ok so up until recently my 91 z28 with a 350 and 700r4 has had no mechanical problems other than tune ups but recently i stomped on it at a stop sign and it shifted into 2nd and then it started slipping, and its never slipped before, and it just literally just after i got a B&M mega shifter and a shift kit in the mail, so my question is this...should i go ahead and changed the fluid and gasket and go ahead with the shifter and shift kit??? and my second and main question is, is it safe to change the fluid?? because my brother, along with some places online and another guy i know say that sometimes its bad to change the fluid because after that then it cant catch grip and the transmission will go out, now if i can change the fluid and gasket and have no problems then i will definitely do that, but it only slips with i get on it, just driving normal its fine, any help will be much appreciated

 

3-4 clutches wear out on these and will exhibit an engine rev condition when going into 3rd. IF it slips in 2nd, it usually slips in 4th as well (the band works in both gears) If either is the case, it will get worse and you'll know it's time for an overhaul. I'd wait on the shift kit for a bit to see if it gets worse. If you wanna check stuff, pressure test first, if ok, then pull pan and check for a pile of junk (very small amount of very small glitter and particles is normal on most transmissions) make sure to break open the filter and check inside the fold of the fiber too. big pile of junk = time for overhaul. Replace the converter as well and flush the hell out of the cooler and lines.

back in the old days of type f fluid in fords, servicing a higher mileage trans can cause it to slip due to the new fluid being slipperier, but I haven't seen that stuff since the 70's.....

What I see a lot is that people never get their trans serviced till it starts to slip, then it just keeps getting worse and they blame it on the new fluid. I call BS on that one -- it was going to take a dump anyway.....it's not the fault of the new fluid.

keep it serviced every 30k and it will last longer.

 

yeah when i got the car a few month ago, although it runs like a top i can see that the previous owner did very poor maintenance, the oil was terrible and i had to replace every part of the ignition, the fuel filter, sending unit, and fuel pump.....so i doubt the fluid has been changed, i checked it during the time of my post and it looks to me to be bad, i havent asked anyone else, i mean compared to every other time ive check the transmission fluid in other vehicles it looks bad, so should i go ahead and change it and the filter? the car has 140k miles on it but its been driven like you would expect a camaro to be driven

 

...one of the first things I do whenever I buy a used car --- change ALL the fluids....
yes, service that thing, but still crack open the filter and look inside, post a picture if there's stuff in it.

 

yeah i usually change everything when i get a new vehicle, i got super lazy on this just because it ran better already but my laziness caught up to me, i learned my lesson the hard way i guess

 

so i changed my tranny fluid today and after 3 frustrating hours under a foot of space i took it for a test drive theres NO slippage!.....wish i would have put my shift kit in.......

 

was it not full before you changed it? I can't imagine new fluid FIXING anything.... and hey, at least you know how to get the pan off now.... the valve body will take you probably another 3 hours -- sorry you're only a foot off the ground, servicing the filter on the rack takes less than 30 minutes usually.

 

ok well funny story, the car was running perfect and in fact saturday night ( 4/20/2013 ) a friend was riding with me and we were giving it hell all through country roads and on the interstate and even cruised with a friend back and did a couple burn outs and got sideways on a few corners and it never skipped a beat, then yesterday going to church in the morning it still ran fine and when i got onto a bridge i got on it to hear the exhaust roar off the cement walls and then after church driving home it did good still i was doing 70-80 then it seems like as soon as i get into town it takes a dump on me, right about 40mph it sounds like its slipping BAD or like 3rd just went out all together so i decide to only drive it to work and baby it until i figure out a plan to fix and this morning ( 4/22/2013 an hour ago ) i start up a hill and it wont go over 20 and it slips super hard going into 2nd so i turned around and came home

 

This will sound elementary, but check the fluid level. If it's up, you could be in trouble.

 

What he said.

 

If you like the Amsoil, use it.
A full flush would be better as you would have all Amsoil in the tranny, but even a partial change will help a lot. If you keep after it and do a pan drop every couple years the oil will stay clean.
As for a poor mans tranny flush, you can unhook one of the cooler lines at the radiator, slip on a rubber line to direct the oil to a bucket. Start the car in park and let it idle. The pump will push the fluid out the lines. Immediately start pouring in fluid as fast as you can to replace the fluid being pumped out. About 12 quarts will flush the whole system out. Then hook up your line and top off your fluid.
You have to be careful doing this method, it pumps the oil out fast and you really have to hurry and pour it in fast. If you run it dry for very long you can damage the pump in the trans. I have done this and it works well. Just make sure your oil bottles are open and ready and have a funnel ready also.

 

the level is good, and the fluid is perfectly clean, im gonna limp it over to a friends house again and drop the pan and see if theres any new surprises, but if worse comes to worse i already have a deal lined up with a friend to sell me his freshly built 700r4 because hes switching to a 6 speed