This is probably a long shot but here goes. I live in the Tyler area of East Texas and bought my 2016 A8 from Lewis Chevrolet in Canton, about 40 miles west of my home. Got a good deal and love doing business with no pressure, smaller sized dealers. I bought a new 2006 C6 from there as well.
I took the car to their service department for the airbag recall a few weeks ago, and while there, they addressed two other updates as well. One was heated seat control related, the other, PDR related. These two I had not even heard of.
But while I was waiting, I mentioned to the service manager the two other issues my car's A8 has, first drive of the day 1-2 shift delay and the wavering RPM while in V4 mode. He seemed to not be aware of any common problems with the A8 transmission but said he would look into it. To his credit he did call back a few days later and alluded to changing out the torque converter. While explaining that it would be a time consuming job, he mentioned the converter being attached to the rear of the engine. When I responded that it was actually at the rear of the car, as part of the transaxle unit, he had to look at diagrams on his screen before he would believe me. He seems willing to help but I am having trouble deciding to hand my car over to his service department for this procedure. I apologize for the length of this question, but am asking if there is anyone in this area of Texas, (which is also not far from the DF-W area), who have had or know of any experience with this service department?

 

I can't address your question directly, I live in Tenn. However I wouldn't worry about the manager not knowing Corvette specifics. I would ask to speak to the service tech before allowing any service of that nature. Find out if he's done this before. Make sure he's up on his training on the Corvette.

Also look around for a local Corvette club. Bound to be one near Dallas/Ft. Worth. Then ask them who they use. A dealer who supports a club will be on top of things. They understand the value of repeat business. My dealer supports one of the largest Corvette clubs in the country, maybe the largest with over 400 members, and they are top notch.

 

Not convenient, but Classic Chevrolet in Grapevine. They are sponsors of our Corvette club, which is the largest in the country

 

Thanks for both replies. Grapevine is not an unreasonable distance from my home for dependable service.

 

The clutch is attached to the engine so expecting the service "manager" to know off-hand that the torque converter is not attached there is not that surprising! Assuming he has been a "manager" for a while, even if his shop had replaced a recent Vette torque converter, he was probably busy managing!

Consider that even a good mechanic may not be a "gear head" and when he gets home is more interested in basketball etc than thinking about cars. In fact they work on many more trucks than Vettes so probably know more about a diesel engine!

Side Bar: While waiting for the wife's BMW getting service went into the dealers Chevy showroom. Was looking at a GS and a salesman came over and said something about the car that was a bit off- I politely corrected. He quickly said "I have sold a few of these and know the infotainment system inside and out but not all the technical items." Told him that was an excellent response as he'll never know and shouldn't feel obligated to know the detail as will a "gear head." Best talking about the infotainment system as for me, it's beyond what I care about!

 

JerryU, thanks for that input. Could be that my paranoia has my reasoning off. I am still hesitant about letting anyone tear into the car to that that extent at this time since the car is still usable. I am trying to decide whether to trust someone to fix it now or just keep driving it and see what the next few thousand miles bring. If I do the latter I will probably look into an extended warranty purchase.

 

You could always ask the guys at East Texas Muscle Cars if they have a preferred nearby dealership for warranty service.

 

I would go back to the dealer with the questionable service manager and speak with their Corvette tech. If their Corvette tech is just as clueless, I would venture to another dealer and do a similar investigation and continue to do so until I found a place that has performed a few torque converter replacements. I personally wouldn't want them "cutting their teeth" on a torque converter replacement on my car. In addition to what you have stated, it's not like the C7 is the first Corvette model to have a torque converter in the rear assembly so I'm kind of surprised that the service manager wasn't aware of it.

 

Understand your concern. Believe they do have to remove the whole transaxile to get at the converter and torque tube. However others have had the converter replaced. Have a standard trans so can't comment on the symptoms or need.

Might ask the service manager to bring in the trained and GM Certified C7 technician and let them tell you what is involved!

If times are slow they do get paid by GM to do the wok but I agree you want to be sure it's needed.

We are the medical center for are large area in our Eastern SC and have 4 heart bypass teams, 2 in two competing hospital complexes. I often jokingly say that if you have indigestion in our town you might get a 4 way bypass!

 

I am nowhere near Texas but have connected my car to a VERY SMALL local dealer, after purchasing from a mega-dealer hundreds of miles away. I have the utmost confidence in the dealer's service and their factory trained tech. I have spent some time in the shop with him and seen his work. I guess my point is, the service advisor or manager may not be the best way to gauge the effectiveness of the dealership. It is the hands-on guy I am most cencerned with.

 

it's actually a bigger job to pull the transaxle in a vette as opposed to a tranny attached to the engine. The torque tube is what makes it a huge job.

Most important is to have a really good, certified GM Tech who is right up on the C7, that's the only question you should be asking.

 

I agree w. most of the posts but will also add something said above: the trans has been located in the back for quite some time, and that includes the manual trans starting with the C5 (1997). That's 20 years ago.