steve40th

Well, I got my car back and drove it gently back. There was a vibration at the shop, and on the road, I thought it may have been a fouled plug, as my engine isnt happy reall till its warmed up and its easy with the AC on, after reconnecting the battery, to do. The vibration is in any gear and its around 3200 and up, wether in nuetral or any gear. SO its not the motor or driveshaft.
Well I changed all the plugs, which looked fine. Then I decided to disconnect the converter, and the vibration went away. HHMM
Well, the shop said they cut my converter open and checked for cleanliness etc since my tranny lost 3rd/4th gear. They then rewelded it and balanced it, so they say. I dont think it was balanced.
So, I searched the forum and some guy named Pete K told some guy to rotate the converter to another bolt location and see if the vibration changes, well it didnt. SO now I need to call the shop/take it back or whatever. I am dissapointed, and not in a financial situation to just go get another converter and replace it. The shop had all the equipment there to cut/weld etc, as his cousing owns Hughes converter, so he has the equipment.
So, any suggestions on how to 'splain this to the man.
I dont want to screw up the tranny any more, and I want it fixed.
But it was out of warranty and I only paid for parts.

Pete K

Lady luck has not been kind to you lately . Bad things seem to happen in groups. I wish I could tell you it is a nothing problem, but you know better than that. Keep us posted

Pete K

I would also as what the internal end play is. If the end play is excessive, they will vibrate even when balanced properly.

steve40th

I honestly dont believe they will know/tell me. I dont feel good about this at all. Well see in a few hours.

Pete K

I am lucky. I own the gm end play tool and check them every time I have a converter in my hands. New, used or reman. I even check the ones that I get from the shop I trust. Sux that you are at their mercy. Hopefully all your troubles are worth it in the end. I had flakey motor problems last year. I am afraid that my gray hair will start to fall out next

steve40th

Well, I took the Vette down, and they were ready, as they had discussed it already amongst the people that did the work. The converter guy said all he did was cut it open, then reweld it back in the sameplace as he indexed it prior to cutting it. Well there was a weight on it, as I told him. Then they got the guy that is the lead mechanic, and he asked me a bunch of questions as to what I did to nail itdown to the converter, and they agreed it was the converter. The owner is a little skeptical and said if they take it out, and find nothing wrong with it after they rebalance it, I will owe him the labor invloved. I honestly think they will find it was unbalanced. The lead mechanic kept saying over and over it was the converter, so I hope I am right.
STeve

steve40th

Okay, the latest. Well Pete and everyone., I went to the shop after they took my converter down and while there, the balance machine broke, well the screen went out. We opened it up and the video card was fried. SO, The owner had me take a few blocks down to another shop and they looked at the balance. Dead nuts on. But, that guy put some big ol' snap ring pliers into the converter and sai "you have no end play", thats why it is shuddering/vibrating. AAAHHH!. SO, I took it back, and the owner had there converter guy cut her open, put new bearings in, and redo the converter. So, i called Vigilante, they said 22-26 thousandths end play. We set the converter at 25 thousandths, and rewelded, pressure tested etc. This time I put the snap ring pliers in and was able to move the whatever part I was moving just a little, and when I spun the converter back and forth, I could see the inside moving this time, so it was free.
Basically, I read what Pete K said about end play, and how important it is. Well I dont think there was any, and we saw what happened when the guy welded it back, it was his error. So, the clutch within the converter was grabbing the whole time, thats where the shudder/virbration was.
The clutch looked great and everything looked very nice in there. Vigilante uses a HUGE clutch in there, and we had factory ones open next it, and the Vigilante looked muchO nicer.
SO, tommorow we should have the Vette back.
Thanks to Pete K I was able to ask the right questions and after reading allot of posts from him, I diagnosed it down to the converter.,

creoleman

Man, it's great to hear a transmission story end WELL.

bogus

Fantastic!

cv67

Some good info to be had there, thanks for sharing! Glad everything worked out.

Pete K

Glad it finally worked out. I suspected excessive endplay, but the opposite was the case. Both are equally bad though. I would suggest kicking the origional converter guy in the nuts, but everyone has a bad day once in a while. At least you can enjoy your car now.

vetteblack

Sounds like you did your homework, and made them make your car right. good for you!

BlackC6LS3

Congrats on figuring it out!

AORoads

Once again, for a guy (me) who knows almost nothing about auto trans, this was a heckuva good read and very informative.

Steve, I am glad for you. And you are obviously glad for having PeteK and others on this forum! Tremendous goings on.

Give us a new thread on the car back together again and rolling!!!

steve40th

I tell you, if it wasnt for this forum, I wouldnt have a Vette. I would be flat broke, not just broke, but way down, now way in heck ever going to afford a Vette Broke!

steve40th

Well, I have my Vette back. They had to do 2 little things while there. I had a O2 bung that they inadvertently loosened, so the exhaust had a rattling noise. Then, the lower line going into the tranny had a slight leak.
But, now it has a slight exhaust noise/rub when you first start to move. Otherwise its fine. Shifts good, no other obvious issues . The exhaust hitting is minor, but bothersome. SO, I need to put it on a lift and see whats hitting, as it is just after you start to move. The headers arent touching anything, the exhaust clamps on the right side, big wide ones, are close to the pan though, maybe they are moving enough to hit the pan. The rest is free and clear.

steve40th

The dilemma continues. I need to be more observant with the repairs I get. I drove it right onto the highway when I went home. Well, its shudders, now at lower rpms than before. The tranny shifts and holds fine, and the fluid never gets above 170. But, the converter is not right.
It feels like it is hitting the floor board as it lightly shudders.
I went underneath, and nothing is touching, and motor mounts are fine.
I emailed Vigilantes company, and asked what it would cost just to get a new one, as it was opened twice, and I dont know if it can be repaired that many times. It just seems that you need to know what your doing when you set the end play. The guy at the transmission shop just couldnt get it right, even with the high dollar machine. I saw him zero the dial indicator, and pull the lever down till there was 25 thousdandths, then I turned my head as he tach welded it, for my eye protection, and then assumed it was good.
Now I need to find a reasonable price if Vigilante is too much, as I am getting a little over my budget for the year on the Vette.

Pete K

That is rotten news. Alot of converter companies wash their hands of a converter if someone else cuts into "their" converter. Because you are out in the middle of the pacific ocean, I hope the will be understanding of that and help you out. Your options are much less than someone in the lower 48 states. You CAN rebuild a converter multiple times. If they are willing, it can be fixed. Good luck

steve40th

This all comes down to my bidget now. I may just get a TCI or something cheaper (cost wise) as I am going to have to pay someone else to put it in. If Vigilante can fix it fine, but it will be a tough decision after it was cut open that many times. Even when the guy did it he said it was thin and may need a "band" . I was furious, but out here, theres not much you can do about it.
Any recommendations for a 2800 rpm converter that wont see track time with my Vette. Tracks closed, and it wont be raced at all. I am looking at 500 dollar range, as it will be an additional 500 for install out here.

Pete K

Please do not buy a TCI. I have no ax to grind with them, but their stuff is just lousy. If you decide to go with a 12 inch, lock up converter, I can get you one if you need it. My company charges $250+ a $50 core totaling $300. They add anti-balloon plates for $50 more if desired. I am not trying to make a sale, but if you run out of low cost options, consider my guys. They weigh42 pounds packed up and ready to ship. Cost was $45 to ship to California. I have no clue what it would cost to get to you. Keep the chin up. Your luck will eventually turn around.