Welp I have a bad th 125 tranny in my 4.9 swap That has bigtime slipage, After doing a fluid and filter change it still continues to slip so the only thing I can see is worn clutch packs. I did very little shopping around the other day and asked amco transmissions how much would they charge to rebuild my Th 125 and made the mistake of telling them that theres a v8 behind it. The guy gave me something about using proformance this and that and the quote came up to $1500 bucks, There is no way in hell im paying $1500bucks to get a th 125 rebuilt I can buy th 125s all day long for $125 and even 4speeds for $300.
So what can be done
1.) I can buy a junkyard th 125 for $125 and a number of places have a 90 day war. But I do not want to have to do this tranny swap more than once.
2.) take it to somewere cheaper to rebuild.
3.) buy a 4speed tranny( dont know if I can do this without pulling the motor.
4.) Attempt to rebuild this th 125 myself for cheaper.
Bottom line is I have the money but there is no way in hell im paying $1500bucks to amco to rebuild it.
How difficult is this and have anyone ever had a transmission rebuilt for cheaper then I was quoted?
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06:46 AM
PFF
System Bot
PBJ Member
Posts: 4167 From: London, On., Canada Registered: Jan 2001
Did the trans slip before the 4.9? I know on ours we had to get the TV cable just right or the trans would slip or swing the other way and the engine would rev. If you get another 125 be sure to get the TV cable right. Our 4T60 came from a 90 pont 6000 if it helps. I was never happy with the 4.9 with a 125 trans.
Pete
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08:33 AM
86fieroEarl Member
Posts: 2203 From: Orlando, FL Registered: Jun 2002
It really didn't do that with the old engine in, But I will check the cable again, I had to stretch it alittle to get it mounted to the throttle bracket, I will have to check that over again.
No biggy if it isn't the TV cable it gives me a reason to put and 4speed in. ( what I should of did in teh first place )
Thanks for the info on the type of 4speed to look for.
[This message has been edited by 86fieroEarl (edited 12-16-2003).]
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08:41 AM
jeffndebrus Member
Posts: 2772 From: Jacksonville, Fl- usa Registered: Aug 2001
Just a note; I met a transmission specialist who now builds trannies for a Dodge dealer who used to work at Aamco he told me to never go there--said they were the biggest rip offs in the business. He said when he worked there, the joke was All Automatics Must Come Out- A.a.m.c.o.
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10:16 AM
PBJ Member
Posts: 4167 From: London, On., Canada Registered: Jan 2001
www.fieroaddiction.com has info on 4T60 swaps, also they have a TV cable untill they went electonic. I have probably spent hrs on getting the TV cable right and still would slip on light accell because the 4.9 takes so little throttle to accellerate a fiero. It really needs a cam system that pulls the cable alot at first travel reducing down to max TV cable at 3/4 and staying there.
I just finished a rebuild on my 84 TH125 this past weekend and it works great. This is the first complete automatic rebuild that I have ever done. I was a AUTO Mechanic for 15 years and have worked on everything else on a car but never an automatic. I knew that I needed a drive chain and even thought about changing it with the trans in the car but eventually I swung the cradle down and removed the trans. I bought most of the parts from WWW.bulkparts.com and could not believe the prices. ($0.98 for a friction plate or $4.94 for the filter) All the parts were top quality and the service is great. Total price with a rebuilt torque convertor is around $200.00 Buy a Haynes TechBook for general motors automatic transmission overhaul cost about 15 bucks at the local AutoZone and it has lots of pictures. I have the Pontiac service manual, and another repair manual but the Haynes was the best by far.
Take your time, follow the instructions, lay everything out in order and keep it very clean you should not have any problems. I even took the spooles out of the valve body just to make sure they were good.
Ray
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05:35 PM
rockcrawl Member
Posts: 2528 From: Lehigh Valley, PA Registered: Jul 2000
I'm betting on a T.V. cable problem. How did you attach the cable to the throttle linkage? The 4.9 doesn't have a stud for it. Grab a throttle body and T.V. cable from a '90 Cadillac and you'll be set.
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10:44 PM
Dec 17th, 2003
86fieroEarl Member
Posts: 2203 From: Orlando, FL Registered: Jun 2002
Hehe I was barely able to make the tv cable fit I bought the throttle and TV cable adaptures for the holley carb, But I had to pull the TV cable a little open to get it to fit.
I will snap some pics of the throttle and TV cable connection, I only thought that TV cable only helps with shifting, This thing is slipping.
I will be converting it to fuel injection when I get it squared away, I still got the fuel injection wire harness and injectors, disc, fuel rails and throttle body.
As much as I like carbs im getting tired of sitting around waiting for it to warm up
But I will play around with it again to get a better fit, This will be very awsome if it's only a TV cable problem
[This message has been edited by 86fieroEarl (edited 12-17-2003).]
I am having the same problem on the 4.5 in my minivan. I've installed the shift correction kit and that helped a lot. The problem that I am having is probably the same thing that is happening to you- my torque converter is slipping. Under light throttle, the tranny shifts nice and firm but when you accelerate hard, the rpms climb at a lot higher rate than the van is accelerating, but when you back off enough for the torque converter to lock, it pulls like a freight train. I am swapping my current 125 for another one with only 70,000 miles on it but I am using a Caddy torque converter this time so hopefully the only thing that slips is the tires
------------------ It's not a minivan. It's a seven passenger v8 sports car with a sliding door.
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12:57 PM
Dec 18th, 2003
86fieroEarl Member
Posts: 2203 From: Orlando, FL Registered: Jun 2002
I feel stupid It turned out to be a badly adjusted TV cable, I took it out for another test drive with the TV cable unhooked but decided to gas it and pull on it at the same time, The thing just about gave me whiplash and I almost hit my 96 cavalier But now im happy that I dont have to tear the tranny out, I still kind of wanted a 4speed but I guess it will go in my future plans, Thanks for the TV cable advise.