So here is my transmission issue. Part throttle, 700R shifts fine. Easy shifts, and shift points seem to be right in line with what others get stock.

WOT is another story. 2.73 gears out back. Both 1-2 and 2-3 shift at 5200-5300 WOT. And, at least 1-2, it feels like either the engine is done making power by 4500 RPM and then it's all noise, or it is holding onto the gear, and when it finally shifts, it shifts quite hard.

Also, if I let off to about 3/4 throttle or at least some when I'm WOT, then it will shift even at 4300, 4500, whatever RPM I let off at that high. But holding it open, it won't shift until after 5000.

Now is this a trans going shot issue, or a governor springs/weights issue? Car has probably around 87 K miles on it. I have no idea if a shift kit was done at all to it or not before I had it.

I really don't know much at all about transmissions. Getting some answers, I heard all 86 305's at least shifted in that 5200 range stock, so I thought I'd just change springs. What I don't get though, is that it shifts hard, feels like I'm getting NO power up high, and also shifts if I let off but not when I'm WOT.

Thanks for the help
-Dustin

 

TV cable?

 

Make sure your tv cable is adjusted properly. Other than that it sounds like you could replace your spring/weights on the governor. At WOT your shift points will be higher and if you let off it will shift lower when you let off due to the TV cable. Your transmission is fine, you just need to tune it to your combo. The 305 that is in it doesn't breath real well up high and might trail off around 4500 or so.

 

yeah, TPI doesn't want to turn much faster than 4500 RPM

 

Yep, TV cable has been adjusted correctly 3 times now. Some people try to tell me to loosen the cable to change shift points, but that will do nothing but reduce line pressure and frag the tranny.

I had thought weights/springs too at first, but the way the engine ran up at 5000-5500 RPM seemed strange, and also that it shifted hard into 2nd when it finally shifted also threw me off. I'm hoping to get time this weekend to take the governor out and fiddle with the springs, I know a guy at a transmission shop, he gave me some springs/weights for free to try out.

Anyone with good instructions for correct governor removal/installation, one of the few things my Haynes doesn't have?

 

hey man i am having the same problem.... and it sucks because i was at the track and let off on the gas a bit to shift... then it shifted but i then got back into it and it downshifted agian and then hit 2nd normal? so i dont know what the deal is....

 

the problem is in the governer or internal valve body. more than likely just the governer.

 

Agreed...

 

I'm haveing sorta the same problem.At WOT in 1st. it will wind out past 5500 and if I manualy shift it I have to go from 1st. to drive before it will shift. If I get on it in 2nd. and have it at WOT it won't shift till I slightly lift off the petal. If I get on it in D and at WOT throttle it will kick down and shift fine and normal around driveing it does fine. I swapped out governors and same thing and both governors look fine. My kickdown cable is adjusted where normal driveing you can feel it shift but not as harsh as if the trans. had a shift kit in it.Running out of Ideas. Please Help.

 

some of the older 700R4's had this problem with sticking in gear especially once you get them warmed up. i've chased that problem to no end and have yet to find the exact cause since it quite often can very. i have fixed a few with a new valve body, occasionally a governer or governer pin, and once a new pump. you might want to check the boost valve if you haven't already replaced it to see if it's sticking in the bore of the pump. this is a problem i've ran into on a few and will cause for inconsistant line pressure as well as shift points that will go beyond valve float unless you let up on it. since you have it out it's a good time to install a .500 tv boost valve and a larger low/reverse boost valve.

 

As far as I know mine's not an older 700r4.It's at least an 88 unless somebody swapped it out before I bought the car.
Anyway got any pics of this boost valve? I take it I can swap this out without removeing the trans. I've got another trans but I don't really want to ruine it by robbing parts from it. I'm about to the point of swapping to a turbo 350 but I really don't wanna lose overdrive.

 

i'll try to get you a picture. the trans you have is a way better choice than a TH350 for everyday use. if you look at the opposite side of the pump from where the tcc solenoid is, that is where the boost valve is. there is a retaining ring there that you pull out and it'll come shooting at you. replace that with a new one and make sure everything in there slides well. getting it back in is a trick, but with a strong stick/pen type magnet it is very doable.

 

OK stupid question, Would the lock up solenoid being messed up cause this problem to? The harness that plugs into the trans for the convertor lockup is unpluged. When it is plugged in the trans acts up. The convertor will lock in and out errattickly.I thought about just swapping out the lock up selonoid but thought I could live without the lockup feature but if it's causeing this other problem as well then it looks like thats what I'm going to have to do.

 

that shouldn't be the cause for this case, but the eratic tcc is annoying i'm sure.

 

As long as I leave it unplugged everything's fine other than the shifting issue.I'll have to tackle the boost valve thing this weekend.Thanks For The Help.

