I just had the dealer replace my t/c under warranty. I ask them if they did a tranny fluid
and filter change when they were at it. They said no they just pulled the trans. and added
fluid when they got it back in. I just smelled the fluid and it smells burnt. Is that the norm
when the t/c is replaced? I have 56k on the truck and had the trans serviced at 40k.

 

315 tires, EZ edge.......I can imagine the front of the converter was probably a pretty purple/blue color from the lock up clutch hanging on for dear life. Even harder on it if you have the 3.55 gear. If the truck came in for a torque convertor shudder generally the trans is dropped, the old convertor is pulled and the new one is installed and the coolers and lines are flushed as good as possible. Pan removal is not required, but it wouldn't be a bad idea, especially with the possibilty of clutch material in the filter. If it makes you feel any better I did the very same thing to mine two years ago. I needed the truck asap to tow to a race so we just pulled the trans back and put a new converter in. That was over 50K miles ago and it's working fine. I did drop the pan the following week and put a new filter on, but it looked fine. Mine would shudder in when lockup applied pulling the trailer.