Alfordvette

Stuck about 300 miles from home in Valdosta, GA. Truck will not Upshift to 4th. As a result, had to drive at speeds less than 45 mph where rpms was just below 3,000 but within about 25 miles transmission temp. was at and above 225 degrees. I had to continue to drive to get to next exit and someplace safe for family. I checked under hood and transmission dip stick had come out and transmission fluid had sprayed out. I hosed off fluid to minimize chance of fire and added a couple quarts of Dextron VI. I drove to test and problem continued, in fact, transmission temp. started to go higher, and stabilitrak, traction control and check engine lights came on, so I pulled over and added two more quarts of Dextron VI thinking high temp. was result of lack of fluid. Did not fix the problem, so I called AAA. Truck has about 103,000 miles and has been well cared for. I changed transmission filter and fluid at about 53,000 and planned to do so again soon. Fortunately, we were able to find accommodations for night. I understand there is a Chevy store (Prince) here in Valdosta and plan on taking truck there in morning. I hope Prince is open and can repair tomorrow. Because this is not my usual Dealer, if anyone has any ideas about what problem maybe, I would appreciate the feedback. I have always been concerned about tactics used by some Chevy stores to enhance the bottom line.

In any case, Happy New Year to all! Regards and thanks in advance.

Chevrolet Customer Service

<!--[if gte mso 9]><xml> <w:WordDocument> <w:View>Normal</w:View> <w:Zoom>0</w:Zoom> <w:PunctuationKerning/> <w:ValidateAgainstSchemas/> <w:SaveIfXMLInvalid>false</w:SaveIfXMLInvalid> <w:IgnoreMixedContent>false</w:IgnoreMixedContent> <w:AlwaysShowPlaceholderText>false</w:AlwaysShowPlaceholderText> <w:Compatibility> <w:BreakWrappedTables/> <w:SnapToGridInCell/> <w:WrapTextWithPunct/> <w:UseAsianBreakRules/> <wontGrowAutofit/> </w:Compatibility> <w:BrowserLevel>MicrosoftInternetExplorer4</w:BrowserLevel> </w:WordDocument> </xml><![endif]--><!--[if gte mso 9]><xml> <w:LatentStyles DefLockedState="false" LatentStyleCount="156"> </w:LatentStyles> </xml><![endif]--><!--[if gte mso 10]> <style> /* Style Definitions */ table.MsoNormalTable {mso-style-name:"Table Normal"; mso-tstyle-rowband-size:0; mso-tstyle-colband-size:0; mso-style-noshow:yes; mso-style-parent:""; mso-padding-alt:0in 5.4pt 0in 5.4pt; mso-para-margin:0in; mso-para-margin-bottom:.0001pt; mso-pagination:widow-orphan; font-size:10.0pt; font-family:"Times New Roman"; mso-ansi-language:#0400; mso-fareast-language:#0400; mso-bidi-language:#0400;} </style> <![endif]--> Alfordvette,

I am sorry to hear of your frustrations with your Suburban. Was the dealer able to fix the problem? If so, did they say what the issue was? If not, if you PM me your VIN number, I can research your vehicle further.

I look forward to your reply.

Louis
GM Customer Service

Alfordvette

Thank you for the reply. The dealer in Valdosta, GA was not open on Monday so my family and I got in a tow truck and transported the vehicle to Gainesville Chevrolet in Gainesville, FL. Thereafter, I was able to rent a Tahoe from Avis and drive it with my family the 380 miles home arriving late last evening. Gainesville Chevrolet will be tearing down the transmission in an effort to determine the problem then they will discuss what they find with their GM rep to learn whether it will be covered under warranty. The Service Advisor, Josh, and the Service Director, Charlie, were very helpful. The 2007 Suburban had 102,600 miles when it was dropped at Gainesville Chevrolet.

I received a lot of support from my hometown Chevy dealer, Andean Chevrolet. The Owner, GM and Operations Manager all called to discuss the problem I was having and they offered to send a driver in a van to Gainesville to pick up me and my family and bring us home. They also said they would intervene with their GM rep regarding the warranty covereage issue. They said I had to be one of GM's best customers having purchased at least nine Chevrolet vehicles in the past ten or so years (these are the vehicles I can remember off the top of my head: 2001 Tahoe, 2004 Suburban, 2004 Tahoe, 2004 Corvette Z06, 2005 Corvette C6-Museum Delivery, 2006 Silverado one ton Duramax dually, 2007 Corvette Z06, 2007 Suburban and 2008 Corvette Z06).

