1989 S10 Blazer 4.3l 4wd

Okay, so I'm seeking some advice on what would be the best thing to do in this situation.
When I have my vehicle running at low speeds, in every gear but neutral, there is a notable whirring noise coming from the torque converter. Which leads me to believe that it is likely starting to fail and needs replacing. Along with that, there are two other issues around the area that ive noted. One is that there is either a engine oil leak, or a trans oil leak that drops down around the flywheel cover. Its strange though because the leak seems kind of bad but I rarely have to top of either fluids ( probably engine oil though). the other issue that I noted more recently was that I was getting a terrible racket while driving it and found out that the flywheel cover had just about come off completely(bolts came out!). So i bolted it back on only to have there still be some noise which was the torque converter hitting the cover. Solved that by placing some metal spacers between the bolt mounts and the flywheel cover.

So knowing all this, am I right in thinking that it would be best to replace the torque converter? Also what might be a reason for the flywheel cover to not sit properly on its own (it used to)?

Lastly what would it entail to replace the torque converter, obviously I'd have to drain the fluid, drop the trans pan and replace the filter etc... Any seals I would have to be sure to replace while down there?
But seeing as I have not done this personally would it be best to just take it to a mechanic and have them do it for like ~350 or whatever it would cost.
Im not apposed to going through the learning processes and I'm handy with a wrench, plus I could get some help from the old man who has some experience with transmission work(though that was like 20 years ago).

Appreciate any advice.
Dave

 

you are correct that you would have to drain the trans and change the filter, but after that, you have to take the trans off the car to get to the torque converter. that can be a huge PITA. i have done it more than once, but i knew how and didnt have the money to pay someone else to do it. when you have the trans out, its easy to get the torque converter off, you just spin it counter-clockwise and pull it off. when you go to put it on, spin it clockwise and push. YOU HAVE TO MAKE SURE THAT ITS ALL THE WAY ON!! if you dont, you will break the pump or possibly the input shaft and then you are rebuilding it. the easiest and surest way to make sure that the TC is all the way on is if you can fit your hand between it and the rest of the trans from the bottom, its NOT on. you shouldnt be able to fit your hand between the TC and the trans down by the trans pan. before you pull it out, take a look at how much space you have between the TC and the trans. take a picture so you can reference it later. anyway, while you have the trans out you should inspect your fly wheel and change your rear main seal since it sounds like it could be leaking.

EDIT: if you find a lot of metal in the oil when you change it, it is more than likely going to slip after putting a new converter in it. so if you have metal in the oil, it might just show up as a whole lot of little specs, you might consider just rebuilding it then and putting a new converter on it before you reinstall it. after changing the oil and taking all the metal out of it, the plates that are wore out from the metal dont have as much to bite on now. thats why it could start the slip.

 

be sure to flush the trans cooler if not and you have metal in the pan then when you replace the converter everything is also in the cooler and get right back in the system

 

I'm doing this now, and I have to admit, it's a real PITA. Getting to the bell housing bolts isn't fun, had to buy a 20" extension and add a couple 6's to that, plus a swivel with the 9/16 socket already attached. getting the oil lines off was no fun either.
I did manage to leave the exhaust in place though, since all I'm doing is pulling the tranny far enough back to get the converter off and not actually droppin the tranny out. In retrospect...yeah, I woulda paid somebody to do it..lol.
Haven't put it back together yet, I'm sure that will be an adventure too

 

If I'm not mistaken, if the tc was going out, you'd know it by more than a "whirling" sound, right? Ie; slippage, not shifting right, ect, ect. The cover could have gotten bent by it slapping around under the truck, making it not sit properly. If you replace the converter and drain all of the fluid, if you have a lot of mileage, you will end up buying a new trans, or rebuilding.

 

Thanks for the advice guys especially Twip.
Ive got some more information that i've noted to answer some of the speculations posted. The noise is only highly audible when in P,N,R But in Drive or OverDrive it does lessen. Denoting that the TC is engaging as it should perhaps? The tranny fluid itself is a brown burnt color, not a dark black more of a light brownish color not alot of red left. So that should suggest transmission fluid overheating (maybe the fluid in the TC?).
As of yet, there isn't any gear slippage to speak of, although a little lag when i leave it sitting for a few days on a slight incline. My thought on replacing it is that if I wait till gears slip and whatnot, then it will have already damaged my trans and ill need a rebuild before I can use the Vehicle again. Am i right in thinking this?
Thanks again for your time.

 

I went through this myself. The whining torque convertor is the main bearing going out. It pukes metal into the trans. Mine was running great other than the whining but when I pulled the trans pan it was full of metal. You can try just doing the convertor but in the end the trans will probably die shortly afterward or any metal left in the trans will work its way into your new convertor killing it. You would be best to do them both now, unfortunately. I lucked out, if you can call having to replace your trans and convertor lucky, because GM was having a sale on reman transmissions at the time. It was about 40% off and came with about 3 times the warranty that any of the trans shops would offer. If you won't stand behind your work then your work is garbage in my opinion.

 

This is a problem right here, you used spacers on the converter bolts. It fit right once, it should still fit. The pump "may" be what is making the noise

 

Well thats not what I wanted to hear, but thanks for the heads up. Maybe I'll just plan on doing a rebuild with the swap instead of just replacing the TC.



I would agree with you, but I ran it with the flex plate cover off of the vehicle for a bit and still had the same whirring noise. At least with the cover on, the flywheels protected and the noise is dampened (if only a little).

 

I don't see how a main bearing would puke metal into a trans pan the two systems are separated...how ever I did look over the spacer comment that you made in your original post...that would be a problem the pump is more then likely shot if that is whats causing...if you have metal in the pan it is also in the TC rather you just replace the TC or do a rebuild of the whole thing do a trans cooler flush because its in the whole system and will just get right back in the freshly rebuilt trans...also they sell a kit I believe you may look into for the trans rebuild that would allow more clutches in the forward drum and also you could buy a pump kit for a 4l65e it have 13 vane pump where the 4l60e only has 7 or 10 I believe just a option it just give a little more holding power and more volume of fluid moved really no more pressure