Whine when the truck is in gear....

Derick · Sep 11, 2019

Hey all - so my burb is making some sort of weird whine noise when it's in gear. It varies with RPM. It's got 153k on it, no shifting issues that I'm aware of, and the torque converter was replaced in January.

It really sounds like a spinning hunk of metal when I'm near a building or something that sound reflects off of. So I'm feeling like the torque converter is crap. It was a reman'd unit that my mechanic put on, so it's got warranty. It's currently out at his shop awaiting diagnosis. He called and told me he did a test drive, and couldnt hear much but he thought trans failure. Seems odd because I have no other trans symptoms. No whine in park or neutral...but when its in reverse or drive, there's definitely a new higher pitched whine that accompanies the usual driveline sound. No problems that I can tell at the moment....any thoughts?

thompsoj22 · Sep 12, 2019

If it is the trans and not diff's than ill guess planetary assy. it does not spin until the driveline moves so no noise at idle/ neutral revving. I have been studying alot of DIY on the 6L80E and it truely could be reman'd at home with simple tools. Very few "specialty" tools are required to teardown/assemble. to do a high end build yourself would be about $2000/$2500 in parts and it would be close to "new". 6L80E has no bands, no servos, does not use line pressure to determine shift's, It's all electronically shifted. I dont understand why a "reman or rebuilt" production unit is only good for 50k to 100k miles but a new factory trans will go close to 200k or more. somewhere the reman's cut corners/costs resulting in less than what the consumer expects. I think i may try to do my own rebuild when it is time. youtube 6L80E and check out the teardown/assembly vid's.

Derick · Sep 28, 2019

Just coming back to this and hopefully some replies start flowing...

So the mechanic finally got to my truck and gave me the bad news. The whine is coming from the trans, likely the front pump. So it whines when it is in gear. Park and neutral, even when moving, produce no whine. This seems to be contrary to some reading on the internet that pump failure tends to produce whine at all times when the motor is running. I'm thinking if the pump is whining, it's starved for fluid, so likely the filter is jammed up right?

So, back in may, I had the trans serviced. The local chevy dealer did it and their service does not include changing the filter or the pan gasket.

A few months later and here we are.. A whining trans. Why would gm approve that? Im already of the understanding that being I've got 153k on the truck they wouldn't warranty jack squat but that seems entirely ridiculous.

Anyhow, I started to look into rebuilds or whatever... But what do ya'll think?

My mechanic pulled some of the fluid and is trying the Lucas miracle fix... But that won't do much, we already know... But I'm making him replace the filter next week before I consider replacing the trans. Any other suggestions or routes to consider?

swathdiver · Sep 28, 2019

Derick said:
Just coming back to this and hopefully some replies start flowing...

So the mechanic finally got to my truck and gave me the bad news. The whine is coming from the trans, likely the front pump. So it whines when it is in gear. Park and neutral, even when moving, produce no whine. This seems to be contrary to some reading on the internet that pump failure tends to produce whine at all times when the motor is running. I'm thinking if the pump is whining, it's starved for fluid, so likely the filter is jammed up right?

So, back in may, I had the trans serviced. The local chevy dealer did it and their service does not include changing the filter or the pan gasket.

A few months later and here we are.. A whining trans. Why would gm approve that? Im already of the understanding that being I've got 153k on the truck they wouldn't warranty jack squat but that seems entirely ridiculous.

Anyhow, I started to look into rebuilds or whatever... But what do ya'll think?

My mechanic pulled some of the fluid and is trying the Lucas miracle fix... But that won't do much, we already know... But I'm making him replace the filter next week before I consider replacing the trans. Any other suggestions or routes to consider?

I would hook it up to a Tech-2 and run it through the paces to see what is actually wrong. GM from the get go designed these transmissions for a fluid exchange with the Trans Flow machine, it's part of the shop manual and SOP for service. Goes against everything we were taught but I let my dealer do mine and she's shifting fine 35K later.

When mine goes, I will rebuild it myself Lord willing. There are two books on Amazon, a teardown manual and an experienced guy's shop notes that I will soon add to my library.

I've had pump failures before with a Turbo 350 and 200R4 and fixed them myself, not a big deal. On the 6-speeds the pump is part of the bellhousing if I remember right.

https://www.amazon.com/dp/B00MABQLX...olid=3MYY1OQK1UL4M&psc=1&ref_=lv_vv_lig_dp_it

https://www.amazon.com/dp/109323255...olid=3MYY1OQK1UL4M&psc=1&ref_=lv_vv_lig_dp_it

Derick · Sep 29, 2019

I found a shop in Kentucky that rebuilds and upgrades 4l80e transmissions on the regular. Their suggestion is their upgraded HD 4l80e at $1050, which is a hell of a lot less than I was expecting. They also charge 400+fluids to do the install, but I dont know how long the trans will last. I'd have to coordinate with my mechanic to do it here in town, so I dunno how that would work out. Way less than I was expecting over all.

swathdiver · Sep 29, 2019

Derick said:
I found a shop in Kentucky that rebuilds and upgrades 4l80e transmissions on the regular. Their suggestion is their upgraded HD 4l80e at $1050, which is a hell of a lot less than I was expecting. They also charge 400+fluids to do the install, but I dont know how long the trans will last. I'd have to coordinate with my mechanic to do it here in town, so I dunno how that would work out. Way less than I was expecting over all.

If the pump is bad and you caught it early, which I believe you did from my chair, you do not need a whole transmission rebuild, just some new pump parts.

Foggy · Sep 29, 2019

IMO, "servicing" any transmission that has a serviceable filter without dropping the pan, cleaning all the exposed components and replacing the
filter is just plain a waste of time and money and usually leads
to problems shortly afterwards..
When you just do a "fluid exchange" you are not getting out the contaminants and leads to plugged/failed filters.

donjetman · Sep 29, 2019

I totally agree foggy. That's why I do all my own mx whenever possible. Nobody to blame but me.

Derick · Sep 29, 2019

Foggy said:
IMO, "servicing" any transmission that has a serviceable filter without dropping the pan, cleaning all the exposed components and replacing the
filter is just plain a waste of time and money and usually leads
to problems shortly afterwards..
When you just do a "fluid exchange" you are not getting out the contaminants and leads to plugged/failed filters.

I agree entirely. However, I also expected the dealership to service their brand of vehicle with no issue. Guess that's my fault.

Derick · Sep 29, 2019

swathdiver said:
If the pump is bad and you caught it early, which I believe you did from my chair, you do not need a whole transmission rebuild, just some new pump parts.

Well my 2 cents is that I'm going to have to pay 400 to drop and reinstall, and only fix one speicifc thing - the pump - there's a possibility that something else goes wrong in the future where I'd have to pay another drop and install fee. 1050$ isn't bad at all imo, for a rebuilt and upgraded trans with a 1 year warranty.

Whine when the truck is in gear....

Derick

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