Boy o boy. Whoever rebuilt this thing was a dumb SOB.

First, they tried to get the fill plug out and STRIPPED the square hole out of the plug. EZ OUT to the rescue!

They sealed the damn thing with RTV! RTV + ATF = LEAK! Stupid ****!

They DID NOT set the bearing race depth properly, which allowed the input shaft to move around, consequently destroying the countershaft. Oh Boy. I ordered and received the input and counter shafts (325 bucks later!) so that wont be an issue. Damn there was A LOT of metal in the bottom of this thing.

I will have it back together soon. I'll let you all know the results.

 

How do you know that it has been rebuilt? They come from the factory with RTV. There's nothing wrong with that. RTV works fine on ATF. I don't know who you heard otherwise from, but they're wrong.

How do you know the clutch gear was improperly set up? Is this a 1st-design or a 2nd-design trans? Do you know how they're supposed to be set up? Is the Torrington bearing in between the shafts wiped out? what about the roller bearings inside the clutch gear, and the tip of the mainshaft?

Usually, when you see the clutch gear / countergear wipe-out, it's the result of either WWAAAAAYYYYYY too much torque, or a bad pilot bearing.

 

This is how I know it was rebuilt...

Loose bolts EVERYWHERE. Some torrington bearings wiped out. The race for the input shaft bearing worn pretty badly. The pilot bearing LOOKED good. Doesnt mean it was...

Trust me. Im not done. I'll give more updates as they come.

 

I forgot to add one other wipe-out cause.... run dry..... had that happened to it?

Is it 1st design or 2nd design?

I've rebuilt quite a few of those, they usually were much as you describe inside. No need to rebuild them if they're not torn up, of course. There's not that many bolts, only the 7 or so around the extension housing, the 4 around the clutch gear bearing retainer, and about 20 around the cover which are really small (more like screws than "bolts" really...) Some may not have been as tight as others, but the trans won't work at all if any of them are "loose".

Another thing that will utterly destroy everything to do with the clutch gear is if the trans-to-BH bolts are loose, or if the BH is loose on the engine.

 

Sounds close to what happened to my trans before I got my 89 GTA. I opened up the case and boy it was an ugly site. Input and countershaft were toasted and the bottom of the tranny was filled with shavings.

 

The 20 or so around the cover was loose. 1st or 2nd? You mean WC or Non-WC? Its a WC. And the damn thing was leaking like a stabbed pig, so yes it was run pretty dry. The trans-to-bellhousing bolts were tight.


More updates to come.

 

Yes 1st design was the NWC and 2nd the WC.

 

Case is clean! New fill plug! Parts on order!