Auto Transmission will not go into any gear

[Jericho]

Make sure the valve body bolts are properly torgued and make sure you internal shift lever going valve body is in fact connected and moving the quill shafts.
q

 

[cucvrus]

If the transmission is cracked that is an easy fix. have the case welded. That is a common issue with the transmission. I have seen it on more then several occasions. Easy fix. Alaskan town should have a welder guy. Keep that CUCV going. Getting a transmission case shipped in could get a bit costly. Even after it is thoroughly welded I would coat the weld with a bead of Permatex the right stuff. I have used that right stuff with great results. I know somebody else here thinks its garbage. But it has not failed any of my families vehicles. And we use many of them extremely hard. Have a great day. Good Luck. If you need anything call on me.

 

[rustystud]

If the transmission is cracked that is an easy fix. have the case welded. That is a common issue with the transmission. I have seen it on more then several occasions. Easy fix. Alaskan town should have a welder guy. Keep that CUCV going. Getting a transmission case shipped in could get a bit costly. Even after it is thoroughly welded I would coat the weld with a bead of Permatex the right stuff. I have used that right stuff with great results. I know somebody else here thinks its garbage. But it has not failed any of my families vehicles. And we use many of them extremely hard. Have a great day. Good Luck. If you need anything call on me.

I don't know if that small of village would have the proper "TIG" assembly to weld up aluminum. Then again they are a pretty independent lot up there !

 

[stanzuray]

CUCVRUS and Rusty
Originally last spring after hitting a big hole in one of our muddy roads I had a vibration in the drive train. Jacked up on all fours and ran and found a cracked transmission. It goes about 180 degrees around top rear of trans. and stays open almost 1/16th of an inch. Got a mickey mouse added cross member behind the trans/transfer case mount cross member that puts pressure on the transfer case and closes up the transmission case crack (does not leak). Plan was to just get my wood, fish and other truck work done and pull trans and send in to the city to have a used case put on and have it rebuilt also although the trans seems fine and has very few miles on it as does whole truck.
So really interested in two experts opinion on welding aluminum cases as you mentioned. I had heard they are never as strong after???. Done some aluminum and fair amount of steel welding but would never trust me doing it. Possibly could get it done in Tanana here. The truck is worth sinking some money into if you think I should go with a replacement. Thanks for help.

 

[rustystud]

CUCVRUS and Rusty
Originally last spring after hitting a big hole in one of our muddy roads I had a vibration in the drive train. Jacked up on all fours and ran and found a cracked transmission. It goes about 180 degrees around top rear of trans. and stays open almost 1/16th of an inch. Got a mickey mouse added cross member behind the trans/transfer case mount cross member that puts pressure on the transfer case and closes up the transmission case crack (does not leak). Plan was to just get my wood, fish and other truck work done and pull trans and send in to the city to have a used case put on and have it rebuilt also although the trans seems fine and has very few miles on it as does whole truck.
So really interested in two experts opinion on welding aluminum cases as you mentioned. I had heard they are never as strong after???. Done some aluminum and fair amount of steel welding but would never trust me doing it. Possibly could get it done in Tanana here. The truck is worth sinking some money into if you think I should go with a replacement. Thanks for help.

With that severe of a crack I would go with the new case. I welded professionally for 10 years at "Kolstrand Marine" . Lots of stainless steel and aluminum. The main problem with the aluminum is the warping. Since this is a transmission case and in a critical area the warpage would cause severe damage to the transmission internals. You don't want the output shaft going off at a tangent ! It really needs to be straight !
The only problem is this case in the CUCV's is the heavy duty model TH400. It is thicker and has extra support in the torque converter area. Plus it is drilled for the 8 bolt pumps. Stronger unit all around. You can get by with a regular TH400 case if you have no alternatives. Just be aware it is not as strong and drive accordingly. If you can find a motorhome transmission it will also have the heavy duty case.

 

[stanzuray]

With that severe of a crack I would go with the new case. I welded professionally for 10 years at "Kolstrand Marine" . Lots of stainless steel and aluminum. The main problem with the aluminum is the warping. Since this is a transmission case and in a critical area the warpage would cause severe damage to the transmission internals. You don't want the output shaft going off at a tangent ! It really needs to be straight !
The only problem is this case in the CUCV's is the heavy duty model TH400. It is thicker and has extra support in the torque converter area. Plus it is drilled for the 8 bolt pumps. Stronger unit all around. You can get by with a regular TH400 case if you have no alternatives. Just be aware it is not as strong and drive accordingly. If you can find a motorhome transmission it will also have the heavy duty case.

Would Transmission cases on vehicles with 6.2 diesels be the heavy ones also. Along with the 8 bolt pumps how else might I know?? This would all be info I would give to the rebuilder in Fairbanks the closest city. He has done good work for me before and seems to be aware of things like this. Told me I should send in the old tranny as he would need the valve body for this TH400 case he has to match up with my 6.2 diesel. Maybe he has the weaker case.
Also when fixed I was thinking of putting on an extra permanent cross member to support my transfer case better as I think all that weight is some of what cracked it ???. As I mentioned I got a temporary one on now that keeps the crack closed nice and seems to be only reason I can use the truck till I shut it down for repairs.

