brakes question

[blacksambo]

For what ever it's worth. Just did the front pads today on one of our '99's. They were original with 99,891 miles (Also, did the timing belt for $200, all inclusive). Replaced them with OEM for $119.00 for the pads alone, plus $37.00 labor. The rotors were fine, as is.

[rocket man]

That sounds like a terrific price Mr Sambo!!...is that at a Dealer??... Darn...I know I'm getting close to all this...

Sheepishly, I must admit, other than synthetic motor oil and filter changes, at regular 3-4K intervals....I haven't spent much on maintenance....errrrr actually ZILCH @140,000+ real miles

NO..I do not burn or leak oil between changes....Pack the bearings??? Nope! , Change the upper and lower radiator hose??? Na!!!...How bout the transmission fluid?? Ahh yes the transmission...I'm glad I asked myself that question ;oor; ...well after all these miles For some reason, I started experiencing a "soft shift" in the gear changes. This is a very general symptom of a pending clutch pack failure in many GM trannys( in the latter part of the previous century), usually brought on by a low fluid level or "mucho" full throttle events during the gear changes.

I owned a Aamco Transmission Center in Huntington Park, Ca. between 1970-1975 so Im a little familiar with the ,"doom and gloom" of a pending transmission problem...anyways...so I thought I check the fluid level, being the, "expert" in the biz that I am???...Hummmm??? let me see here??? When was the last time I checked the fluid??? Opp's never!!....

If you have not guessed by now.... I come from the school of, "IF ITS NOT BROKE DON'T FIX IT SCHOOL"....Anyway, too embarassed to ask you folks where they put the transmission dipstick in the 32 years I've been out of the biz, I finally did what I swore I would never...ever...ever..do again....I actually crawled up underneath my car

Na...not that I was actually trying to find the dipstick....Hell!!! I was trying to find the transmission!!! Whew!! Its comforting to know they still try to "more or less" position these components down the middle of the under belly of the car....elsewised I might have been thrown off and looked endlessly in places like the glove box....anyhow I found it!!....Long story short...I added a quart of Dextron 3( after figuring out how to put it in without having to turn her upside down) and the problem of the soft shift went away (4 now)....no sign of any leaking....nothing...AND its only been 140K miles...Im suspicious

J

[Ldub]

Do yourself AND your a VX a favor & check for proper fluid level.

(sorry for the thread jack zadam)

[blacksambo]

Yes, it's a dealer German Auto House in Burnt Hills, New York. Ask for Marc.

[rocket man]

Thanks Sambo for the source on the pads I'm about 4K miles short of 150K on the odometer...Im gonna try to make it...when I do replace those pads its going to be OEM for sure...

Thanks also Ldub for the advice In my day were were rebuilding about 200 transmissions a month for the 5 years I was in the business before selling. Transmissions are kinda like people. Some last longer than others for various reasons. Some meticiously care for themselves and live to a ripe old age, others drink, smoke and stay up late and hang out with loose women and live forever too. Having done so much work in this biz I think my rear end has like test equipment in it or something and the minute she started to "run up" between the shifts I was on it and got fluid level up to the overflow/fill hole. Still the damage may have already been done. Nevertheless if it breaks tomorrow I can't say I got swindled. The oil is actuall still red...not crimson but not amber or burn't either. In any case, Im not a big believer in changing the oil in a transmission with high milage, especially with one that has burn't oil and varnish on the insided of the pan. You know by then where your going... when you see that symtom...start saving your money..Also I think I would opt for new rather than rebuilt. But changing oil can create more problems due to the extremly high detergent index in ATF sluffing off "chunks" of varnish that can clog important pressure lines and channels within the transmission itself. When we saw a tranny like that come into the shop we wouldn't touch it. The reason? Cause, if we did we would "buy it" for the next 90 days, which means if that customers transmission failed for whatever reason, he was coming back to you like, "flies on duty"...."Hey what did you do to screw up transmission Man"...."It was running perfect and your screwed it up" Heat is what kills a transmission. ATF not only lubricates the internal transmission components it also cools them. You can create heat by hot rodding, towing, overheating the engine, running it low fluid. Component failure such as a pump or torque converter (rare) can do it too but the bottom line is this heat thins the oil to a viscosity where the clutch packs are no longer being cooled by the fluid. These are the weak spots. The clutch packs acts as a "cushion" between the shifts from one gear to another. When those components get worn or "glazed" trouble is not far behind...there is no cure for this. As the cluch pack tolerances increase the more noticable the "slip" becomes between shifts. The more slip the more heat and and on and on.

Anyway thank you AND your right you gotta have that fluid checked...They supposedly do that over at Wal-Mart every time I get the motor oil changed...now I think NOT ;eekg; Whats funny to me is not a drop of oil anywhere on the floor of my garage from any source. Im not sure but I don't think this is a "vacuum modulated" transmission, which is the only other place this oil could disappear without hitting the floor. Oh well if its a 3/4 th of a Qt. leak over the next 140K miles I guess I could spring for the cost...