So, I was looking at a nice Suburban the other day and the price was right but it would not move forward. Engine started up nicely, reverse is fine but when I shift into D,1,2,3 nothing. No grinding no nothing. Put it into high 4x4 an low 4x4 same thing. reverse works fine but no forward, no grinding, no clunks, just quietness. I'm thinking that it's probably some linkage underneath that as come undone or some other minor fix. Very nice couple who have the truck but they don['t know what the problem is. Any thoughts on this? I'm feeling confident that it's fixable and that it's not the whole transmission that's bad but could I be way off base here? I much appreciate any feedback on this. thanks,

 

Sounds like a bad trans to me. If the linkage was disconnected it would not go int reverse either.

 

X2. Thats a positive sign on a th350 anyway that the tranny is bad.

 

well that is indeed not the answer I was looking for. So it's most likely 99% bad tranny? Bummer. I did end up buying it for $1K. I was hoping for a better solution. Obviously, I will want to do a thorough check to make sure that it is in fact a bad trans but is it worth my effort trying to confirm that it is a bad transmission? The rest of the truck is perfect. Which would be cheaper, pulling a trans from another Suburban or getting mine rebuilt? I guess I might have to think about parting it out too. Any feedback at this point would be great as I've never been in this situation before. Thanks again.

 

I'd think about a rebuilt

 

it probably doesn't matter that I got the year wrong it's an 97 GMC. Is a rebuild technically difficult? or is it more about the hours that make it an expensive fix? I can follow directions fairly good but I want to know whether or not this a DYI job. I've pulled timing chains as well as most repair/replace of major engine parts. Dropping trans, never done before. It sounds like the cost to rebuild trans will be more than what I paid for the truck? which was $1K. Thanks again for each of your's comments. I want this Suburban to be the smallest loss possible.

 

Dropping an automatic should require a transmission jack, you can rent one. I'd recommend NOT rebuilding it yourself, but exchange it with a a trustworthy rebuilder. Replacing it isn't that difficult. I'd also recommend a service manual.

 

OK. that sounds doable. Will post back once I'm farther along. thanks

 

I've found a freshly rebuilt GMC transmission, 4L60E 4x4 from a 93 full size Blazer. It also comes with a 2 year warranty. The price is $650. Can I confirm that this one will fit soley based on this information ? or do I need to visually inspect and look for other data that will insure that it will fit my 97.

 

I am sure that will work if you make sure the tail piece (overall actually) is the same length, and the same as what you have. Thats not a bad price either.