Possible Transmission Problem

[Rayz2000Sport]

Recently there was a major rain storm and our basement flooded. This was a problem because thats where my room is. So, I ran out in the middle of the night to a WalMart to buy a wet vac. In so doing, I started to notice that my truck was acting funny when going up hills. It kind of felt like my rear wheels were slipping, causing the truck to jerk slightly. I did not think much of it. The reason being is that I have my full sized spare and a regular tire on the back, so I figured that with the rain and the odd tires on the back maybe my auto AWD was kicking in.

Since then, the truck is still doing this, but only going up hills. I really dont know what it could be. Maybe something electrical got wet? Trans problem? AWD problem? Maybe my ABS system acting up?

I checked the trans fluid and it looks fine. I have about 80,000 miles on the truck.

Any help will be greatly appreciated.

Kyle

 

[gavin]

what, exactly, do you mean by full-size spare and regular tire?!
are they different sizes?

clarification on this, please.

 

[Rayz2000Sport]

what, exactly, do you mean by full-size spare and regular tire?!
are they different sizes?

clarification on this, please.

Full size spare and regular tire means just what it says. My truck would normally have 4 P255/70R16 BridgeStone Dueler DLT's on it. Right now it has 3 (Both Fronts and the driver side rear) and a P255/70R16 GoodYear Wrangler RT/S on the pass side rear. So, the tires are the same size according to what the side of the tire says, but the Goodyear does look slightly bigger to me and obviously has a diff tread pattern.

 

[Rayz2000Sport]

Sorry if my wording was confusing, I dont know how else to say that I have a full size spare on with the other three being my regular tires.

 

[Rayz2000Sport]

Any Input?

 

[gavin]

flud level looked good when warm, correct?
FYI, you don't have AWD. Auto 4WD yes. And yup, there is a difference.

Might just be time for a fluid change.

Also may want to scan for codes, just for giggles. Certain codes will not cause the CEL to light up. Although generally, the only codes to worry about are the ones that do cause the CEL to light up.

Also, it's bad juju to drive with different size tires. Although the tires are RATED as the same size, does not mean the actual diameters are the same. This could definately cause some problems.

Especially if you state the spare looks taller than the others.

How long have you been driving around with the spare on?

 

[Rayz2000Sport]

flud level looked good when warm, correct?
FYI, you don't have AWD. Auto 4WD yes. And yup, there is a difference.

Might just be time for a fluid change.

Also may want to scan for codes, just for giggles. Certain codes will not cause the CEL to light up. Although generally, the only codes to worry about are the ones that do cause the CEL to light up.

Also, it's bad juju to drive with different size tires. Although the tires are RATED as the same size, does not mean the actual diameters are the same. This could definately cause some problems.

Especially if you state the spare looks taller than the others.

How long have you been driving around with the spare on?

Checked fluid warm yes.

As far as scanning for codes, can I go to say a local auto parts store and have them scan, or do I need to go to a stealship for that?

Have been driving quite awhile with the spare, I have been extremely busy with all kinds of family and other issues so my truck has kind of taken a back seat.

Was running fine the whole time, this problem started the night of that rain storm. Is there anyway something could have gotten wet or something? I really have no clue about transmissions, and honestly it could be something else for all I know. It seems to me that it would be transmission related though.

How would I go about changing my trans fluid? Is it something that can be done yourself or do I need to go to a shop for it? I think Aamco has the $100 lifetime flush and fill deal. Is that something worth looking into?

 

[gavin]

Checked fluid warm yes.

As far as scanning for codes, can I go to say a local auto parts store and have them scan, or do I need to go to a stealship for that?

Have been driving quite awhile with the spare, I have been extremely busy with all kinds of family and other issues so my truck has kind of taken a back seat.

Was running fine the whole time, this problem started the night of that rain storm. Is there anyway something could have gotten wet or something? I really have no clue about transmissions, and honestly it could be something else for all I know. It seems to me that it would be transmission related though.

How would I go about changing my trans fluid? Is it something that can be done yourself or do I need to go to a shop for it? I think Aamco has the $100 lifetime flush and fill deal. Is that something worth looking into?

hmmm...
yes, it is possible something got wet, but anything that might have, should have dried off fairly quickly.

Could also be a coincidence that it happend at the time of the rain.

You could change the fluid yourself, but most people would recommend a flush.

Changing the fluid yourself can be messy; no drain plug, so you'd have to pull the pan (which in and of itself can be a pain). Even with that, you're changing less than 1/2 the total ATF. The rest is in the torque converter. On my 97, there is an access hole where you can drain the TC. I'm not sure about the 2000's (I can't remember when they removed the access hole).

Getting a flush done by a shop would not be a bad idea.

Living in Alaska, we don't have too many chain shops. So I wouldn't know what kind of work Aamco does. Although, $100 doesn't sound too bad, as long as that includes the price of the proper ATF (which would be MerconV)

 

[Rayz2000Sport]

I am going to try and plug the tire I have (will get it patched once I have some free time and money) and see if that helps the problem at all.

