acklac7 Posted July 18, 2004 Report Share Posted July 18, 2004 Just got done with "fixing" the solenoids, took her out for a spin...and got the same problem .... p029 & p094. They are brand new solenoids, I doubt they are bad....so what is the problem? One of the old solenoids was bad btw. Also, it seems as though the tranny stays in 2 from the start, even if I put it in "D" I pinched the wiring harness a number of times trying to get it into posistion...What would happen If the wires were broken/shorted?...Im major bummed out....please tell me Its something simple to fix.... A.J. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
adallak Posted July 18, 2004 Report Share Posted July 18, 2004 acklac7, do not get upset... sometimes it takes several attepmts to fis a problem you learn meanwhile... several members went through the same procedure, you'll get help soon. The saddest thing in life is wasted talent Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
davedog Posted July 18, 2004 Report Share Posted July 18, 2004 off subject - but that is one sharp-looking cadillac! Crystal Red Tintcoat Exterior | Shale/Brownstone Interior | 32k Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
acklac7 Posted July 18, 2004 Author Report Share Posted July 18, 2004 you got yourself one nice looking eldo as well....Its amazing how many looks,inquires,complements you get on a car thats nearly 10 years old (or nearly 13) just have to spend time taking care of the car...thats all....ever thought about a black quarter top davedog? that and a set of vogues would complete the package...IMO A.J. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Scotty Posted July 18, 2004 Report Share Posted July 18, 2004 This same thing happened to another member, he did the job for his parents and when he reassembled it he had problems. My guess is that one of the check balls is misplaced or missing. How did you deal with the checkballs? You will get it runnning have patience. Mike Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Scotty Posted July 18, 2004 Report Share Posted July 18, 2004 Do a search back 180 days for check balls and see Cadillac STS's experience, Mike Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
JBuckley Posted July 18, 2004 Report Share Posted July 18, 2004 Acklac7, These things happen, couple of things to check, do as Scotty suggested, double check your placement of the check balls, make sure the wiring connectors to the solenoids and the main wiring connector are on securely and that that they are not pinched in any way. Also that the linkage is connected. John John Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Cadillac STS Posted July 18, 2004 Report Share Posted July 18, 2004 it took me 2 trys until i got it right..it was most likly the checkballs that were misplaced...good luck Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
acklac7 Posted July 19, 2004 Author Report Share Posted July 19, 2004 what happend on the first try? (driving wise) I.E. did it just stay in 2nd (mine is) from startup...no matter what gear. Or did it try to shift then go into limp mode and spit up a code? A.J. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Willie Hank Posted July 19, 2004 Report Share Posted July 19, 2004 The following procedure is a little bit "after the fact", and make sure you got all the checkballs back in place. Here's the prcoess, a) the job is a mess, be prepared. drop the pan, and careful removing the tranny gasket, it is re-usable. Once you clean the pan, you can reset it with gasket sealer. c) disconnect the solenoid electrical connectors and the mechanical linkage. The linkage has a metal clip you lift and slide. d) remove the valve body screws, and drop the valve body. e) place the valve body where you can afford a mess, it will continually leak. Best thing is to set it on cardboard on a bench. There is a valve spool that can be removed as well, careful it can slip out, you don't want to damage it. f) remove the two clips holding the solenoids, careful they are spring-loaded and will fly g) remove the screws holding the "large" portion of the valve body split, this is where the solenoids are incased. Remember the screw locations, there are about four different screw lengths h) CAREFULLY remove split, there are 4 steel check balls loose inside the split (about 1/4" diameter, they will fly, as well) i) inspect spacer plate, if the black coating is not chipping off you can re-use it, otherwise plan on spending another $ 70 at the dealership parts house. If you replace it you will have to remove the "smaller" split, as well. It also has three check balls. j) replace the solenoids k) now comes the fun,....you will note three holes in the spacer plate where three of the check balls reside, seat them there (appr. 3/16" diameter with a smaller relief hole next to it, as I remember). The fourth check ball will need to be inserted in a spherically-cast cavity, which is near one of the solenoids. You can set it with grease, I re-assembled successfully without using grease. l) re-assemble valve body, carefully and equally torque. m) you will note a square black plastic item near one of the solenoids, on the end. Replace this plastic filter with the new filter in the solenoid kit. The kit will also come with an L-shaped bracket that is to be used to "capture" this filter and keep it from backing out. The kit also comes with a slightly longer screw used to mount the bracket to the valve body (discard the old screw). m) re-assemble valve body to transmission, hook up linkage and electrical connectors n) replace both tranny filters o) replenish fluid p) reset codes I am told there is a hidden drain plug for the side cover fluid (where most of the fluid is...) that is accessible once the lower pan is removed. The plug is pretty evident on the end of the trans under the side cover. Use this to drain additional fluid out. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
acklac7 Posted July 19, 2004 Author Report Share Posted July 19, 2004 Already followed your directions willie...got them from JBUCKLEY.......thanks for the help. I hope to drop the pan tommorow and re-examine everything. I was very careful when insearting the check balls, but I did pinch the harness a few times before I got it to stay put. Anyone know what would happen if the wires to the solenoid where pinched? what would cause they engine to go directly into 2nd no matter what gear was selected? the manual suggest that if there is no first gear then it may be a shorted wire/no reading of the solenoid....If the wire is shorted I intend to splice it and re-wire from the tip of the "solenoid clip" to the point where the harness becomes visable...and this wont be for another 2 weeks.....If I do it at all (it is possiible to do right?...if I find the correct wire)....I should also mention that there are absolutley NO shift points.....the engine will go from 1000 to 5000 without shifting. A.J. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
