Introduction and help needed!

[boosted2300]

Hey guys, this is my first post. I have been poking around on here for a while now, but now I actually own a Suburban, so I went ahead and joined!

It's a 90 1/2 ton 4x4, 5.7/700R4. I'm in the process of doing the interior and will be painting it olive drab soon. It has 33 x 12.5 ATs on 15x10 black steel wheels, and overall is just a fun truck to have around. The transmission only has 1st and 2nd, which seems to be a common problem. What are my options here? The best price I have gotten for a good rebuild is $950, and I'm scared of a used stock 700R4 after talking to a couple local transmission shops.

I'm not opposed to going to a 3-speed auto, if it gives me a good cost savings. I have no intentions of changing the gears any time soon, so with the tires being a good deal taller than stock, I'm thinking a 3speed would do me fine. The furthest I would be driving this thing is about 75 miles (it's my hunting rig). What can I do with the least amount of extra work possible? I don't want to get into a snowball situation, needing all sorts of new small parts such as kickdown cable, speedo cable, etc.

So... what are my options here? I'm located in South GA by the way.

Thanks for listening, and any advice is appreciated!

Grant

 

[4X4HIGH]

Well, to start off with welcome aboard. I think you would be less money out of pocket by having your tranny rebuilt or buying another 700R4 that's already built from someone such as Bowtie Overdrive. If you decide to swap tranny's to a different kind then you start needing to change or modify other things such as kickdown cable, driveshafts, crossmembers, t-case adapter. In the end it's probably cheaper to fix what you've already got.

 

[MA87K5]

Just get a good rebuild book and do it yourself. Should take about 6-8 hours or so to take it out rebuild it and put it back in. I did mine and I had no lift just power tools. Haynes #10360. Very good book to have. I ended spending around 300 for everything. Still running after 2 years and through mud and up rock faces.

 

[imiceman44]

Just get a good rebuild book and do it yourself. Should take about 6-8 hours or so to take it out rebuild it and put it back in. I did mine and I had no lift just power tools. Haynes #10360. Very good book to have. I enede spending around 300 for everything. Still running after 2 years and through mud and up rock faces.

Man you are quick.
It took me 3 days to do mine, but i would still do a rebuild on mine.
For someone that is not too familiar with transmissions I would recomend either Shift management transmissions or bowtie overdrive, they both have good reputation for quality and customer support

 

[boosted2300]

From what I have been told, there are a couple specialty tools involved. How much could I expect to spend on them? The rebuild kit is cheap, and I was kind of thinking about thet. I've never been inside a transmission before, but there's a first time for everything, right!

Seriously though, is swapping in a 350 or 400 a bad idea? What all would need changed, since I can get a 400 for 1/2 the price of a 700!

Grant

 

[4X4HIGH]

From what I have been told, there are a couple specialty tools involved. How much could I expect to spend on them? The rebuild kit is cheap, and I was kind of thinking about thet. I've never been inside a transmission before, but there's a first time for everything, right!

Seriously though, is swapping in a 350 or 400 a bad idea? What all would need changed, since I can get a 400 for 1/2 the price of a 700!

Grant

Swapping in a 400 will require the t-case to come apart and have the input shaft replaced with a 32 spline input, you'll need a TH400/241 adapter, probably need driveshafts modified, possibly a different crossmember, if you want the kickdown to work you'll need to find the switch that mounts to the gas pedal and wire it up, have a chip burned to remove the TCC so you don't get a check engine light. I think that's all.

 

[Thunder]

Just either rebuild your trans or have it rebuilt. You can go with a TH 400 or 350 but IMHO it aint worth the hassle. Th 350 is not any stronger than a 700r4. Th400 will require som mods.
You might want to check your Governor before you tear into, or replace your trans.
Not shifting out of first or 2 is a common problem. The governor gear is a plastic gear that controls shift points. It may be stripped. And is a simple cheap easy replacememt.

 

[imiceman44]

Just either rebuild your trans or have it rebuilt. You can go with a TH 400 or 350 but IMHO it aint worth the hassle. Th 350 is not any stronger than a 700r4. Th400 will require som mods.
You might want to check your Governor before you tear into, or replace your trans.
Not shifting out of first or 2 is a common problem. The governor gear is a plastic gear that controls shift points. It may be stripped. And is a simple cheap easy replacememt.

Another problem with 700's is teh TV cable, if it's not adjusted properly it wouldn't shift right