I hope GM will cover the cost of repair or replacement. Gainesville Chevy quoted me $3,300 to install a GM "certified" transmission. Interestly, the powertrain/transmission tech said something had to break inside the transmission--the only evidence of a leak was out of the transmission vent probably because I added too much Dextron VI after fluid sprayed out of the dip stick tube (the dip stick had come out about 3 inches-I checked the oil before starting out on the morning of the incident and the transmission dip stick was in place-I do not know what caused the dip stick to pop out-pressure for some reason?-I added several quarts of Dextron VI because I was not sure how much fluid had sprayed out and wanted to be safe). The Operations Manager at Andean Chevrolet said he did not recall seeing a transmission failure on a 2007 Suburban; he was very surprised because he has a 2007 Suburban that he was driven for several years.

I hope to hear something from Gainesville Chevrolet today. I have to figure out how to get back to Gainesville, FL to pick up the truck and bring it home. I may have to borrow a car trailer and drive my Duramax down there. With three young childern in school and no family in the area to leave them with, my wife is unavailable to drive with me. Another option is to fly to Gainesville, which may end up being the best option, but not inexpensive.

For anyone interested, I will keep you informed.

Regards.

73shark

Welcome to the forum.

Sounds like GM is going to do the right thing w/ you.

Just curious as to when you were adding fluid, you didn't check the dipstick.

Alfordvette

I did check the dip stick, but I could not get a consistent reading. Every time I cleaned and reinserted the dip stick I got a different reading. There must have been residual fluid along the dip stick tube.

I hope you are correct about GM doing the right thing, however, I will wait and see. I contacted Gainesville Chevy about 3 pm today and the tranny had not yet been pulled. They said the delay was the result of rusted exhaust bolts that sheared off. I hope they didn't shear off bolts attaching the exhaust manifolds to the block. Someone with a better knowledge of the engine than me would have to tell us if this is what they were referring to or something else. They said the tranny should be out tomorrow. I will likely contact my local Chevy dealer tomorrow and ask them. They asked me to keep them posted and to let them know what they can do to assist.

To add to my earlier post I was reminded of another vehicle I purchased from a Chevy dealer when I walked through the basement tonight and saw a cap the dealer gave me when I purchased a 2003 Avalanche. So I have purchased at least 11 vehicles from Chevy dealers in the past 10 years. I wonder how the number of vehicles I purchased compares to others. My father called this evening for a status report and said I should inform GM that he currently owns 3 Cadillacs, my Inlaws own 2, and my brother owns 1.

Regards

ousig2408

you should be all good - so close to the standard 5 year 100k powertrain warranty it would be a real surprise if they didnt cover 100%. yes if it wouldnt go into a gear then something did break. Just be glad it wasnt 2ndor 3rd gear...that would have been a very slow trip to the shop.
regarding the bolts, they must have broke some off when trying to take them out. this is an easy fix in a shop.
random question but why have you purchased so many vehicles recently?

Alfordvette

Thanks for the info. You are correct--getting stuck in a lower gear would have made the situation more unbearable. I am an optimist but the dealer handling the repair does not know me and likely sees no value in going to bat on my behalf with their Zone Rep. Also, GM's balance sheet is an embarrassment for a company that was one of the strongest in the world, so it needs to cut costs in every way possible and customers suffer. Consequently, I expect GM to offer a deal such as splitting the cost, particularly in light of the fact that I am 380 miles away from the store where the truck sits without a tranny. If I had any idea that the tranny would go out, I would have driven another vehicle, however, I have always liked the ride and roominess (comfort and cargo) of a Suburban on long trips. I particularly like being able to spread the kids out, which substantially decreases issues between them. I have never had the tranny go out on any vehicle I have owned, and I have owned many, so it never entered my mind. In addition, the truck was serviced in preparation for the trip and no problems were noted.

With respect to your question, I purchase cars when I like them. I usually have about 7 or so at a time and typically turn them over in 3 years or less except for Porsches, which I have liked since I was about 10 years old. I did not turn this Suburban over because my wife liked it and we saw nothing better in newer editions. Under the circumstances, I am not sure whether I will consider acquiring another GM vehicle. GM's decision in this case will have a direct impact on my decision.

Regards

ousig2408

sorry if you already said - but have you contacted your original dealer?

Alfordvette

Original dealer is no longer in business. The dealer where I live is assisting me. I have bought a car from him and the store services the vehicle as well as other Chevys I own.