No Reverse at 77K Miles - 2007 Colorado 2.9L 2WD 4L60E

shovenose

Original poster
Member
Apr 24, 2016
318
SF Bay Area, CA
What can I say, it worked one day, and didn't work on the next. The problem is it is like it is in neutral when it's actually in reverse. It seems to work intermittently in which case it drives the truck in reverse but seems to be slipping when it does work. It will sometimes immediately work if I put it in R, while other times I have to leave it in R for quite some time and simply wait for it to engage, while other times revving the engine and/or pushing the truck back will make it start to creep backwards. Forward gears seem normal. No weird noises at all, and fluid is not burnt. One shop simply diagnosed "needs transmission rebuild or replacement" but it wasn't my usual shop - I'll take it there in the coming weeks to have them do a diagnostic and perhaps a more in-depth investigation of the issue.

I don't have any money right now to do the diagnostic. It will be interesting to see what exactly the issue is and how much it will cost to repair, next time I get paid.

As a replacement vehicle my friend sold me his 2002 GMC Envoy SLE 4x4 with 186K miles for $3500 and is giving me 90 days to pay for it. Good friends are amazing. But I will post a seperate thread on that one because it has a few things it needs that I will address over time. As long as that 4L60E doesn't crap out too! Maybe that one will lose all forward gears and still have reverse so I can combine the two... just kidding.

In all seriousness I am very frustrated with GM regarding the Colorado. It is a base model 2WD truck that doesn't even have a hitch - so no towing or off road abuse. I'm not the original owner but I have owned it for about 10K miles/10 months during which time the transmission has been perfect.

I've posted this on a few other forums - mainly I wanted to post so I can keep the situation updated as I learn more about what exactly failed, and in the off chance somebody has any idea what might be wrong or why the transmission failure prematurely.

If this Colorado was my first GM product I would certainly never buy or recommend another. I do really like and have owned other GM trucks and my experience has been positive, but they have all been older. I guess the right way to put this is "they don't make them like they used to".
 

Sparky

Member
Dec 4, 2011
12,927
Dunno man, I've had 3 different 4L60E transmissions each with 215k, 175k, and 138k, all kicking just fine. I think it is more along the lines of you got a bad one somehow more than a fault with them in general.

Here's a link to another forum with a different vehicle, but same transmission, who had the same symptom. Maybe point you in the right direction anyway.

http://ls1tech.com/forums/automatic...eed-advice-escalade-transmission-rebuild.html
 

shovenose

Original poster
Member
Apr 24, 2016
318
SF Bay Area, CA
Dunno man, I've had 3 different 4L60E transmissions each with 215k, 175k, and 138k, all kicking just fine. I think it is more along the lines of you got a bad one somehow more than a fault with them in general.

Here's a link to another forum with a different vehicle, but same transmission, who had the same symptom. Maybe point you in the right direction anyway.

http://ls1tech.com/forums/automatic...eed-advice-escalade-transmission-rebuild.html
Thank you for the reply. They had the same problem but their solution was the rebuild the trans.

I did speak to my mechanic today and he said he would do the labor of replacing the transmission for $500 if I bring him one (not including fluid+filter). I found this one on eBay... http://www.ebay.com/itm/181782097869 they don't mention miles so I messaged them. If it has a reasonable amount of miles and it's still available next time I get paid from work or by a client, I might just go for it. I simply need it to work long enough to sell the truck which is what I intend to do when it's in working condition. If I can sell the Colorado for $6500-7500 it's worth putting in $1500 or so to get the transmission fixed. Otherwise I went on car-part.com and many salvage yards within a short drive have trannys of varying miles.

As far as my luck with 4L60Es, it's been a mixed bag. I had a 1998 Silverado K1500 with unknown miles (at least 230K) with the 4L60E that worked great, a 1996 Yukon that lost its trans at 115K (it had been slipping for a while but still driveable until the rear diff locked up and exploded in a parking lot at 10mph and then it lost all gears except 1,2, and R), a 1995 Suburban K1500 on its original still working 4L60E with 176K miles, and now this 2002 Envoy with 186K that was rebuilt at about 100K, and then the Colorado with a failed 4L60E at 77K. Of those six, three have needed to be rebuilt or replaced. That's 50%. Not so great in my book, but also not terrible since I was not the original owner of any of them so maintenance may have been questionable.

Despite the supposed improvements and upgrades it seems to me that statistically the newer ones are not any better. My original thought was that a 4L60E behind a bigger engine and heavier truck would not last as long, but now I'm wondering if it's the other way around - and older V8 with more torque that spins at a lower average RPM is less stressful for the transmission vs the newer four cylinder Colorado that has to spin to 4-5000RPM to merge on the highway.
 
Last edited:

shovenose

Original poster
Member
Apr 24, 2016
318
SF Bay Area, CA
I ordered the transmission - it has 110K on it apparently and the Colorado it's from is in the junkyard for a blown engine, not a wreck, which is nice:
Z1SegdO.png
 
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Sparky

Member
Dec 4, 2011
12,927
When you get it I'd go ahead and do a few upgrades to it while you're at it. There's a kit I use now in every 4L60E I get that addresses some possible weak points originating in the valve body. It is the "P1870 code buster" from ctpowertrain on ebay. Utilizes a Transgo kit, new separator plate, some Sonnax accumulators, etc.
 

shovenose

Original poster
Member
Apr 24, 2016
318
SF Bay Area, CA
Thanks, if I was keeping the truck it would be worth doing that - but as soon as the trans goes in and the truck is in working order its getting sold.
 

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