JBuckley Posted July 19, 2004 Report Share Posted July 19, 2004 If you pinch the wiring hard enough, you can cut completly or nick the inner conductor, if it is cut of course it will not receive power to be activated, if you nick the inner conductor, you can short out the wire, again causing a short to ground if it touches any metal. Double check your wring and the check balls. John Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
acklac7 Posted July 19, 2004 Author Report Share Posted July 19, 2004 Ok I checked all the balls checked the wiring and re-assm....and still no luck.....Ok this is a extremly stupid time to ask but I have been putting the balls in there slots on the black plate....then putting the valve fixture on overtop of them....I practiced untill I was ceartin that the balls were not moving then put the valve back to top...and tightend it down....Should I have put the balls inside the valve then put the black plate on up-side down....then flip it over and intsall?......Also Is it safe to re-use the fluid and gasket agian...both are brand new....thanks....p.s. I am going out of town so I wont be working on it for at lease 10 days....thanks for all of your help+! A.J. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
acklac7 Posted July 20, 2004 Author Report Share Posted July 20, 2004 bump A.J. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Willie Hank Posted July 20, 2004 Report Share Posted July 20, 2004 Ok I checked all the balls checked the wiring and re-assm....and still no luck.....Ok this is a extremly stupid time to ask but I have been putting the balls in there slots on the black plate....then putting the valve fixture on overtop of them....I practiced untill I was ceartin that the balls were not moving then put the valve back to top...and tightend it down....Should I have put the balls inside the valve then put the black plate on up-side down....then flip it over and intsall?......Also Is it safe to re-use the fluid and gasket agian...both are brand new....thanks....p.s. I am going out of town so I wont be working on it for at lease 10 days....thanks for all of your help+! Its been a couple of years since I performed the job, I remember the screws that hold the valve body together are facing down with the valve installed the transmission. That is, the screw heads are oriented on top of the valve body. When you seperate the valve body split in this orientation, three of the check balls should be sitting on top of the black spacer plate, that is, gravity should be "seating" them in the spacer plate hole. The fourth check ball resided in a cavity near one of the shift solenoids, and I am not sure if it would be on top or bottom of the spacer plate. I believe if you inspect the valve body machining closely, it will be obvious. Also, if you completely disassembled the valve body, so you could remove the spacer plate, you would have discovered three more check balls "seated" in their respective holes, for a total of seven check balls. Someone once posted an illustrated parts list of the 4T80E valve body, and it showed the check ball positions, .....that would really help. It was a long time ago. I assume you checked to assure the electrical plug connections you made were good. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
rmac-etc Posted July 20, 2004 Report Share Posted July 20, 2004 Not that long ... This link is a useful diagram of where the little steel balls go (provided by Barry94): http://temp.corvetteforum.net/c3/a70lt1//more_balls.jpg Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Cadillac STS Posted July 20, 2004 Report Share Posted July 20, 2004 first time i tryed fixing it, the car wouldnt even move! non of the gears worked except for P and N pushed the car back into the driveway and the next day i dropped the pan and opened up the valve body to double check the check balls..lol the car ran just fine after that Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Scotty Posted July 20, 2004 Report Share Posted July 20, 2004 first time i tryed fixing it, the car wouldnt even move! non of the gears worked except for P and N pushed the car back into the driveway and the next day i dropped the pan and opened up the valve body to double check the check balls..lol the car ran just fine after that Beautiful Cadillac STS! My personal habit is to place the check balls in place with either white grease (not lithium) or petroleum jelly to insure they remain where they are suppose to be. If the valve body has been dissassembled to clean it recheck all the valves to make sure they are facing the correct direction and that all springs are correct. Mike Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
JohnnyG Posted July 21, 2004 Report Share Posted July 21, 2004 Too bad that my post of the picture from the service manual was cut. Maybe I'm not allowed to post jpg's here. It showed all of the ball locations. Never underestimate the amount of a persons greed. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
acklac7 Posted July 21, 2004 Author Report Share Posted July 21, 2004 lol..I was wondering when you were going to reply Guru, I have not checked the wiring since I really dont know how (Im learing step by step) Do I need a volt meter to measure the continuity ? how would I go about measuring it? Also it seems since the last attempt the tranny will surge back and forth between 2500 and 3000 rpm....but only while in drive.... 2nd seems to be fine. Another note: Both of the solenoids seemed to be identical, the old solenoids had differnt part numbers on them....the new ones are identical.....also I was reading in the manual about checking the condition of the solenoids through the pcm, would this help any? (btw guys I have the shop manual and diagram of the balls..thanks for offering the pic) I will be out of town for about 2 weeks....please dont hesitate to post, I will read it when I get back, then I will start on the solenoids for a third time!!...also ...worst case scenario: I pinched the wiring harness....can I splice it and rewire or do I have to intstall a new harness? thanks in advance...acklac A.J. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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