I know I had heard the with the auto 4wd if there is a diff in tire size from front to back it can make the a4wd kick in. This could be what is happening.

I will disconnect both battery terminals while I am fixing the tire and let the computer "reset". Then I will see if having the right tire on helps the problem any.

I really wish I could explain what is happening in more detail. The problem only occurs when I am going up a hill or incline. It feels like my back tires are doing something funky which causes a bit of jerking (but it does not seem to jerk the whole truck, I can really feel it when I am driving but my passenger does not notice it much).

Could this be a problem with my transfer case or rear end? When it comes to transmission on back I am not very experienced so I dont seem to be able to help much with diagnosing this problem haha

 

[gavin]

well... one thing you COULD do, if you wanted, to determine if it MAY be the 4WD kicking in, which is definately possible (as both the tires will be turning at different speeds, meaning the ABS sensors are getting different readings, thinking there is slippage).

You could remove the front driveshaft for a day or 2.
You won't hurt anything by doing this.
And you should not feel the jerking, as even if 4wd is engaging, it's not putting the power to the front, so you shouldn't feel much (if anything)

 

[Rayz2000Sport]

OK, so here is the update. Went and got my tire patched yesterday, FOR FREE!! (online coupon) Drove around with the regular tire back on and the truck drove much better but still had the same symptom occur just not as severe.

Last night, I totally disconnected my battery (neg and pos) and let it sit all night. Then I took off each back tire and cleaned my rotors with some brake cleaner and cleaned my MAF while I was at it. Put everything back and took it for a drive, everything seems fine but I havent went up any hills yet, thats the true test.

I am figuring that the comp still had some bad juju in it from when I had the spare on, so disconnecting the battery should eliminate that. Also, I figured I might as well clean the rotors in case that was causing a prob with my ABS.

Have to go run some errands so I will see how everything is running now.

 

[Rayz2000Sport]

OK, so here is the update. Went and got my tire patched yesterday, FOR FREE!! (online coupon) Drove around with the regular tire back on and the truck drove much better but still had the same symptom occur just not as severe.

Last night, I totally disconnected my battery (neg and pos) and let it sit all night. Then I took off each back tire and cleaned my rotors with some brake cleaner and cleaned my MAF while I was at it. Put everything back and took it for a drive, everything seems fine but I havent went up any hills yet, thats the true test.

I am figuring that the comp still had some bad juju in it from when I had the spare on, so disconnecting the battery should eliminate that. Also, I figured I might as well clean the rotors in case that was causing a prob with my ABS.

Have to go run some errands so I will see how everything is running now.

Went for a drive. Still is happening but much better. Only happens going up a fair sized hill. I can get on the throttle hard on flat ground and it runs just like normal. Only have a problem when hitting the gas on a hill, its like there is a delay in acceleration then it gets jerky.

Any thoughts???

 

[Rayz2000Sport]

?

 

[Rayz2000Sport]

I think my transfer case is low on fluid. This would make sense as to why the truck runs great except on hills. When going up a hill all the fluid is forced back with the incline and could be causing the problem.

How do I add fluid? I tired and just spilled it all over myself. Should I just put the quart container of ATF up to the port? I tried using a funnel and ended up covered in ATF. Please Help! Desperate to get this remedied.

 

[Rayz2000Sport]

Oh, and just to make my day even better. The tire that was just patched is flat again, and the tire shop wasnt answering the phone. Guess I will call them tommorow morning bright and early.

 

[gavin]

the t-case should have fill and drain plugs.
I used a hand pump to get fluid into mine. 'bout the easiest way. Even with my body-lift, I still don't have room to get a funnel in there.

 

[Rayz2000Sport]

the t-case should have fill and drain plugs.
I used a hand pump to get fluid into mine. 'bout the easiest way. Even with my body-lift, I still don't have room to get a funnel in there.

A hand Pump?? Where could I get something like that? Auto Parts store?

 

[gavin]

kinda like a hand-soap dispenser... can't think of a better way to describe it.

http://www.partsamerica.com/ProductDetail.aspx?MfrCode=CSM&MfrPartNumber=36670&CategoryCode=3487

ones I got are similar to that. I got them from Schmucks, in the oil area

 

[Rayz2000Sport]

Got a "suction gun" from autozone along with two quarts of Coastal Multi-vehicle synthetic blend ATF Approved for applications req Mercon V, and another oil drip pan. Plan on "flushing and filling" the transfer case tommorow morning. Hopefully this will fix the problem. Still have to get my tire fixed as well.

 

[Rayz2000Sport]

Flushed and filled my trans case and seems to have greatly helped. Havent done too much road testing because I want to flush/fill the diffs while I am thinking about it. Working on making sure I have the details right, 2000 Sport Rear Diff before I buy my fluids.