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My 700r4 will shift through 1st and 2nd and so on flawlessly and earlier today while accelerating from a stoplight, it seemed as if my car was in neutral when it should have been moving into 3rd. The RPMs shot up to 3,500 and I immediately pulled over. I put it in reverse to back out of the parking lot and all was fine. Then same thing... 1, 2, 3,500rpm. Luckily I was across from my apartment complex so I limped it home and here we are.
My current research suggests two things: clutch-packs or governor.
I'm no mechanic, heck I barely have my own tools. I know this is gonna sting but I can't imagine the $2,500 quote that I got from the shop.
It's starting to seem fairly obvious that the clutch is dead. Lots of stories on the Internet about this same issue. Has anyone had a 700R4 rebuilt by a local mechanic lately? I'm wondering how much I should pay. I know it will vary but, most around where I'm from are at about $65/hr.
It only took me a few hours to change my 3-4 clutch packs. The trans was out of the car already(which will need to be done). That's with using improvised tools and googling things every so often. I had probably 6 hours into it total, as I did a shift kit at the same time, among other upgrades. It likely only took this long due to my inexperience with automatic transmissions.
I can't imagine it taking a pro more than a couple of hours with the right tools, etc, if you're sending them in specifically to change the 3-4 clutch pack. Which you should replace with these, or something similar: https://www.700r4l60e.com/store/prod...&cat=52&page=1
The owner of the garage told me that they don't do rebuilds but, they will install a remanf. He looked up the labor costs to remove and install the trans and was surprised that it was under $400 ($380ish I think). I said "OK good. I have a number in my head of what I was expecting this job to cost me. It's about $1,200 - $1300."
I don't think the owner even looked up a price for a 700R4 before he said $2500. I saw a remanf stock replacement from Monster Transmission for $900. Heck, if he said $1,500 out the door I'd have handed him my credit card. He seems like a nice guy with a lot to do, maybe I'll call him back and ask him to check again. My other options are limited to the dealership for the rebuild or trying to find a guy who knows a guy.
One more thing and thank you for your responses and patients. In no way do I drive my car like I'm in a ***** movie, should the stock clutch packs be fine?
Do the borg warner clutch packs I listed above. Not much more expensive than the rebuilders packs, but the 3-4 clutches are one of the biggest problems with the 700R4. Spend the extra couple bucks for good clutches and steels so this doesn't happen to you again.
The problem with re-man swaps is that the replacement trans will/may be calibrated for a different vehicle.
As an '89 IROC I'll bet it holds 4th gear at WOT. You will likely lose that feature with a replacement trans. Then the 4th gear switch (used for TCC lockup), will it match the stock switch (NO or NC). If not the TCC lockup won't be correct.
Then on top of that will the trans wiring match the stock trans? Lots of horror stories on here about that issue.
If it were my car, the only trans that goes back in is the one that is already in the car.
The problem with re-man swaps is that the replacement trans will/may be calibrated for a different vehicle.
As an '89 IROC I'll bet it holds 4th gear at WOT. You will likely lose that feature with a replacement trans. Then the 4th gear switch (used for TCC lockup), will it match the stock switch (NO or NC). If not the TCC lockup won't be correct.
Then on top of that will the trans wiring match the stock trans? Lots of horror stories on here about that issue.
If it were my car, the only trans that goes back in is the one that is already in the car.
RBob.
You're not wrong. Swaps can get hairy. That being said, I wouldn't hesitate to install a transmission from Dana. He knows what he's doing.
Thanks to everyone who posted with their advice, it really helped a lot. I've found a garage to rebuild and install my transmission for $1200-$1400 (baring no serious internal damage). I plan on doing Kevlar clutches, a transmission cooler, and a new relay to have the radiator fan come on earlier. Probably gonna have them do a rear main seal too.... ya know, while your at it... he said it could be as cheap as $65 with the tranny off.
I'm desperately fighting the urge to go all out, since if I do anything like this again it's going to cost $1200 + upgrades.