 

The 1-2 shifting issue sounds a lot like the same thing mine's doing......1-2 slide-bump. A Transgo kit, and vette servo should cure it. Mine sounds like the engine is falling off, but I believe it to be a slow applying 2nd gear issue.

Any suggestions/generalizations or starting points for governor springs? I have all the all the transgo stuff for the 700, SK-700 (green box) and 700 2&3 reprogramming kit.

 

hey guys, i tried to get help with a similar prob last week. how come i didn't get this much input?lol...anyway, my car has almost the same prob. it did it with the old trans and 305tpi. but it also does it with the new trans and zz4 motor. under full throttle it wont come out of second. but 1st gear, i cant even manually keep past 5500rpm. and yes, i've also played with the tv cable. but if it is a govorner problem, why does it act different in each gear???

 

You'ed think someone would have a deffanite answer to this problem since so many of us have this same problem.
Mine's aggravateing enough that I'm considering a Turbo 350 swap.

 

the 1-2 shift issue you're having is odd, but the 2-3 is common to the older versions. when they went to the 4L60 most of that was fixed. i've had a bunch of the older versions that were like that. occasionally i'd find something wrong with them, but most of the time i just changed over to a newer case with other various upgrades.

 

Yes but mine being an 88 should already have all the upgrades the factory did to them.

 

The 1-2 shift error is NOT odd, just exxaggerated in my case, and sounds like a couple others! Look at the box for the Transgo shift kits for the 700R4, or even the newer 4L60E, the 1-2 slide bump is addressed in these kits. Yes, the newer version of the 700 is better to have from the start, but some of the same issues still exist even in the latest electronic design.

BTW....4L60 and 700R4 are the same thing, and they didn't change the name to signify the updates (name change came in the early 90's, the major updates were late 86, early 87) they changed the name to "standardize" their naming convention.

 

going to the 4L60 name didn't mean they were fixed. it just happened to be they changed it's name around the same year they fixed some other issue's with it. the 4L60 name was just in line with everything else. 4 (4 forward gears) L (longitudinal) 60 (given by it's torque rating). if i recall correctly, one of it's biggest improvements was the 10 vane pump (later increased to 13 in 97 for the 4L60E to go with pulse width modulation) which came in around 89 or so (about the year of the name change). the 1-2 slide bump in the 4L60E isn't the same condition. that is from the trans having a slow shift time and yet a harsh shift due to a low volume of fluid at the shift solenoid.

 

So what exactly is the problem with the 1-2 shift in the 700R4 (aka 4L60)? I want to make sure mine's right!

I still haven't seen any of the 13 vane pumps! I was just looking at a 98 4L60E pump (trans is for my S-10 project) and it was PWM, removeable bellhousing (meaning it was 97-up having both). I'm not sold on the 13 vane pump being much better than the 10, at least compared to the improvement from the 7 to the 10 vane.

As a side note, I'm "being particular" about all these details because I work on them fairly often, and I have had a few issues with overhauls I've done, and while definately more than good enough to satisfy the customer and well out-live a 3 year warranty, sometimes they just don't feel "perfect". I think the more details, and tricks I learn, the better job I will do on the next! I've been studying the fluid diagrams to see what I can learn above and beyond just putting in a transgo kit to cure the biggest "problems".

 

some info. on the 13 vane pumps....

97' C&K V8's began using them after the start of the year and all srta's should come with the 13 vane pump.

late 97' Y bodies began using them and all 98 up.

mid year S&T trucks began using them (after trans julian date 98-019) in most L35 applications.

up to it's last year the f-body only came factory with the 10 vane according the the listings although i've taken some apart from unopened cases and found them to have the 10 vane. all of the srta' i've taken apart have had it.

the 13 vane isn't enough of a difference over the 10 vane to make it worth being concerned about. the main differences is the 13 vane has a bit more flow capacity at low rpm and less airation (not spelled right) at constant higher rpms.

simply replacing the pump pressure spring and changing the boost valve will commonly fix the 1-2 "bump" shift without making the shifts too harsh. a slightly stiffer spring in the accumulator can help eliminate this also. most of the shifting problems i've ran into on the older 700R4's have been a sloppy 2-3 shift.

 

My 84 has a big slide then bump into second. The 2-3 is nice (except when it doesn't shift at high RPM's, just found out I have that issue!) I'm replacing it with a newer (I think about 90) that I bought as a core for this purpose.

Thanks for the info you've given!

 

i have access to a ton of trans info most of which i check on as i am curious about something. when you go to do a buildup, let me know i'm curious as to what parts others use. i have quite a few big dollar jobs comming up soon and one magazine article coming out. shoot me some pm's as you find a fix for something if you can or other problems, i like hearing from other transmission guys.