What makes this happen? I pull very rarely and only a short goose neck and a 3 horse slant aluminum trailer. Not very much weight? I always use the tow haul mode and never jump it off the line (horses and wife do not like that). Any ideas? I do have the triple dog but only use it occasionally just for fun without the trailers hooked up.

gary

 

Pictures of the exploded converter?

 

No pictures, the dealership just called and told me it exploded.

 

The pics would be good. There's a lot of pressure in a TC but it usually bends and warps the fins. Maybe you had a weak point in the welds and it ruptured.

If you've never read up on a TC, an internet search should give you more insight. Pretty interesting piece of technology, simple and effective for the purpose. Once you know more about them, you'll know why people upgrade them (and why some like manual trannies )

Cya

 

I love the technical terms that come from dealerships!!!!
ask them if it split the truck in half!!

 

I just had it in there two weeks ago for transmission service. They said they opened it up and cleaned it and added new fluid. I wonder why they could not see this becoming a problem then. Do they usually check this when doing a trans service. I sure wish I had my 5 spd back now. I got old and tired of shifting but it sure was a lot easier and cheaper to do all the trans work myself.

 

You can't see the TC during a basic service or the internals at any time. They are a sealed unit. If it had a crack, it would have leaked and been very obvious to you and anyone by the puddle of fluid. TC's suffer quite a bit from overheating and from hot/cool cycles by weakening the turbine fins inside. They get brittle and crack or bend from the pressure and heat, leading to increased slippage and reduced efficiency.

What happened when it "exploded"? It must have left a pile of fluid on the ground.

Cya

 

I had one exploded in a drag car. Part hit the ground and rebounded back up though where the passenger seat should have been. I am sure yours did not do this but my point is that even a drag ready TC can go boom. Hopefully for you this is not an indication that your tranny is getting ready to go also.

 

I was driving and it started not engaging into gear so I headed towards the dealership about 45 miles away. It would go into gear but a small amount of pressure on the go pedal made it slip. I finally got up to about 60 and i felt the torque converter lock up and it drove fine as long as I did not have to slow down. When I arrived at the dealership you could smell the fluid and it left a good puddle under the truck when I turned it off.

 

That sounds like the turbine blades were broken off. You'd get a bit of pressure but not much and throttle would slip really bad. You're lucky you could get the TC locked. Once locked it would not develope much heat but metal fragments would still be floating around. The burnt fluid is a concern and how low the level got to before you shut it down. Hopefully it didn't do too much damage to the tranny. Get all the internals checked before you leave to make sure the clutches and bands are not cooked. If the TC housing is not breeched, then the fluid probably came out the seals which could also mean they were cooked.

Ugly situation but I would bet on further internal damage, sorry. Time for an upgrade either way since it should be stripped apart for inspection. If you're under warranty they may yank your chain over it, if not start reading here to see what the best upgrades and shops are. If the dealer fixes it, confirm how your warranty will extend and get it in writing.

Cya

 

Not to hijack a thread but what would happen to a transmission that was not fully filled during servicing of the truck? Could this cause it to fail?

 

The first thing I did when it started slipping was check the fluid is was ok. I checked it again when I hit the dealers and it was still in the safe zone. The just called and said everything is done. They say they checked everything else and that it all is ok. Just told me to bring a large large check book when I come to pick it up. Thanks for all the advice. I will be looking at building it stronger after I recover from this.

 

Low fluid causes overheating (and the obvious lack of lubrication). But assuming you have enough to lubricate, slightly lower than the safe zone, then the fluid volume is lower and doesn't disipate the heat as well. The bigger problem is the lack of lubrication. If the level is low enough to not fill the TC then it will cavitate, slip and foam the fluid. Foam causes air locks and will not circulate.

It helps to know how a TC works. VERY simply stated, the engine turns a finned wheel (turbine) that forces fluid flow through another finned wheel (stator) that is connected to the tranny input. This is why an auto creeps forward at idle. As the RPM goes up, more flow and more force on the stator. As fluid slips by, you a torque multipier effect but it also heats the fluid up. You can cook an auto in minutes by rocking it while stuck if the engine revs but the wheels don't move. Lock up converters bypass the fluid connection and drives like a clutch after you are up to speed.

Cya

 

How many miles on the truck when this happened ?

 

It's unfortunate that you did't get to use the cost towards a solid rebuilt and upgraded tranny. Guess your warranty is up, huh?

I suppose if the TC didn't disintegrate (no metal pices) and the fins only bent over, you'd be OK. Saved by the lock up .

Hope it holds up OK.

Cya