2000 Montana P0743

G

GregB58

New member
Joined
Oct 12, 2015
Messages
7
Reaction score
0
Points
0
New forum member here but I need some input and help

My son has a 2000 Montana which threw a (I think) P0743 ODB error last evening. It said the TCC Solenoid was stuck open. They took it to a national Transmission Repair shop this morning and were told that the transmission should be replaced. I had them ask if they could just change the fluid and would that possibly help since from my online research this error may simply be dirty fluid or debris in the fluid causing the solenoid to stick. The repair guy (or more likely the sales guy) told them that changing the fluid may cause the transmission to stop completely.

Well I'm definitely not a transmission repair guru but that doesn't sound right to me! Has anyone had this solenoid issue and if so what repair steps did you take? Any help and input would be greatly appreciated.
 
take it somewhere else. Flushing the transmission can cause further damage by stirring up debris in the pan but changing the fluid and filter should not be an issue. In addition changing the solenoid would be the way to go before changing the transmission.
 
That's pretty much what I thought. It sounded like my daughter in-law was just getting a sales pitch.
 
It has about 165,000 miles on it. Would you recommend an additive along with a fluid change?
______________________________
 
i would try the filter and fluid alone to start with
 
Whenever I have a car that develops a bad TCC solenoid I disconnect it. It makes very little difference other than not killing your engine at stop signs. It is supposed to lock in your torque converter for better mileage, but at operating rpm, I doubt there is much, if any, slippage.
 
erndog72 said:
Whenever I have a car that develops a bad TCC solenoid I disconnect it. It makes very little difference other than not killing your engine at stop signs. It is supposed to lock in your torque converter for better mileage, but at operating rpm, I doubt there is much, if any, slippage.
Click to expand...

I have no idea who to even go about doing that. I'm a shade tree mechanic and don't even have the tree. .. LOL
 
after changing the fluid and filter have the code reset and see if it comes back
______________________________
 
melsg5 said:
after changing the fluid and filter have the code reset and see if it comes back
Click to expand...

i plan on changing the fluid and filter this weekend. The error code is intermittent. I'm told the CEL is currently off (we did not reset it) and appears to shift fine right now. But I plan on clearing the error anyway after the fluid change.
 
I have been a Automotive technician since 1985, I make no money from anyone by telling you to rebuild the transmission, however I have to agree with the technician that told you to rebuild it to cure the problem is the right way to go if your transmission has 165K on it.

This being said, I agree you could ( possibly ) extend the transmission life by servicing it. if you try this repair yourself and fail you only lost time and a little money.

No transmission shop that wants to stay in business will do this for you because when it doesn't work or makes things worse they think you will be blaming them for screwing the car up and not want to pay for a repair that didn't fix your car.

The time for changing transmission fluid and filters is before any problems develop. I will say I have purchased cars with solenoid problems and high mileage replaced the bad solenoid, did a flush and fill and the transmission worked great, however since I sold it off to Carmax I couldn't tell you how long it lasted or if it developed any other problem later on.

Good Luck
 
I understand all that EaOutlaw. But I have been to transmission shops for 5 previous vehicles I've owned and now for my son's van. I have yet to hear a single transmission tech say anything other than we need to rebuilt or replace the transmission. It just "seems" to be the mantra.
 
One more quick question. Can anyone tell me what the torque spec is for the transmission pan bolts?
______________________________
 
GregB58 said:
I understand all that EaOutlaw. But I have been to transmission shops for 5 previous vehicles I've owned and now for my son's van. I have yet to hear a single transmission tech say anything other than we need to rebuilt or replace the transmission. It just "seems" to be the mantra.
Click to expand...

Its simply all about the money for transmission shops. My Dad was a expert transmission technician for many years. ( way before computer controlled Transmissions were ever thought of )

He had to quit many jobs working for scum bags that would tell the customer they had to do a complete overhaul and claim they had to replace hard parts to complete the rebuild yet the owners of these crooked shops would try to get him to just go as deep as he needed to to fix the problem and not really rebuild the transmission.

Looking at your problem from a honest technicians view most solenoid problems are not a electronic failure but a sticky part in the valve body caused by debris.

this debris comes from pieces of clutches, bands, o-rings etc along with burnt tarnished fluid. changing the fluid and filter and replacing a few parts
is not on the menu list of services they provide because of the liability and loss of revenue.

why would they play games with your transmission for a few bucks profit and a guaranteed come back when they have customers lining up to pay them for a full rebuild.

So you right it is the mantra, the real issue here is when you pay them to rebuild the transmission with added hard parts did they really do all the work? since most shops do not offer a long warranty it just needs to make it as long as their warranty. even if it fails before hand it cheaper for them to fix it again or blame something else.

So the real lesson is never buy a used car with burnt smelling transmission fluid unless you buy it at a good enough price that you can replace it with a name brand transmission from the dealer or B&M etc.

Never pay anyone to rebuild your transmission because they likely will be screwing you over. ( this unless you have personal references for the shop and tech that is doing the work )

If you have a new vehicle like my HHR that claims the trans fluid doesn't have to be changed until 100k do not believe it. service it as soon as you see even a slightest change in the color or smell of the fluid.
To do otherwise opens yourself up for costly repairs and aggravation that could be avoided.
 
You must log in or register to reply here.

Share this page

Back
Top