6.0 LSx 4L80e equipped van transmission questions

I recently bought an '03 Chevy Express 2500 with 319,000 miles and no records. It drives well but shifts HARD into second gear. How do I diagnose the cause?

My truck did that when the TCC was slipping and it went into self-preservation mode. Does your TCC lock up properly?

In reply to MrJoshua:

That's the lockup clutch failed. It wears the clutch out and the trans increases the fluid pressure to compensate, thus causing the hard shifting. It's a very common failure, and unfortunately requires removing the trans to repair. Usually that justifies a rebuild. BTW, the engine in that van should be an LQ9.

bravenrace wrote: In reply to MrJoshua: That's the lockup clutch failed. It wears the clutch out and the trans increases the fluid pressure to compensate, thus causing the hard shifting. It's a very common failure, and unfortunately requires removing the trans to repair. Usually that justifies a rebuild. BTW, the engine in that van should be an LQ9.

Whats a rough guess on a rebuild? Any idea of the expected lifespan of these trans? (Basically-is a low mile Junkyard unit worth buying instead of a rebuild?)

I would recommend a lower mile salvage unit, a new filter kit and fluid.

In reply to MrJoshua:

This problem is common, so I can't really recommend a used unit unless you don't mind installing it and then taking it back out. But it may depend on how much your van is worth. A decent rebuild will be in the neighborhood of $1500.
My advice would be to first take it to a reputable trans shop to verify the problem. It's the only cause I've seen for this symptom, but there may be others, so don't take my word as gospel.

In reply to bravenrace:

Lol-the van cost me $1500

Forget the real cause of the hard shifts and tell the kids it's a race van feature.

Bryce

Find someone with EFI Live or HP Tuners and program it so it shifts hard into every gear.

$1500 for that van? wow..

I'm with Nashco. Enjoy the 1-2 shift chirps!

Vigo wrote: $1500 for that van? wow..

Since the internet makes it difficult to detect sarcasm, I will assume that yours was a serious post and there wasn't any! After buying a 50k 2005 Chevy V8 truck motor for $285 for another project I came to the realization that high production volume means massively cheap used parts for high mileage vans. I can basically rebuild this thing with junkyard parts and stay way under market value. I am slightly sad that my first vehicle powered by a big Chevy V8 is a van.

If i was one to swap a 6.0 into something id love to have that van for $1500. Id get more than half of that back out of it even after taking the drivetrain out. Maybe get ALL of it back if i tried hard enough. Good buy. :)