "bulletproof" parts. Most of the specialized hot rod 4L80E builders tune these to hold 750+ HP for racing applications. That said, there are few "weak" parts in the 4L80E that Jasper supposedly addresses in their rebuilds. This trans has performed well towing for 144k miles. Temps have never been over 200 even in stop-n-go NYC traffic at 90* towing the TT, so not sure I would gain anything from an aux cooler.
So I drop it off at the shop this morning and start looking for a rental car...and there are none in town. Wind up calling the local shop back and he advises that he wasn't planning to tear it down until Monday afternoon, and should be done by Tuesday. So I wind up going back to get the truck so I can get around down here over the weekend.
Truck runs absolutely mint, shifts great and pulls strong off the line....just won't go backwards. If you want to have some fun, drive around and every time you go to make a turn ask yourself "If I make this turn will I have to back up at some point?"....LOL....fortunately the CG is not crowded and I can loop through a few adjacent sites and park on the site next to mine. Hopefully it stays relatively empty through the weekend.
Fortunately I work remote and brought my laptop and aircard, Verizon has 4G coverage here at the CG, so I can hang a couple extra days and get some work done.
Was thinking that you need to break in a rear axle for 500 miles before towing...do you need to break in a transmission before towing? Current plan is to roll the truck out of the shop and connect it to the trailer...should I spend a day driving around first?