 

[Jericho]

Stan , there used to be a fella in Wasilla that did supurb tranny rebuilds. He was from northern New Hampshire , worked for a local guy who has the market sewn up it town, Had the biggest garage, only trans shop in town and a car wash and filling station or two, Dont want to give him any press, but all the locals know him. Long story short, the rebuilder would be about 67 years old at this point. was retireing last I saw him 3 years ago , was going to work out of his own home , That's one option. 400 is about the easiest tranny to rebuild, No special tools needed, Most important is a good kit, and a good overhaul manual. Takes about 40 min to tear one down,on the bench , then clean inspect rebuild about another 5 or 6 hours , Wouldn't use the old case over, just change the guts and move on, Donor tranny would give you a fare share of spare parts if one needed a housing or sprag for example . If it still needs work in a couple of years , shout, Iam back in the area for the summer in 2017 to help my soon who is in the AF move back to Wasilla as he retires , If you need a case let me know, ill find one and ship it up ( always look for any excuse to go back to AK ) If it tapes less then 127 on the Postal service measurement it can go , I know the empty case is less than 70 lbs ( max PO weight ) Andy in New Hampshire

 

[royalflush55]

CUCVRUS and Rusty
Originally last spring after hitting a big hole in one of our muddy roads I had a vibration in the drive train. Jacked up on all fours and ran and found a cracked transmission. It goes about 180 degrees around top rear of trans. and stays open almost 1/16th of an inch. Got a mickey mouse added cross member behind the trans/transfer case mount cross member that puts pressure on the transfer case and closes up the transmission case crack (does not leak). Plan was to just get my wood, fish and other truck work done and pull trans and send in to the city to have a used case put on and have it rebuilt also although the trans seems fine and has very few miles on it as does whole truck.
So really interested in two experts opinion on welding aluminum cases as you mentioned. I had heard they are never as strong after???. Done some aluminum and fair amount of steel welding but would never trust me doing it. Possibly could get it done in Tanana here. The truck is worth sinking some money into if you think I should go with a replacement. Thanks for help.

Sounds like you just diagnosed your problem here. If transmission ran with a vibration after hitting big hole in road that cracked case this bad it is amazing it has run this long!! Just saying!! I hope you can find a heavy duty case for a rebuild!!

 

[Tinstar]

Would the transmission supports that are missing on the CUCVs prevented this?

 

[cucvrus]

I would say no. But I am adding the supports to my Terminus M1009. I grabbed a few sets at the YOUPULLIT and saved a few sets over the years. I wheeled these CUCV's hard without them and am not sure they would make any difference. These would be very easy to make and not a bad idea to add extra strength. I will post pictures when I get to that point. Always trying to add strength and durability without adding expense or operational modifications. But at 32 years and 115 K if it hasn't broken now whats the point? Just to do it in my case. My case no pun intended.

 

[rustystud]

Would the transmission supports that are missing on the CUCVs prevented this?

I would say yes they would help. There are two sets of supports. The one has two rods that go from the motor mounts to the lower bellhousing support. Those add tremendous strength to the transmission to engine area. Then next one is the support rod that goes from the right upper area of the transmission support bolts to the right side of the transfer case. You can see the two bolt holes drilled and tapped on this area on all NP205 transfer-cases. This rod would add the most support of all. It also aids the transmission and transfer-case from "twisting" against the engine when your doing severe off-roading.
I know a lot of people don't use this rod and have not needed it, but I have seen it really help in cases where the truck frame was twisted like a pretzel.
This talk about the supports brings up another reason to use the heavy duty housing. The heavy duty housings have strengthened support on the lower flange to mount up the bellhousing support. Standard housings do not have this.
Most all cars and light trucks normally don't need this support, but if you where to look at the engine to transmission in a cross section you would see there is only bolts holding the two together down to the middle of the transmission. In ALL heavy trucks you will see the housing is bolted in a complete circle. With only half the bolts supporting the engine to transmission you've created a weak link. If you where to apply pressure on the top of the transmission housing to engine area if would buckle down as there is no bolts or other support at the bottom of the housing to prevent this. I actually worked on a Chrysler that had been twisted and the transmission housing broke and split the case 14" long at the bellhousing area. The split started at the starter area and went up to the top of the housing then down the other side.

 

[rustystud]

View attachment Scan0158.pdfView attachment Scan0157.pdf

Since a picture is worth a thousand words I thought this would help explain what I meant in the last post.
The first picture shows a standard automatic transmission used until the present times. There is no support in the lower half where it connects to the engine.
In the second picture you see a new Chrysler engine and transmission with complete support. It is totally bolted all around the housing. This is the way all heavy duty trucks have done it since, well forever ! The way GMC tried to fix this problem area in the CUCV is to add the heavy aluminum lower housing with the support rods to the engine.

