Snapped ZF6 tranny in half...really

[Red Bull RockIt]

Title says it all.
47,000 miles on an 03 D'Max 3500, dually, 4 wheel drive.
This truck has been babied but on the road a ton as I put those miles on in one year.
No impacts whatsoever to the tranny or t-case.
One replacement of the dual-mass flywheel at 18,000 after it shook me to death for 300 miles in the middle of nowhere.
The motor and tranny mounts seem to be fine.
The back section of the ZF6 case, just in front of the transfer case mounting flange, split all of the way around the tranny...
Chevy has no clue what could have caused this and cannot find any record of this happeneing anywhere else. Chevy warranty has denied the claim as the tranny only has a 35,000 mile warranty, so we're 12k over.
There is no evidence of abuse (no bent cross-member, no scratches to the tranny or t-case, no hits on any undercarriage components), no record of this being an issue with any other ZF's (or is there?), and a relatively new truck in terms of a 3500 Deisel. My assumption is it must have been a defect in the case or somehow the tranny was damaged from the original dual mass flywheel vibrating so badly when it failed.

Any ideas?

[ 04-26-2005, 09:07 PM: Message edited by: Red Bull RockIt ]

[madmatt]

I've seen bad joints vibrating and being ran that way for so long it cracked the case of an Allison.

[D-MAX]

I just saw one at the GMC Dealer in Sheridan WY.
it was busted all the way around, thay said thay have several more, you can call Jim Weddle, the Shop Foreman at 307-672-9074 for more Info. ;)

[jbplock]

Moved to 2500/3500HD Trucks & Drivetrain forum.

smile.gif

[Kennedy]

The Allison has done the same thing in some cases. I'd be inclined to contact the dealer mentioned in the above post as well as ZF themselves.

I'm guessing that the weight of the transfer case hanging back there is a contributor as well as potential imbalance in the driveline...

[jackrabbit]

So, what was the cost of the replacement ZF?

[Red Bull RockIt]

The dealer is wanting $4700 to replace the tranny...I'm not going for that.

The WY dealer D-Max suggested told me that they have had a number of tranny case failures. All were on Allison tranny's and all were caused by a minor imbalance in the rear driveshaft. Something to check into.

I left a message at ZF and still have not heard from them.

Also, I'll call GreenLeaf and ask what a used tranny from a wrecked truck will go for.

[Tractor]

I have known, and have had Jim and his shop work on my outfits for close to 30 years. He is a GM brain second to none. If he says that is what is happening then that is what is going on. My CUMMINS has the computer checked out to see if all is well every so often. Les the Dodge man at Sheridan Motors is class at it,s best. It is a heck of a shop. No need to question them.
TRACTOR

[TJ]

We have had numerous ZF (Zungenfeltergerman-lalala) failures down at Sheridan Motor. An astronomical percentage of failures when compared to the amount sold. The "number" of Allison failures may seem about the same. Since Allison dominates the market share in percent sold, it makes their failure rate minimal compared to ZF. We have GREAT luck with the NV5600. Too bad we don't have that one...

[jackrabbit]

Does anyone offer a conversion from a ZF650 to the NV5600 in the Duramax?

This topic makes me a bit nervous. Had similar issues (the trans didn't snap in half though just went through 3 of them) with my 6.2L 85 until I convertered over to a NV4500 in that truck.

[Red Bull RockIt]

Well, a few weeks of issues and we still don't have a truck. The dealer did replace the tranny TWICE, as the first replacement came in in poor packaging and broke during installation. A 4 day delay and another was being put in and still no reason of why it broke, plus no acceptance of responsibility from Chevy, so they demanded we pay for it. We did, took the truck out, and it is vibrating worse than ever. I took it back, asked for them to yank it apart and figure out why, and we'll just have to see what comes of it.

The dealer is nice enough, but man, Chevy is not standing behind their product. I'm beginning to question whether I want a Chevy at all now...
I'm a really high profile off-road team (rockcrawling) with a fully branded attention getting tow-rig. You'd think they'd recognise that and not want me driving around in a Dodge for my next rig...
That new 4wd International is looking REALLY nice right now.