Please respond. I haven't yet mastered the search function here, but I do use it.

My original 700r4 lasted 120,000 + miles and worked beautifully right up til a sudden death while sitting still at a stop light. I heard a clunk like a u-joint noise and I thought it came from whatever was in the next lane. When the light turned & I tried to pull off, it just slipped starting about half way through first gear.

I had the trans rebuilt at a local shop for $700.00 and it was covered with a 6 mnth - 6k mile warrenty. It lasted 8 months & 10k miles, but never really seemed right. I took it back to the same shop in hopes that they would work with me even though it was out of warrenty. They rebuilt it again at a reduced price ($500). Again, it never worked right. It would shift way too soon in drive or OD selector position, but would hold any gear if shifted manually. It would not downshift to 1st until almost a complete stop. It shifted very firm under part throttle & mushy under WOT. It shifted at about 3500 rpm under WOT. It soon started too slip during the 2-3 shift. The TV cable was adjusted every which way possible by myself as well as the shop, and it only made matters worse if adjusted with the slider all the way back.

The rebuilder has had the transmission out another 3 or 4 times & was never able to get it to shift without the slipping (or flaring up) as he put it. They also couldn't get it to shift at about 5000 rpm under WOT like the original did.

After talking to many shops & car owners I finally gave up on a local rebuild working right & ordered a rebuilt trans through Advance Auto Parts that is rebuilt by Accurate Transmissions with a 15 month unlimited milege warrenty. Price with my employee discount was $770- with exchange. I just got it in the car, and it shifts very crisply, but not like the orginal did. More like a tranny for a family car. It will hold any gear if shifted manually, and downshifts fine, but it still shifts under WOT at only about 3500 rpm. The TV cable has been adjusted up & down and all in between. I can get it to shift even sooner but not later.

I'm not too concerned about the shifts not being hard under throttle as I know a shift kit will fix that, but the early shifting concerns me alot. I don't want to burn this transmission up.

Could I have a bad TV cable?? It seems to work best if I push the slider all the way back against the bracket. This makes me wonder if I need a shorter cable. (& also if a shorter cable is available) The transmission from the rebuilder seemed to work best in this position also. I don't know where the orginally worked best, because I never touched the trans or the cable until it broke.

Please PLEASE help. All I want is for my car to shift smooth under part throttle a 2500 to 3000 rpm & to be able to fishtail on the 1-2 shift at 5000 rpm under WOT like the original transmission did. The stock transmission was like granny's car under light throttle, and a street/strip killer under full throttle. All I've been able to achieve since then is the granny car part.

 

I'm sorry to hear about all your bad luck.

Your T.V cable could be streched its always a possibility. I suggest you use Leo's method for adjusting the tv cable. Have some one sit in your car "engine off" and floor it, while its floored press the detent tab and slide the cable toward the firewall as much as possible, wiggle the throttle linkage to make sure it's not sticking and release the detent tab. After this, have the person in the car floor it again and press down on the tv cable to see if theres slack. If theres slack on the cable bend the tv bracket itself back until you have none or VERY little. If your TV cable sets correctly and you still have shifts that you dont like then go for a governer calibration kit that will rasie the shift points higher.

 

I have tried adjusting the cable again using Leo's method, but still can't get it to shift any later than 3500 rpm under WOT unless I shift it manually. I have the TV cable set at MAX TV now (minus one click that it did to adjust itself when the throttle was opened). I don't mind spending on a governor calibration kit, but if the transmission won't shift near 5000 rpm under full throttle like an original one will, isn't there something wrong somewhere?? I'm about ready to give up on ever getting a good 700 & install a turbo 350 or maybe a T-56.

 

As I was reading this, I was thinking about the governor, too, but not for a recalibration. Here's my guess. I wonder what vehicle your rebuilt Accurate transmission came from! Who installed the trans? Were the governors swapped and the speedo gears swapped? You might have a governor set up for a truck... trucks make low-rpm power for towing, so they might not want the thing to shift over 3500 rpm. So that trans (with that governor) gets dropped into your car, you expect the "street" car 6000 RPM upshift, and are stuck with the "truck" 3500 rpm upshift.

You might want to return that TV cable to it's proper position though; don't blow the seals out or burn up the clutches (more pressure=foaming fluid=air bubbles touch clutches instead of fluid) on an otherwise good trans!!

Do you still have the old trans, or did it get handed back to the store as a core? If the governors weren't swapped, maybe you can try to get one out of a junkyard's f-body; preferably from a blown 700r4, because it might cost less... can't see a junkyard wanting to let someone rip a piece out of a working tranny. This way you still have your original governor, and can try fitting the junkyard one in. (Clean the junkyard one first with a spray brake cleaner)

 

Sounds like they screwed up something in the valve body...which doesn't surprise me because accurate transmissions are crap anyway. I used to work at a Kragen and we sold those transmissions, and trust me, we had a book of warranty paperwork. It rings a bell since i remember we had a big ordeal with a guy who bought a TH400 for his hot rod chevy malibu wagon and he brought the damn things back twice with the same problem about the shift points and so fourth. Shift Management isn't any better............