th 350 help

[griesel72]

What would cause a th 350 trans to not want to operate in forward gears. I just installed this trans, and i put 5 quarts of fluid in, and it goes in reverse good, but in forward gears, it moves, but you have to rev the truck up and it doesn't fully engage.

Do i need to add more fluid? Should i try an additive? Is it possible i didn't get the converter pushed into the trans far enough? (the bell housing bolts are in and the converter is bolted to the flexplate fine)

Any help is apperciated, i am really scratching my head on this one.

Thanks

David

[Phillip Johnson]

I would say you are a bit low in fluid

[jay6891]

Put more fluid in it before you burn it up. Check fluid level with the dipstick,truck running in park. I always get it to the full mark and then with foot on brake, put it in each gear for a couple of seconds, put it back in park, leave truck running and check fluid again> Do this till it is full, about just a guess 9 to 10 quarts. My 700r4 with a deep pan held 15 quarts

[hgs_notes]

You probably do need more fluid. I went through this a couple weeks ago. I was replacing the tranny filter. I thought I just needed to replace the fluid I drained out, but mine had some leakage over the years and the fluid drains from the torque converter into the pan. So I was still very low. I think I had to add a total of 8.5 qts to fill it.

Make sure the truck is level and you add fluid while it's running. I like to wait a couple minutes before checking the level because of fluid still in the tube masking the indication on the dip stick. Don't over fill. Especially if you don't have a drain plug on the pan, not all of them do.

HG

[Longhorn Man]

good and acurate advice. Check your fluid level. If you are full, your tranny is probably a dead player.

[Dean23]

it ccould be l,ow on fluid. Put your truck in gear and hold your foot on the brake and do a stall test.

[stelth2002]

An empty turbo 350 takes 10 quarts completely empty. Your symtptoms look like the tranny is a little low on fluid. Other wise your foeard clutchs are probably out and that isnt good. Is it a new tranny or what?
JT

[griesel72]

As of now, my trans has 8 quarts of fluid and 24 oz of Lucas trans fix in it for just under 9 quarts total. It is doing the same thing. It drives great in reverse, but doesn't hardly want to move in forward gears (any of them). I have only swapped trans a couple of times, is there something basic that i haven't done right could my converter be bad? Did i get my modulator in wrong? could my linkage be screwed up? Or should i add one more quart and see what happens? ( I think my dipstick could be wrong, as it is one i had laying around and is short)

Thanks

David

[hgs_notes]

As long as the dipstick matched the tube it should work. If the tranny works fine in reverse, it's not the torque converter. It spins in the same direction regardless. If its something with the linkage, you should be able to disconnect the linkage at the shifter and move the manual level by hand through all the gears.

You might try lifting the rear axle and setting it on jack stands, block the front wheels and start the truck to run it through the gears. But ifthe tranny was swapped out and completely drained, it'll take quite a bit more than 9 qts to fill. They hold like 13 qts I think. It takes like 7-9 just to fill the torque converter.

Good luck.

HG

[griesel72]

I have 10 in it now, and still no forward gears. I can't get an accurate reading off my dipstick, it is about 6 inches longer than my dipstick tube.

Any ideas?

DAvid

[hgs_notes]

Tow it to the tranny shop and find the proper dipstick.

[COBALT]

Tell us more about this transmission, and what you did to it before putting it in the truck. Did you put in a new filter? Change the pan?

The reason I'm asking is that's the way fluid is pulled into the valve body. If you don't have a filter in there, or it's so bad you can't get fluid into the valve body you could be filling it all day long, and it's never going to get into the transmission. It's just going to creap up the dipstick tube and dump out the vent tube.

Also, a deep pan can take an extra 2 quarts at least. My TH400 takes 14 quarts after I installed an extra-deep pan.

Usually when filling a transmission you dump a quart into the torque converter, and then after everything's assembled put some fluid into the transmission with the truck NOT running until it reaches the mark on the dipstick (3-4 quarts). Then you start the truck, and immediately the fluid level will drop. Start putting in a quart at a time, and shift through the gears in between quarts until you reach the full line.

[griesel72]

I pulled out the old, and found a used one that is in good shape. The trans was bolted up to a motor. It had fluid in it, and the fluid smelled good. I put a new seal in the front and the tail shaft. The converter had some fluid in it, but it wasn't totally full. It is a standard converter. The linkage seems to work fine. It has a stock pan on it.


Thanks for the help

David