My 2001 Tahoe LQ4 swap saga (lots of pics)

[gearmesh, inc.]

Originally Posted by yota

well, i'm losing 1st and 4th gear now when the trans gets up to operating temperature and my CEL is back on... i'm taking it back in to the shop this week to see what's up with it but based on the codes stored last time it was there, and how the trans is acting, i think i have some shift solenoids going bad... gonna try to get it patched back together for now and save up for a new trans and converter... i'm thinking about either an RPM or performabuilt... thoughts on either? i wish i was still down there because i know who would be building it- unless i could get one done there and shipped to me... anyway, here's the links to the 2 im looking at... gearmesh?

http://www.performabuilt.com/level-2.html

http://rpmtransmissions.com/levelvauto.html

According to the solenoid truth tables for the 4L60 series transmissions, a failure of shift solenoid A can cause no 1st and 4th. Being as these shift solenoids are failure prone with high mileage, just go ahead and replace both of them while the pan is down. They usually run for about $25 each or a little less.

As far as the two trans companies you mentioned, either one will survive behind a mildly modded truck. One thing that does suck on these trucks is the factory trans tune for line pressure. The factory tune will give you max line pressure at WOT all the way through 1st, but after it lays into 2nd, the factory tune will cut line pressure back 30-40% even with you still holding WOT all the way into the shift for 3rd. This does not bode well for long term durability for the 3-4 clutches in any 4L60E no matter how well it is built.

I don't care for the prices of trannies from those companies that much, but when you are miles away from the usual people you have faith in, you don't have much choice.