 

[royalflush55]

I would say yes they would help. There are two sets of supports. The one has two rods that go from the motor mounts to the lower bellhousing support. Those add tremendous strength to the transmission to engine area. Then next one is the support rod that goes from the right upper area of the transmission support bolts to the right side of the transfer case. You can see the two bolt holes drilled and tapped on this area on all NP205 transfer-cases. This rod would add the most support of all. It also aids the transmission and transfer-case from "twisting" against the engine when your doing severe off-roading.
I know a lot of people don't use this rod and have not needed it, but I have seen it really help in cases where the truck frame was twisted like a pretzel.
This talk about the supports brings up another reason to use the heavy duty housing. The heavy duty housings have strengthened support on the lower flange to mount up the bellhousing support. Standard housings do not have this.
Most all cars and light trucks normally don't need this support, but if you where to look at the engine to transmission in a cross section you would see there is only bolts holding the two together down to the middle of the transmission. In ALL heavy trucks you will see the housing is bolted in a complete circle. With only half the bolts supporting the engine to transmission you've created a weak link. If you where to apply pressure on the top of the transmission housing to engine area if would buckle down as there is no bolts or other support at the bottom of the housing to prevent this. I actually worked on a Chrysler that had been twisted and the transmission housing broke and split the case 14" long at the bellhousing area. The split started at the starter area and went up to the top of the housing then down the other side.

Well said Rusty!! I totally agree!! My 1980 K20 camper special pickup has all these supports in place factory installed and has held up well for over 300,000 miles of farm use!!

 

[rustystud]

Here's some more pictures showing the differences from the heavy duty case to the regular case. Picture one shows the extra thick support for the bellhousing support on the heavy case. The second picture shows the regular case. Picture three shows the extra drilled and tapped pump housing bolt holes. Picture four shows the regular case with "NO" holes or even any aluminum for any holes !Pictures five and six showing again the support differences.

 

[stanzuray]

Here's some more pictures showing the differences from the heavy duty case to the regular case. Picture one shows the extra thick support for the bellhousing support on the heavy case. The second picture shows the regular case. Picture three shows the extra drilled and tapped pump housing bolt holes. Picture four shows the regular case with "NO" holes or even any aluminum for any holes !Pictures five and six showing again the support differences.

Exactly what I needed to see. Got my head straight on this now. Half the battle to fixing this tranny. I got the pair of front rods and long engine to transfer case rod off other vehicles and they'll go on when I fix tranny permanently. Getting an empty heavy case off a forum member hopefully and plan on having a rebuilder switch my old guts to the new case. Your knowledge is so appreciated. Stan

 

[cucvrus]

Several years back my Son went on a deployment to Ketchikan Alaska. He was a heavy wheeled mechanic in the marine Corp and he was sent to Alaska to get several dozen CUCV's ready for return south to the lower 48. He was basically on a destruction mission. He was draining all the fluids and by draining I mean punching holes in fuel tanks and stripping starters alternators of the trucks. I know he said there were many with Arctic kits on them and they were all low mileage trucks with little if any damage or rust. I did not know how far you are from there. He said a local salvage yard was hauling them out after he made them non runnable. Some the engines were run with no oil and the transmissions were drained and the rears also. No fluids were allowed in the trucks. Shame all the body panels were still good but they were being rough handled and moved around a lot. He had the pictures on his lap top but that has since gone missing during one of his many deployments. But they had a lot of dually CUCV's up at this site. All were scrapped and hauled out. Maybe a salvage yard near by. Maybe not. Maybe run thru the crusher by this time. But that would be a source for parts. Just a thought. Good Luck. I may want to stop up that way after I retire. If I ever decide to do so. I will NOT be driving my CUCV that far.

 

[rustystud]

Several years back my Son went on a deployment to Ketchikan Alaska. He was a heavy wheeled mechanic in the marine Corp and he was sent to Alaska to get several dozen CUCV's ready for return south to the lower 48. He was basically on a destruction mission. He was draining all the fluids and by draining I mean punching holes in fuel tanks and stripping starters alternators of the trucks. I know he said there were many with Arctic kits on them and they were all low mileage trucks with little if any damage or rust. I did not know how far you are from there. He said a local salvage yard was hauling them out after he made them non runnable. Some the engines were run with no oil and the transmissions were drained and the rears also. No fluids were allowed in the trucks. Shame all the body panels were still good but they were being rough handled and moved around a lot. He had the pictures on his lap top but that has since gone missing during one of his many deployments. But they had a lot of dually CUCV's up at this site. All were scrapped and hauled out. Maybe a salvage yard near by. Maybe not. Maybe run thru the crusher by this time. But that would be a source for parts. Just a thought. Good Luck. I may want to stop up that way after I retire. If I ever decide to do so. I will NOT be driving my CUCV that far.

You know that just kills me how the military just destroys perfectly good vehicles for no good reason ! I mean come on ! The CUCV is not a combat vehicle ! I can understand doing this to a Tank but a truck ! That is almost criminal !