Transmission failing?

Hey Guys, let me re-iterate what the issues are. When climbing a steep hill, no matter how much gas I give it, it just doesn't want to change gears. the revs go up but the car just barely moves. Same thing when merging on the highway. If is step into it, I hear a growling sound, maybe sometimes a ping until finally it shifts and the car runs fine. And when cruising at 80km the shakes pretty bad. By the way, in the city on level ground staying under 80 km, the car runs just fine. I was really hoping that since my transmission issues seem to occur when there is serious load applied, that the modulator might have fixed it, but after swapping it out, the problems still exist. By the way there are no codes. I found this video online, is this essentially what needs to be replaced on my car?....

https://youtu.be/nqoJWNOoXI4

I am preparing to go to go to a transmission shop and just wanna know if you guys think a rebuild is in order or what? Thanks for any help.

The 4th gear clutch and hub were worn out to nothing on my transmission at around 170k mi. Before the transmission failed, I had issues with the Torque Converter Clutch lockup not staying engaged. The worn teeth on the shaft I believe caused issues with the Trans overheating. The first sign was the TCC issues and it eventually grew to as you describe, with it shaking badly upon increased load at speed when the TCC was on or trying to engage. If you tap the brake when this is happening, it should command the TCC off so you can confirm if this is an issue. My current trans I bought used and is now at around that 170k mile mark as well. It overheats pretty quickly and goes into a limp-home mode where it will initially lose overdrive and then third as well.

I have my original rebuilt and waiting to swap in and they have upgraded parts available, at least I was told, for the failure prone parts. The 4T60E and 4T65E are relatively cheap and easy to rebuild so you can probably find a fair price from someone who has dealt with them before. My new trans is still waiting to be swapped in so I cant yet confirm the results of the rebuild.

I think you best bet would be to pick up a scanner that can monitor both TCC status (On/Off) and Trans Temp so you can see exactly what is going on.

Thanks for the comments Dave, it seems that although they last a long time, these transmissions are prone to the same demise eventually. My TCC issues started years ago and yes tapping the brake would disengage the torque converter so that is definitely on the list of issues. Although I had heard that simply changing the TCC solenoid would solve that? I guess they'll have to drop it and see what they find, just not sure about spending the cost of a rebuild on such a high mileage car. Needs suspension work, tires, and those brake lines look pretty bad. I'll let you guys know what they say once I eventually bring it to a shop.

What do you guys think of this theory...

http://pontiacbonnevilleclub.com/forum/viewtopic.php?f=23&t=12868

It essentially talks about the fact that the 4T65E Trans can experience a TCC lock out due to a bad ground in the chassis, a bad brake light switch, or a code stored in the ECM?

BMD wrote:

What do you guys think of this theory...

http://pontiacbonnevilleclub.com/forum/viewtopic.php?f=23&t=12868

It essentially talks about the fact that the 4T65E Trans can experience a TCC lock out due to a bad ground in the chassis, a bad brake light switch, or a code stored in the ECM?

Grounds are important for everything in these. It's worth a closer look.

Do you guys know if the tranny from the 1997 Century with the 3.1L motor will swap into our cars? My in-laws are getting rid of their Century and although it has low miles, the engine oil and coolant mixed and messed up the motor. They are not interested in fixing it as it also has some rust issues. So does any one know if the tranny in that car will interchange with ours?

Since you have a 96, yes. The 97-99 Century and 95-96 Rivi both have the 4T60-E.

Thanks for the response Matt, I thought ours was the 4T65-E?

97-99 got the 4T65-E-HD

Thanks man!

BMD wrote:

Do you guys know if the tranny from the 1997 Century with the 3.1L motor will swap into our cars? My in-laws are getting rid of their Century and although it has low miles, the engine oil and coolant mixed and messed up the motor. They are not interested in fixing it as it also has some rust issues. So does any one know if the tranny in that car will interchange with ours?

Hello, I have a low mileage trans out of a severely rear ended 96 sc Riviera if interested. It's got 67000. I'm using the engine on my 98 but the trans is incompatible. It has the vacuum actuator. $300

Thanks for the offer Ruben, I''l have too see how the situation with the tranny from my In-laws will work out first.

I don't think the trans will work out of the century. You have to verify if you have the same connections on both trannys

I drove the car home from where it was stored and drove very well. No slipping or any issues. I already have it out sitting in my garage