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Trans Issues with Radix


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I just got the call from the dealer, trans is blown. 2,3,4 and clutch gone....

 

He was wondering if the trans pump pressure was changed when the new chip (came with the Radix) was put in? His thinking that the added HP brings the RPM up faster and the pump can’t keep up.....

 

He's going to look at the program, but have any of you changed Trans Pump pressure, via programming?

 

Any ideas?

 

Thanks.....

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I haven't messed with mine at all, other than what the shift kit may have done. Sounds like you just got a bad one. Get him to put some beefed up hp parts back in while he has it out. If you go to the other thread I started, there's a link to where to get them. Don't have to use my list. It was probably just a spring.

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Thanks, Dave and Ben.

 

He has a new trans on order (warrantee). It looks like a pressure issue, it went fast. They did a slight rebuilt on the first one, maybe it was a lemon.

 

 

I'll try the new trans and then if all is well, do a shift kit and new torq converter. If not looks like a built trans is in my future.

 

Jeff

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the pressure at the pump can't really be turned up, but the pressure allowed for apply can be with the pressure control soleniod. even if the pressure were bumped with the programming, it'll only cause a harsher shift, it will not cause it to fail. the 13 vane pumpn of the 4L65E flow's well enough to keep up with the demand.

 

i'd certainly be changing servo's and adding a shift kit. adams 03 and benkey as examples are both running pretty strong set-up's and they haven't had failures to this point probably helped by the shift kit.

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  • 3 weeks later...
Thanks, Dave and Ben.

 

He has a new trans on order (warrantee). It looks like a pressure issue, it went fast. They did a slight rebuilt on the first one, maybe it was a lemon.

 

 

I'll try the new trans and then if all is well, do a shift kit and new torq converter. If not looks like a built trans is in my future.

 

Jeff

Am i getting this right, GM covered the truck with the RADIX?

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based off of everyone's expert advise and experiences so far....if I plan to do modifications without a supercharger (I plan to do the following: muffler, Westers programming and get rid of torque management, electric fans, pulley, plugs and wires, cold air/ram air) Is it safe to say that putting in the shift kit, red line tranny fluid and servo will be all I need to keep my trans safe? I appreciate your help.

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  • 4 weeks later...

I realize that I am talking about a Ford, and you are dealing with GM............ however the basic issue may be the same.

 

In the Lightnings, people were bumping the line pressure to get a better shift. They were also eliminating the torque management with chips (in the Lightning it shuts off 4 cylinders at shift to lessen the shock). In MM&FF's they ran a large article about the transmissions, and what hurts them. It turns out that bumping the line pressure was causing premature wear and failure in the pumps. They actually showed the internals of a pump in a stock trans, and one that had the pressure increased. The differences between the internals of the two pumps was VERY noticable.

 

While the pump is able to turn more, and flow more fluid........... what you ultimately get is a pump that is working outside of its intended perimeters. This causes premature wear, and premature failure. Of course, when your pump fails.......... so does your trans.

 

For you people running superchargers....... my advice to you would be to leave torque management in. While it may make a .1 or .2 difference in your 1/4 mile times, it can also save your transmission. The ultimate would be to have two computer programs............. one that leaves it stock for all of your driving, and another that can disable the torque management for track use only. However, even doing this can accelerate transmission failure.

 

Superchargers are very hard on transmissions (I learned this from my transmission expert friend, who used to build the transmissions for off-road racers). They basically shock them, because they hit with so much torque, so quickly. This is where the torque management helps, as it reduces power only at shift.

 

You have to remember that the Lightning runs the Powerstroke Diesel version of the 4R100 trans............ which is a heavily beefed up 3/4-1-ton transmission to start with. That is a far cry from the 4L65E, which is just a beefed up 1/2 ton transmission.

 

Maybe some of what we (the Lightning community) have learned through the years can help you guys out also. :)

 

This is part of reason why we do not run any chip with our 4lb pulley. Our A/F is just fine, and we don't have to worry about our transmission either. We really like our flawless reliability in 58,000 hard miles.

 

Hope some of my babbling made sense.

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I realize that I am talking about a Ford, and you are dealing with GM............ however the basic issue may be the same.

 

In the Lightnings, people were bumping the line pressure to get a better shift. They were also eliminating the torque management with chips

For you people running superchargers....... my advice to you would be to leave torque management in. While it may make a .1 or .2 difference in your 1/4 mile times, it can also save your transmission. The ultimate would be to have two computer programs............. one that leaves it stock for all of your driving, and another that can disable the torque management for track use only. However, even doing this can accelerate transmission failure.

 

Maybe some of what we (the Lightning community) have learned through the years can help you guys out also. :)

 

This is part of reason why we do not run any chip with our 4lb pulley. Our A/F is just fine, and we don't have to worry about our transmission either. We really like our flawless reliability in 58,000 hard miles.

 

Hope some of my babbling made sense.

So can we have torque mang and the radix? I thought that if you do mods and dont fix/remove the TM that your truck will ride like crap? CAn we edit it so that it does not hinder performance? SO--What is the compromise? I want a kick ass truck till 58k +, am I killing my self by doing what has untill now seemed 'right' just a little confused. and I agree with ben that was a very informative post, it is nice when ALL can benfit from good data.

 

:confused:

to shift kit or not that is the question...

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why would you have two shift patterns? if you need wide open shifts at this number than that's the number it needs to be at. shift points should be the same on the street and strip.

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you can only hope it's built strong enough, but if you don't want it to shift that high you just don't go wide open. w.o.t. means you want all of the hp it's going to put out and that shouldn't involve short shifting (which transmissions don't much care for either).

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Another 4L65E trans question that I have is this................ what is the standard redline shift point stock???

 

The reason I ask is this................. another thing that causes premature transmission failure is shifting outside the perimeters of the transmission. What this means is what rpm you are shifting at. If your mods raise the rpm shift point, once again you can be causing premature wear and failure. All transmissions are designed with a maximum rpm. Going above that, as in turning the transmission faster, causes more heat to build up. Heat is the biggest enemy of the automatic transmission.

 

This was also done in the Lightning community, with dire consequences for the transmission.

 

Just as an illustration of this point, in the Mach one manual trans, the redline is 6500 (I believe........... would have to check). In the auto transmission version, the redline is 5600 due to the limitations of the automatic transmission.

 

The thing for you guys is that the mods have not been on for very long.............. thus, you are all the guinea pigs for what will hurt your trucks. It is difficult to use GM cars as an example, since the dynamics are completely different between a 3000-3500lb car, and a 5100lb truck.

 

Hopefully all of this information helps. :)

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