No Reverse

derrickrucker002

Original poster
Member
Feb 17, 2018
12
Tennessee
I’m active duty military and I live in Tennessee, but I’m stationed in Georgia. It’s a 426 mike drive to base, I drove back to base this morning and about a hour after I went to drive it again and it won’t go in reverse. Is the Transmission about to go out, or could it be maybe where I just drove it that many miles without stopping?
 

Blckshdw

Moderator
Nov 20, 2011
10,665
Tampa Bay Area, FL
I don't know if it's the same for the Silverados, but on the 360's, sometimes the shift cable linkage breaks off at the transmission due to a plastic bushing wearing out. When that happens, the shifter will move, but the transmission stays in whatever state it was in at that time. Are you able to get eyes on it easily?
 

Reprise

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Jul 22, 2015
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I’m active duty military and I live in Tennessee, but I’m stationed in Georgia. It’s a 426 mike drive to base,

I have to say...that's a helluva work commute! LOL And I know the two states share a border, but still...

These may seem like a lot of questions, but the more info we can get, the (hopefully) better diagnosis we can make.

- Do you still have all fwd gears? If not, which one(s) are missing?
- If you're missing one or more forward gears, can you shift manually into that gear? (e.g.; if you have no 2nd, can you start in '1' and shift to '2' when appropriate, based on load? If not...can you get to 3rd, by placing the selector in '3', and running through the gears?

- If you still have all forward gears, are they engaging as usual? Any unusual noises?

- Describe what happens when you put the selector in 'R' (please respond with a little more than 'nothing'...LOL)
Does it engage and just not move? No engagement? Noises? Did you try waiting a few seconds before taking it out of reverse? (they can take 2-3 seconds before engaging, as the trans racks up the miles.) If it engages, does it just 'flare' when you step on the gas?

- Did you hear any unusual noises during that last drive, or when you put it into reverse? (whining, grinding, loud bang, etc. ?)

I see you just joined us. Did you just get the truck recently? If you've had the truck for awhile, how has the trans been running?

- Do you have a Check Engine or Service Engine Soon lamp on?

- How's the fluid level & condition?
How many miles are on the truck?

Oh - and to answer your question about long drives & reverse - you should be able to drive NY > LA non-stop (in theory, but you'd have to stop for gas, of course), and not use reverse once. But the first time you try reverse (whether during that 'drive cycle', or starting the truck after rest for an hour, like you described, etc.) - Reverse shouldn't give you a problem (nor should any other gear), outside of possibly the slow engagement, *if* you've got high miles on that transmission. IOW... something broke, most likely.
 
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derrickrucker002

Original poster
Member
Feb 17, 2018
12
Tennessee
I don't know if it's the same for the Silverados, but on the 360's, sometimes the shift cable linkage breaks off at the transmission due to a plastic bushing wearing out. When that happens, the shifter will move, but the transmission stays in whatever state it was in at that time. Are you able to get eyes on it easily?
I haven’t looked yet I’m on staff duty today so I won’t be off till tomorrow...stupid 24 hour shifts...I’ll check into that though but I can put it in drive and park I just can’t get it into reverse
 

Blckshdw

Moderator
Nov 20, 2011
10,665
Tampa Bay Area, FL
I haven’t looked yet I’m on staff duty today so I won’t be off till tomorrow...stupid 24 hour shifts...I’ll check into that though but I can put it in drive and park I just can’t get it into reverse

If you still have your forward gears, than that takes my suggestion off the table.
 

Redbeard

Member
Jan 26, 2013
3,466
Mine did the same thing two or three December's ago. Wife drove 2 hours north of our home and returned. She started to back into the driveway, but no reverse. I was (and still am) thankful it didn't go out several hours from home! The cable was fine (I had fixed it several years prior), but only forward direction was possible. It required an overhaul by the transmission man. It went out around 150k miles. It was the second time it took a dump. The first one was at 15k and still under warranty. I don't have a good reason the tranny should have gone out either time. All proper maintenance has been given to it and no trailer pulling with 2/3 of the miles highway. Go figure. It cost $1700. for the rebuild and slide it back into place. Sorry not much help other wise.
 

Reprise

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Jul 22, 2015
2,724
@Redbeard - I was thinking of a particular issue with the OPs, based on his description (and an experience I had several years ago with a non-GM vehicle.)

If you remember what the exact issue(s) were with your trans, can you PM me? (I want to see if I was on the right track, but I don't want to alarm the OP until he has a chance to report back - and I'm also not a trans tech - I just play one in online forums :smile: Thanks!
 

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