Kitten Tooth

Title says it all. I found the numbers on the transmission (on the passenger side near the rear of the pan gasket surface). the number 8 indicates mine is a 1988 model. I've already tore it down most of the way. I've searched this forum for other threads on 700r4 stuff and found a PDF manual. I Figure maybe id try and do a documented re-assembly of mine with pictures. This is my first transmission rebuild. Everyone told me I should take to a shop and my mind yelled "CHALLENGE ACCEPTED". I gotta learn about automatic transmissions at some point. Background on the unit.. I pulled it from a junkyard out of a G20 conversion van. Just happened to have the right tail housing for the torque arm. Never dropped the pan and put it into my 83 berlinetta with a small block 350 and a q-jet. After I had it sort of driveable, i pulled it out of the garage and whipped all over the parkinglot with it. Car blew my mind, i loved it. The next day it quit moving in gear. Dropped the pan, found lots of sludge and a plugged filter. Changed the filter and put it back together. Went up the street, open revs when it hits 3rd gear. so 3/4 clutches are roasted. Dropped the transmission and started the teardown today. 3/4 clutches are definitely done, one was even broken. Im held up with the rear return spring assembly as i do not have a spring compressor at the moment. I could use some opinions now.

My buddy told me not to dis-assemble the valve body (the more i think about it the more I wonder if i can just spray brake cleaner and compressed air through the orifices and call it good) what do you guys think? He just said it was a pain in his opinion and not completely necessary.

I'm going to replace the sun shell with "The Beast" one as i read this is a weak point in the 700r4. What about the 5 pinion planetary upgrade? Is it necessary? Im trying to save money hence the rebuild.

Still looking for a good rebuild kit... any recommendations?

I can't seem to figure out how to remove the governor.. Should I even bother?

Otherwise this whole deal is actually not that intimidating now that i've opened it up. Just baskets and gears and thrust washers and bearings that need to be assembled in the right order. Even the pump doesn't look that complicated.

Thanks guys,
KT

red rock

iTrader: (2)

For a complete rebuild you need to remove the valve body. Here are the complete rebuild video's. It shows the 4l60E which is the same as the 700r4. http://transmissionbench.com/4L60Evideos.html as for parts and kits PATC, Monster trans, Probuilt trans are all good. A good shift kit would be a good idea also, Transgo is top quality.

Pro Built Automatics

Go to: https://www.700r4l60e.com/store/prod...&cat=19&page=1 This is a Heavy Duty rebuild kit. For the Street/Strip rebuild kit, go to: https://www.700r4l60e.com/store/prod...&cat=19&page=1
These kits are very complete with many updates and includes rebuild DVD. The modified TransGo Shift is in all of the rebuild kits. Heat treated GM sunshell. No special tools needed for the input shaft ring installation. I hope this helps some.

Kitten Tooth

One of the kits I was checking out was from Pro king. Are they any good? They claim to use parts from borg warner and trans-tec. I removed the valve body but he told me not to dis-assemble it as it was a big pain and i could probably just clean it up from the outside.

red rock

iTrader: (2)

I never heard of Pro king. I stick with what I have heard of or used from past experience. My friend bought a kit off of Ebay and got the shaft pretty bad (no pun intended). If you are doing a rebuild, you want to do it right, (not like my friend) you need to take the valve body apart and not only clean it, but inspect the valve body plate and replace the gaskets and replace some valves with better ones that come in a Transgo kit.

Kitten Tooth

Well another issue is that I'm on a budget too since this car is being sold in the Spring. This whole rebuild is based around a "what do i got to lose" kinda thing. So far the internal parts of the transmission (gear sets, drums, and shaft) look to be in good shape with no abnormal wear. I found a couple of fiber plates that had chunks out of them though and look like they're burnt to hell in both 1/2 and 3/4 clutch packs. The splines on the sun shell look great with no abnormal wear either. (The teeth start to look like those on a saw blade when they start to wear out.) Sun gear looks good too. All bearings move very smoothly. My buddy used the kit from Pro king on his 4l60e in a silverado and its been going strong for a few months now even with being abused a bit so i ordered it yesterday. Im in the process of making some spring compressor tools so i can get the pistons and whatnot out of the case, the forward drum and the reverse drum. Ill be replacing the cast aluminum pistons with the steel ones as well and check all clearances listed in my manual. Gonna go take some pictures now and post them up.

Pro Built Automatics

DO NOT replace the aluminum pistons in the 700R4. They only crack in the 4L60E's. Since you are on a budget and will sell the vehicle, only replace what is necessary. Gaskets, sealing rings, filters, and anything that looks bad. Use the "step cut" solid Teflon seals for the input shaft. They require no special tool for their installation. The scarf cut for the reverse/input drum are fine and have never presented a problem. Use Borg Warner Hi-Energy's for the 3-4 clutch and ALWAYS use the Viton input to output shaft seal (4L60E) and not the plastic one that comes in all 700R4 gasket kits.