Loud Whine from Transmission Today

[cc333]

I was heading back with a friend from the local transfer station, when about half way home, I started hearing a horrendous whine coming from the transmission, like it wasn't getting enough fluid.

It was still shifting okay when it shifted, but it felt a bit sluggish and "sticky" (ie, it kind of just wanted to lug in 3rd, even though I was well past the point at which it generally shifts to 4th).

All the while, the temperature gauge was reading approximately 200 to 210 (well within normal), with a peak at about 230 or so (a bit concerning, but I believe still on the high side of normal) while I was parked with the AC on for a few minutes earlier in the day.

I pulled over and shut it off as soon as I could, and about 5 minutes later, I restarted and the whine was gone-- everything was back to normal, and the rest of the drive was uneventful.

What happened?

My preliminary research suggest that the transmission fluid overheated, which seems likely given I'm in the middle of Northern California's record heatwave. Can anyone confirm this hypothesis? Did any damage occur, or did I successfully prevent it by pulling over? Is it possible for the transmission to overheat, but not the engine?? I'm sorry for all the "dumb" questions, but I've never had a transmission do this before....

Thank you!

c

 

[stutaeng]

What transmission?

 

[RichLo]

Its probably ok since you caught it right away but a fluid and filter change would be a good idea.

And yes a trans can overheat but not the engine, that usually only happens when your towing or hauling a heavy load and its not in TC lockup though.

 

[red98]

What transmission?

Scraped from his account that he drives a 1994 GMC k2500 with a 454, so I'm gonna say 4L80e. (Or would that be just a 4l80? IDK)

OP Always best to put Make/Model/Year/Powertrain on the first line so everyone knows what truck you have when trying to get a question answered.

 

[cc333]

Its probably ok since you caught it right away but a fluid and filter change would be a good idea.

That's good to know. It's about due for a servicing anyway, so I'll just let them know to do a transmission fluid+filter change when I take it in in ~3-4 weeks. Any harm in driving it between now and then, provided I'm careful?

And yes a trans can overheat but not the engine, that usually only happens when your towing or hauling a heavy load and its not in TC lockup though.

Interesting. I did haul about 2,000 pounds of yard waste shortly before this (should've mentioned this before, but didn't), so that I'm sure could've contributed (and I followed the recommendation in the owner's guide to drive in 3rd (D), which I'm sure worked it even more).

Scraped from his account that he drives a 1994 GMC k2500 with a 454, so I'm gonna say 4L80e. (Or would that be just a 4l80? IDK)

OP Always best to put Make/Model/Year/Powertrain on the first line so everyone knows what truck you have when trying to get a question answered.

Yeah, I don't know. I'm sure it's encoded into the VIN, so I'll have to take a look and run it through a decoder or something.

And yes, I'll have to remember to actually mention the make/model/year/etc. from now on. I forgot!

c

 

[RichLo]

That's good to know. It's about due for a servicing anyway, so I'll just let them know to do a transmission fluid+filter change when I take it in in ~3-4 weeks. Any harm in driving it between now and then, provided I'm careful?

Interesting. I did haul about 2,000 pounds of yard waste shortly before this (should've mentioned this before, but didn't), so that I'm sure could've contributed (and I followed the recommendation in the owner's guide to drive in 3rd (D), which I'm sure worked it even more).

c

You should be fine until then, just watch temps and dont haul anything.

You did the right thing by towing in 3rd but honestly 2000lbs isnt that much for a 454 and 4l80, you could have gotten away with OD and the TC lockup. When your in 3rd your torque converter isnt locked and inducing a ton of shear heat to the fluid when your under steady load like going up a long hill.

 

[cc333]

OK, but looks like it's going nowhere for awhile.

I tried going to town today, and discovered when I tried taking off from home that it will not move in any gear unless I rev the engine up high, so the transmission, it would seem, is dead.

I checked the fluid again, and it was dark brown, very thin, and smelled burnt.

Could the fix be as simple as changing the fluid, or do I need to start looking for a new truck? I ask because I don't really want to spend $3,000+ for a transmission job unless I have to, because it seems like every time I do something like that to get everything going smoothly, something like this happens and makes it all feel pointless.

I heard these trucks were supposed to be reliable, so what's going on here? Did I get a lemon?

c

 

[bowtie-72]

I am just going to throw this in. Probably not your problem but I have a 5-speed in my truck and I thought for sure that the transmission was on its way out because it used to howel and the gear shift would vibrate so bad especially at highway speeds. Then one night on the way home from work the rear end blew apart. I actually made it home and was surprised to see all the gear oil coming out of the fractured case. I swapped in a junkyard pull rear end and it’s been fine ever since. Moral of the story, sometimes rear end problems will vibrate up through the transmission and make it seem like transmission problems.

 

[bowtie-72]

OK, but looks like it's going nowhere for awhile.

I tried going to town today, and discovered when I tried taking off from home that it will not move in any gear unless I rev the engine up high, so the transmission, it would seem, is dead.

I checked the fluid again, and it was dark brown, very thin, and smelled burnt.

Could the fix be as simple as changing the fluid, or do I need to start looking for a new truck? I ask because I don't really want to spend $3,000+ for a transmission job unless I have to, because it seems like every time I do something like that to get everything going smoothly, something like this happens and makes it all feel pointless.

I heard these trucks were supposed to be reliable, so what's going on here? Did I get a lemon?

c

Yes, I think you are right. Sounds like the tranny retired. You could try to find a good used one and swap it in yourself if you want to save some cash.

 

[red98]

OK, but looks like it's going nowhere for awhile.

I tried going to town today, and discovered when I tried taking off from home that it will not move in any gear unless I rev the engine up high, so the transmission, it would seem, is dead.

I checked the fluid again, and it was dark brown, very thin, and smelled burnt.

Could the fix be as simple as changing the fluid, or do I need to start looking for a new truck? I ask because I don't really want to spend $3,000+ for a transmission job unless I have to, because it seems like every time I do something like that to get everything going smoothly, something like this happens and makes it all feel pointless.

I heard these trucks were supposed to be reliable, so what's going on here? Did I get a lemon?

c

The trucks are, the trannies aren't. Pretty much the only thing that isn't stout on these things is the trans, and its just a bullet you have to bite at some point being a gmt400 owner. The question is do you put another 4l60e in and possibly blow it up again, or do you swap the 80e or some 5spd in and never worry about it again?

$3000 for a trans is only as pointless as $3000 for another truck whose history you do not know.
Or you could go spend $45-60k on a new truck, instead of $3000 on a trans LOL

Also, being on this forum, your truck is guaranteed to be at least 23 years old, how on Earth can you consider that a LEMON? You wanna talk Lemon how about this 2020 Ford Escape that's been 10 feet in the air for the last 18 months waiting for a backordered fuel injector. Unless you've owned it since new you CAN'T know what kind of **** that trans has been thru, maybe the guy that bought it originally towed around 30k pounds every day.

it seems like every time I do something like that to get everything going smoothly, something like this happens and makes it all feel pointless
c

Pray tell, what else have you spent $3k on, on this truck, I really can't think of anything OTHER THAN a trans rebuild that costs that much.