kevin1243

hi guys. so i recently found this site and im interested in becoming a part of the community.

I just bought a 1996 chevy 1500 4x4 with the 350 vortec and ive been having a few problems

I searched around for a while and couldnt find any threads relating to my problem so i figured id make a new post

first thing i did was check the transmission fluid its clear rather dark but aside from that looked clean to me

now the problem.. when i throw it in drive i have virtually no low end power.. its what id equate to starting in 4th gear in a car. i get moving but i do not feel any shifts the rpm does not go up that fast until im going past 70km/h. when im going 70 at around 2500rpm i let off the gas and then stomped on it and it just went back to 2500 and slowly started building.. it feels like im stuck in overdrive or something.

when i start in first it gets going a little faster but i dont have anywhere as close of power as i had in my old 1997 dodge. i dont really care if my wheels are chirping if i stomp on it but id like to be able to go 0 - the speed limit in a decent amount of time.

a guy i met and was talking to told me it could be the modulator.. i have no idea what that is or what it does haha im not that mechanically savvy.

if anyone has any ideas on what it could be itd be greatly appreciated. thank you!

Allan In NE

Does the truck try to move in neutral?

"Generally" what this symptom means, is that the transmissioin has lost all electrical power and is starting out in direct drive. However, that black oil means that there is something "burning" inside.

Get this truck to a qualified transmission man and let's hope beyond hope that it hasn't gone too far.

Allan

kevin1243

well i was driving it around today. still didnt shift from overdrive when i had it in drive but i was manually shifting from first second third then to overdrive and that seemed to make driving a lot easier. it doesnt have as much power as id expected but it still goes and a hell of a lot better than when i just had it in D

and the tranny fluid isnt really black its still red just a darker shade ill take a picture of what the oil looks like. and no it doesnt try to move in neutral

Allan In NE

You can get it into second?

Go pull the codes on this guy and let's see what we're dealing with here.

Allan

kevin1243

Should be able to pull the codes tomorrow. My buddys dad has a code reader.

And as I'm driving it. I'm doing the manual shifting from first second third and over drive. Dunno if this is normal but there's no difference between shifting from first to second the rpm doesn't change at all. Just wondering if that's normal haha

Allan In NE

Yes Sir,

That's why I asked.

This transmission can be controlled into reverse and manual low only. Everthing else takes electrical input except for direct, which of course is all solenoids off.

I still suspect that your either in direct OR possibly might have a converter issue. They are really "boggy" when that sprag doesn't hold. Just don't see that very often tho.

Very interesting thread. Keep us posted?

Allan

GA_Dawg

I had the same issue with my 09 Silverado after I was being a dum A$$ and pulled the wrong fuse when installing my KC lights. I do not know if your 96' has a fuse panel inside the cab as well as under the hood or not, however your transmission should be electric shift regardless. Look at your fuse panel (both in cab and under the hood) and look for a fuse that would be tied to the Transmission such as a TCM fuse. Mine was a 15A TCM fuse. I had remoed it and put it back in the wrong slot. Unfortunately It took me a day to realize what I did. I have a code reader and nothing was throwing codes. Hope this helps!