The birth of Orange Krate...

[Orange Krate]

ORANGE KRATE and I spent some quality time in the garage today after driving around a bit in the great mid 70's but windy weather here in beautiful Simi Valley.

OIL CHANGE FUN!
It donned on me that I hadn't done an oil change on a vehicle in quite a few years (6 to be exact) since I sold my T-Bucket. I discovered that I had actually given away my oil filter wrenchs and oil pan along with my small jack and jackstands to my Father in Law who tinkers in his backyard with some old Mopar iron. Rather than run to his house and "borrow it" I decided to go to Harbor Freight and pick up some new jackstands and a new aluminum floor jack with a low profile. GOOD MOVE! I needed the clearance to get under the car.

I reviewed another thread to reference the jack points and then set the car. Upon accessing the oil pan I discovered the oil pan plug is metric (should have known) 15mm. I already had the 8 Qts of Royal Purple 5W/30 oil and the RP #10-48 oil filter. I quickly returned to the autoparts store to get a cheapy plastic oil filter wrench/grip. It is a low quality item so I am going to look for a better one for future oil changes. I also bought a 12 liter plastic recovery pan/container to drain my oil into with the purpose of recycling at the autoparts store. Finished the filter removal and then reinstalled the new one. Added the 8 Qts of oil and checked the dipstick. Fired up Orange Krate and looked for any errant leaks. Shut the engine off and re-checked the oil level. Perfect! All went well. No problems at all.

After I completed that task, I added the Royal Purple radiator treatment per the manufacturers instructions.

RESULTS:
I had to go get some fuel and made a power run for Costco Premium. Seems to run good on that. I have tried Mobil, Chevron, Shell and Costco premium and I haven't noticed any difference in running.

With the new RP Oil the engine seems to sound a tad quieter and definately felt a little more responsive for whatever reason. Maybe it is just my imagination. What wasn't my imagination was the running temperature of the car. It dropped some 15 degrees with the radiator treatment, according to the indicated water temp in engine information module. I was shocked because today was actually much warmer then the days I had driven Orange Krate in the past month.

FOLLOW UP:
Next work will be draining the trans and differential once I can get my hands on the rest of the needed RP products. I am especially interested in seeing how the transmission feels.

As I told the GM Quality Control person, who called last night, the only issue I have is the shift from 1st to 2nd... seems almost out of sync. It is hard to get into second gear smoothly when trying to run hard or even just moderate speed. In reading the threads about this, it seems to be a common problem with this Tremec transmission. Several people have stated that problem became almost non-existent with the RP fluid replacement. After seeing the radiator/temp results I am anxious to get this done.

Will post more as the preventive maintenance continues.

[Orange Krate]

Today while running around getting the Royal Purple products I went to a local O'Reilly's Autoparts Store. The place was busy and there was one guy trying to take care of the masses. He answered all my questions, did some research on the RP products and availability/cost for me. I found a copy of the first edition "CAMARO NOW" magazine hidden in a magazine rack. There were three copies. After the guy gave me some information I thanked him and then said I needed to pay him for the magazine. He said "catch me later on that...its yours." I thought that was a nice gesture to get me back to buy stuff and now I WILL! You don't find too many people like that these days. Thanks O'Reilly's... a little PR goes a long way!

[SSE 4 2SS]

Originally Posted by Orange Krate

Today while running around getting the Royal Purple products I went to a local O'Reilly's Autoparts Store. The place was busy and there was one guy trying to take care of the masses. He answered all my questions, did some research on the RP products and availability/cost for me. I found a copy of the first edition "CAMARO NOW" magazine hidden in a magazine rack. There were three copies. After the guy gave me some information I thanked him and then said I needed to pay him for the magazine. He said "catch me later on that...its yours." I thought that was a nice gesture to get me back to buy stuff and now I WILL! You don't find too many people like that these days. Thanks O'Reilly's... a little PR goes a long way!

A little PR and considerate help will earn life long customers... Cool Story...

