Kiwi,

These things here are as common as the nose on your face, we have lots of parts available. I'm sure someone on the board would be happy to ship you parts if you need them.

 

i've wondered about this myself, but i think the S&H costs would be killer. weight is sch a bi*ch when shipping anything.

 

I've shipped stuff to Austrailia before and the costs are reasonable if you don't mind the wait.. as it has to go by boat. Air Frieght is very expensive. I shipped a box of Corvette parts to Adelaide and it was not too bad. Guy was happy as hell to get them.

 

Every week we play the national lotto & the first thing I'll do if I win is ship my truck to the States & get Chip Foose & his mates to do all the mods to my truck, from a new paint job to a V8 swap, diff upgrades the works.

AND I have my wife's approval to do this! LOL

 

yeah, we all have that fantasy too!

and i'd get that in writing-before the winning ticket is bought!

 

Dropped the Blazer off at the Chevy guys this afternoon. They tell me the tranny from the 2002 will not interface with the 1999 Blazer's computer! ? ? ? ? So if they fit it & it doesn't work they'll have to remove & replace with a '99 tranny. That's another 8 hours labour charge! So it looks like I'll have to settle for another '99 tranny!

Also, they say that to do the mods Kyle has suggested (other than the valve body), is not necessary & parts will in any event need to be imported for it. This surprises me as I know Holden still use the 4L60E in it's Commodore range. They don't personally repair the tranny but send it out to be done!

 

sounds like you need to find a Holden dealer near you, or someone that knows what is under these vehicles, is pretty much the same thing.

isn't there anyone over there (somewhat close to you) that does any kind of onsite repairs or performace upgrading? i can't believe everything needs to be shipped off somewhere else to be done. maybe it's time to cut out the middle man, and find the actual repair shop yourself.

 

... and 02 tranny should have no problems with a 99 engine...
at WORST they might have to flash the PCM and re-set the shift points, but that has NOTHING to do with interface. It SHOULD go in and work, just not to its best possible performance as is.

x2 on chopping the middle man. If you can find ANYONE that has mashed a fingernail, or busted a knuckle working on a Blazer, you should be better off than the stuff some of these guys have told you... Ever heard of Dane Cook? try youtube if not

"Kiwi, we had to replace the roof on your truck, because it was peeling back. It resented the rest of the truck, so we replaced that. Also, there was a tiny unicorn in your exhaust, and he was jumping and poking holes in your exhaust. And he was s***ting in your filters as well. So we had to get that out of there."

Sounds like he has had his Blazer worked on in NZ

 

Spoke to the Chevy guys today. They test drove the truck & believe my tranny is not terminal but are happy to swap in one from another '99. Although they know there is no P1870 issue with the replacement, there is no guarantee either that it won't, at a later stage, develop this issue.

They agree with the VB upgrade & also think it a good idea to do it (& the lift kit & servo if I want) before fitting it back in the truck. Problem with that is, I'll need to first import the parts, then drop the box, send it in to get it fixed, THEN, put it back.

Since money is an issue (isn't it always!) going this route means the truck will be off the road a while SO, what I've decided to do is buy the used tranny for $500, hide it in the garden shed, then when I've got more cash, import the bits needed, rebuild/repair, then re-install.
At the same time I'll import 2 of everything so I can rebuild/mod the old box & sell it & get my money back!

I've got a friend who recently bought an 80 something Corvette & he knows his way around the mechanicals & he'll hopefully help me. Also my son-in-law has an American friend here who is a GM mechanic (ex Utah, I think) although he's not practiced as one for many years. Might actually have been a diesel mac. - so I may even be able to get him to help.

I'll talk to him tonight & to Charlie tomorrow.

 

^^^sounds like you've got a plan goin' on there kiwi.

good idea on the, "At the same time I'll import 2 of everything so I can rebuild/mod the old box & sell it & get my money back!". hopefully it'll work in your favor.

GL.