700R4 woes

[4x4Dreamer]

I got up yesterday, started to drive to work, and noticed I wasn't shifting out of 1st. And the super low 1st gear in a 700r4 makes a 6.2 scream at 15 mph. So, I worked from home yesterday. Yesterday evening I went out, rechecked the TV cable, made sure the Vacuum hose was on, checked the fluid (smelled a bit burnt) and tried again. Still no shift. Can't even shift it manually, it just won't go out of 1st.

So, I guess I have a few questions.
Let me preface by saying, I need Overdrive. I use it to commute, don't want to drive the damn Kia. It's an excuse to finish my motorcycle, but we need the truck.

1. Should I give it a shot at rebuilding?
2. How much is a rebuild kit, and is there even such a thing?
3. How much would that cost?
4. would it be cheaper to take it somewhere?
5. Would it be cheapter to just buy a new one?


If I do rebuild it, I want to go with the heavy duty (I know, it's an oxymoron in a 700r4) internals and put a shift kit in it, try to keep it going. I've heard way too many stories about people getting theirs redone and it blowing up in 2 months, I'd like to avoid that.

Any help you guys can provide will be greatly appreciated.

[mhagie]

Check with Dr Lee, He had his 700 rebuilt by someone in Fla and seems to be happy with it.
Merle

[mpascino]

pop the governer out of the trans and see if it is stuck or if the plastic gear is chewed up....Could be a simple thing....

[ZZ]

This is the way that my 1st 700R4 failed in Dec '03. It wouldn't shift out of low.

I hope you have better luck than I suffered with buying a rebuilt. You can read a story or two about my problems by searching for posts in my username.

I strongly suggest that you keep & use your original case & valve body. This was my major goof up.

[4x4Dreamer]

I did pull the governor last night, it looked brand new. So I cleaned it a bit, put everything back together and noticed it was taking a lot more turns to get the cable tight that it did to take it off. I'm guessing the cable had worked itself loose and wasn't reporting the pressure properly.

Go figure.

Thanks for the input guys. Remember, on a 4x4, the governor is BEHIND the tcase. LOL.

[BobND]

You were fiddling with the speedometer cable.

The 700R4 governor is at the RIGHT REAR of the TRANNY, under a stamped steel cap about 3" in dimeter that you have to PRY off. It is sealed with a square-cut "O" ring. Older trannies have a steel wire "bail" snapped over the governor cover, on later ones this was omitted, and the friction fit of the cover into the case is depended upon to keep the cover in place.

In addition to a possibly sticking governor, there are a couple of valves in the transmision valve body that have been known to hang up because of a piece of crud getting in them.

[4x4Dreamer]

okay, feeling dumb now.
Why does it work now then? I'm confused.

[Subzilla]

I'm thinking it is on the driver's side and not the right side. Depends on how you're looking at it I guess. ;) Look for the smooth cover.

[BobND]

Sub,

On the 700 R 4, the gov cover is DEFINITELY on the RH (passenger) side of the tranny.

[4x4Dreamer]

The cover you describe is on the Driver's side on mine. I have a diagram on my PC that shows it there as well.

This is very confusing.

[BobND]

You're right!

I'm an IDIOT!

The SERVO is on the RH side near the front, governor at LH side, at the REAR.

And, yes I have R+R'd and rebuilt quite a number these, must be suffering from CRAFT!

If this keeps up, this thread will hold the record for the most unaccurate information ever!

[garysleeman]

What does the vacuum line do on your transmission? My truck has no vacuum pump and my 700r4 has no vacuum connections!

[4x4Dreamer]

yeah, that's just me being a nimrod pretending I know my Arse from my elbow. :D

[Subzilla]

I know the location from personal "duh" experience as I tried to remove the servo thinking that was the governer cover on my first attempt! I did finally find the right location and played with the springs and weights for shift point timing.

The 700R4 is a great transmission if rebuilt correctly but I have had the same bad experiences with crappy rebuilds as the first one lasted 12k miles! _ottman trasmission wouldn't do anything about it! Mine exhibited the same symptoms the times they failed. I once read something about running the rpm's up in first gear then manually shifting in to second to possibly unstick those valves mentioned above. I'm definitly speaking out of my realm of expertise so I'll let the others chime in. There are definitely some knowledgable people on board here. Good luck. I know it can be very frustrating!

[ZZ]

The tranny tech who changed out my first 700R4 got mine unstuck by tromping the pedal. That has to be Hell on the engine & tranny though.

[britannic]

My 700R4 tranny stayed in 1st when the TV boost valve and the 1-2 shift shuttle valve became sticky. I R&R-ed the valve body, cleaned up all of the bores and valves, which fixed the problem in my case.

[Robyn]

If your fluid smeels burnt your 700 is on its way out.
I rebuilt mine about 4 months ago.
Get a good tranny rebuild book and follow the steps.
You will need some snap ring pliers and a few special tools that can be purchased or you can improvise. If you are going to rebuild this beast you need to replace the front input drum and shaft with a torque drive system. This comes with the shaft and drum assembly and the HD sun shell.
Replace both the front and rear sprag units as well as the 2-4 band . Replace all the clutches and seals and go to a heavy duty 9 plate 3-4 clutch pack. Also installing a 13 vane pump is way kewl too. Last but not least install a transgo 2-3 shift kit and you will have a fine box that will live. OH replace the converter with a rebuilt one and be sure to flush the cooler out with clean fuild and install a return line filter before the tranny to keep any junk from getting back to your new box. ;)