[Orange Krate]

I have been reading the links and have now put 1600 miles on the car. Orange Krate has TOTALLY been baby'd i.e. no rocket launches, burnouts, power runs etc. I have followed the recommended manufacturers break-in process. Right out of the box, I have sensed the transmission has a quirk with it's shifting. First to second and second to third feel like there is a kink in the linkage, or a bind in the transmission (synchro mesh miss-match).

Yesterday when driving the car I came around a corner at 5 MPH, I gave the car a little throttle and it felt like the back end dropped and the transmission slipped. There was no tire spin and no engine rev. It just felt like shoes slipping on ice. One of the strangest sensations I have ever had driving a car.

Since I have owned a number of manual shift cars including several with GM M21 and M22 (rock crusher) and Ford T10 toploaders, I can say with certain authority what a manual trans should shift like under hard load and just ordinary daily driving.

With that said, I feel confident when I say that there is something wrong with Orange Krate's transmission. I will be taking him to the dealer and letting them document it into the system. It is quite disheartening to have a brand new manual shift car with a transmission that is a FAIL out of the box. It is a reminder to me of how Ford botched their Automatic EOD transmissions that were a FAIL from the get go and they were exchanging them out by the crate load in their entirety. GM/Chevy had better figure this one out real quick. I did let the Engineer Survey team know over the telephone about this emerging problem with Orange Krate.

Suggestion
Without changing out the break-in oil (as I planned on doing with Royal Purple), it is probably best to leave the oil intact so that an oil analysis can be done and look for brass and steel filings (synchro failure).

It is under warranty so I am not real concerned at this point. I do trust GM and Chevy and I have already talked to my Chevy dealer. But like the rest of the readers and drivers on this Forum...WE WANT IT TO BE RIGHT!

[Orange Krate]

Wanting to have my co-pilot watch and witness what I am experiencing, my wife and I loaded up in Orange Krate this evening and headed to the wide open flat lands near PCH and I demonstrated to her the shifting issues from both an easy roll, moderate acceleration and hard launch. It took her all of 3 seconds to see it is a transmission or linkage issue. I have to agree with another poster, it is an internal transmission synchro issue. It is constant between 1st and 2nd shift and 2nd to 3rd shift. It is the darnedest thing because it is almost like hitting a stop block when you try to shift hard. This occurred with both the traction control on and also in the competitive mode. No difference in shift ease. It has NOTHING to do with SKIP SHIFT!

Bottom line, sadly our Orange Krate will be going to the "doctor" early Friday morning for a check up and hopefully the start of a correction. IF ANYONE ELSE HAS THIS ISSUE PLEASE PM ME! I want to keep you posted and vice versa as to what Chevrolet will do and how they do it.

As I mentioned to a friend of mine today...When I was a fleet manager of a large ambulance company we bought about a dozen Ford Power Stroke E350s when they first came out. They were equipped with the E4OD 4 speed auto transmission. Half of our fleet experience transmission failure under 8000 miles and were yanked out by Ford in their entirety and replaced with a brand new upgraded unit. This is how Chevy should FIX this issue and not nickel and dime themselves with time tearing down and rebuilding. Just MHO!

[Orange Krate]

With all the of the transmission quirks bugging me I decided I would take Orange Krate out today for something fun, unusual, historical and CHEAP! Orange Krate passed the 2000 mile mark on the odometer during this trip. I drove him absolutely like a little old lady the entire time. Totally docile. I averaged 63 miles per hour on the freeway and got 19 MPG on a 212 mile round trip from Simi Valley to Santa Barbara and back. The mission was "the Mission"... meaning, I went to watch and photograph the launching of the largest ever rocket from the west coast. This launch occurred from Vandenberg Air Force Base about 30 miles north of Santa Barbara. The Delta IV Heavy has three rockets in one and is one big, fast dog! Weather was clear, breezy and 65 degrees along the coast. Perfect launch weather. I parked at the "Vista Point" on South Bound Hwy 101 just south of Gaviota Pass. At approx 1:15 she launched over us on a southward trajectory. The rocket noise was awesome and you could hear the engines reverberating over the blue Pacific waters. Because the rockets were not solid fuel there was very little contrail...just a steam vapor trail for the most part and that was limited. Glad to witness history in the making and so was Orange Krate who DIDN'T miss a beat and who drove like a perfect gentleman up and back. Oh and BTW... some younger woman in a Lexus SUV pulled alongside and was drooling over Orange Krate and gave the thumbs up. Orange Krate smiled back as did the old fart driving with the Permagrin.

[Orange Krate]

As suspected... the dealer was not able to adequately reproduce my complaint. Read this link and follow along with others as they work through the TREMEC 6060 issues. Orange Krate is back at home awaiting further from the dealer as any additional information or TSB(s) become available. Thank goodness for warranty! In the meantime I am going to send out an independent oil sampling from the trans and have it analyzed for breakdown in metals.

http://www.camaro5.com/forums/showpo...&postcount=169

[jesserayjames]

I doubt you get the problem solved, I have the same exact problem with my Tremec 6060 in my 2009 Dodge Challenger SRT8, dealer is supposed to have ordered parts, still no resolve.................................I want to buy a new Camaro 2SS manual, but these kind of threads scare me..............................

[Orange Krate]

Originally Posted by jesserayjames

I doubt you get the problem solved, I have the same exact problem with my Tremec 6060 in my 2009 Dodge Challenger SRT8, dealer is supposed to have ordered parts, still no resolve.................................I want to buy a new Camaro 2SS manual, but these kind of threads scare me..............................

I hear you Jesse! Frustrating as hell isn't it? Make sure you read through the thread at http://www.camaro5.com/forums/showthread.php?t=96243 I believe a fix could be near at hand. Now if only GM will sign off on it. It essentially means fixing the new Tremecs to emulate the good parts of the older Tremec model with the right synchros and retaining ring. At least that is my take on it. Also a good suggestion was separating the brake and clutch reservoirs like the G8 so there is less chance of contaminant. Now that makes too much sense!

[jesserayjames]

Originally Posted by Orange Krate

I hear you Jesse! Frustrating as hell isn't it? Make sure you read through the thread at http://www.camaro5.com/forums/showthread.php?t=96243 I believe a fix could be near at hand. Now if only GM will sign off on it. It essentially means fixing the new Tremecs to emulate the good parts of the older Tremec model with the right synchros and retaining ring. At least that is my take on it. Also a good suggestion was separating the brake and clutch reservoirs like the G8 so there is less chance of contaminant. Now that makes too much sense!

You know the sad part is that back before they even built the Camaro, I had a IOM 2SS manual ordered and was talked out of it and bought my Dodge, still I'm buying a 2011 2SS, ummm Auto or Stick.......................................?????

[Orange Krate]

Originally Posted by jesserayjames

You know the sad part is that back before they even built the Camaro, I had a IOM 2SS manual ordered and was talked out of it and bought my Dodge, still I'm buying a 2011 2SS, ummm Auto or Stick.......................................?????

STICK! I still don't regret it and it feels so awesome pulling first into second and second into third! TORQUE!

[SSE 4 2SS]

Originally Posted by Orange Krate

STICK! I still don't regret it and it feels so awesome pulling first into second and second into third! TORQUE!

I absolutely love that feeling, and to me the best is rowing all the way through third... From 70 on in third gear this car is a beast... STOCK... I can only imagine what it will be like in about four or five weeks....

[Orange Krate]

Tonight I stopped at a PepBoys on the way home from work and picked up the necessary quantities and types of Royal Purple gear oil for my transmission and rear differential. It requires 5 bottles of Synchromax and 2 bottles of Max Gear 75w/90 to do the job according to Royal Purple. The receipt for reference/cost is posted below. I will undertake that project this weekend.

I will also undertake exchanging the black shark fin for the new IOM shark fin. I am a big guy so getting in the back seat to remove the headliner to a workable position to access the fin is going to be interesting to say the least. We will give it the old college try! LOL

[DerbyChamp06]

Jim,
Enjoyed the rocket pix you posted! I have privilege of seeing Space Shuttle Endeavor night-launch back in 95'.

BTW, got my new car today! Not a Camaro, my first choice, but got a great deal on a 10' Challenger SE in ABM-like blue. Price was right, a big thing right now....not quite a Camaro, but def better than driving that boring Impala I had.

Wanna Race? Ok, bad idea, you'd blow my doors off