TPW 11-15-2010

[ssummit camaro]

i dont have as nearly as many miles as you (410) but when i pull into the garage i smell all kinds of stuff like a burning plastic. When i changed oil i did not see any leaks of any kind. Also have lots of crackling and popping as car is cooling down but i assume it will all go away once the car gets older. I too want a 6 spd car, but after reading about all the issues people seemed to have with there clutch i opted for the auto, which i love just as well. Krate hang in there it seems as you have yourself a good dealer to work with.

[Orange Krate]

Originally Posted by ssummit camaro

i dont have as nearly as many miles as you (410) but when i pull into the garage i smell all kinds of stuff like a burning plastic. When i changed oil i did not see any leaks of any kind. Also have lots of crackling and popping as car is cooling down but i assume it will all go away once the car gets older. I too want a 6 spd car, but after reading about all the issues people seemed to have with there clutch i opted for the auto, which i love just as well. Krate hang in there it seems as you have yourself a good dealer to work with.

SSUMMIT
Thanks for the support. It helps! I am going to do an oil assay from the trans and differential and see what pans out there just for SH$%S and GIGGLES! It is one thing to find minute particles it is another thing to find pieces of synchro and steel! The posts put up by "Rick@RKT56" was most enlightening because he works on these transmissions at a dealer and at his own place of business. I also got a printout of the parts replacement list for a broken Tremec, as rebuilt by one dealer for "Denster". Denster had the same complaints as I do.

[wacdmc]

O-Krate: I have felt a slight bump (for lack of a better word) going from first to second and on occasion, an ever so slight quasi-grind from second to third, mostly when the trans was cold. It hasn't been enough to worry me but it was enough to get me thinking...I hope we don't have trans problems. I hate dealing with dealer service.

Mine also had/has the burning oil smell. It appears to be going away. I have 1500 miles on her. It only occured when stopped or when I pulled her in the garage. Again, seems to be going away. Time will tell.

[Orange Krate]

Originally Posted by wacdmc

O-Krate: I have felt a slight bump (for lack of a better word) going from first to second and on occasion, an ever so slight quasi-grind from second to third, mostly when the trans was cold. It hasn't been enough to worry me but it was enough to get me thinking...I hope we don't have trans problems. I hate dealing with dealer service.

Mine also had/has the burning oil smell. It appears to be going away. I have 1500 miles on her. It only occured when stopped or when I pulled her in the garage. Again, seems to be going away. Time will tell.

Good news is we are all in good company. Secondly if you get that phone call from GM Engineers make sure you let them know! I didnt understate or overstate! Let them know exactly what you feel and think. I have my dealer thinking too! Since mine is such a small dealer they may not have the expertise to deal with this but I won't discount them yet as they have been here 80+ years.

[mdelk]

o-krate... im sorry to hear you are having this same problem also. mine also has the notorious 1-2 grind! the first time it happened i thought it was me. the second time i knew it wasnt me and knew i had a junk trans. i drove pretty easy the first couple hundred miles then desided it was time to have a little fun. well sadly enough mine dont matter if the trans is hot cold whatever. it will grind going into second. i have the engine apart right now doing cam and head swap. with car in neutral i can spin motor over by hand and hear a rattle in the transmission. if i put car in any gear and puch clutch in stopping anything in trans from spinning the noise goes away. it is a very strange noise. i am going to take video of the noice for proof that the engine work didnt cause the trans issues so that they cant try to feed me a line of crap that the engine mods cause the trans to go bad....

[n201mw]

I also have felt something like this but I thought it was me. I just learned to drive a manual transmission so I was really hoping it was just me screwing up. I have definately felt a little grind going from 1st to 2nd, and again from 2nd to 3rd. I havent noticed any certain conditions when it occurs. It is in storage for the winter so I guess Ill have to bring it in late this spring to see what the dealers say... Does anyone use that stupid 1-4 shift? I saw there was a thing to get rid of that. Does that void any warranties?

[Orange Krate]

Originally Posted by mdelk

o-krate... im sorry to hear you are having this same problem also. mine also has the notorious 1-2 grind! the first time it happened i thought it was me. the second time i knew it wasnt me and knew i had a junk trans. i drove pretty easy the first couple hundred miles then desided it was time to have a little fun. well sadly enough mine dont matter if the trans is hot cold whatever. it will grind going into second. i have the engine apart right now doing cam and head swap. with car in neutral i can spin motor over by hand and hear a rattle in the transmission. if i put car in any gear and puch clutch in stopping anything in trans from spinning the noise goes away. it is a very strange noise. i am going to take video of the noice for proof that the engine work didnt cause the trans issues so that they cant try to feed me a line of crap that the engine mods cause the trans to go bad....

What I have found out thus far in a nutshell...

MANY of the Tremec owners have lodged complaints. Dealers have not been forthcoming in dealing with it in many cases. One dealer in Maryland where "Rick@RKT56" works as a transmission specialist, has successfully repaired this version of the Tremec. Although he hasn't listed all the parts, he did confirm that another invoice posted by another Camaro owner did have MOST of the parts right accept the invoice didnt show the important inclusion of several parts that are specifically input shaft shims. The noise you hear is the noise I hear and it definately sounds like input shaft play and perhaps a vibration with a bearing due to play. Just my guess based on other transmissions I have looked at (I am no expert). From what I could tell from the invoice it looked like they replaced about 9 different pieces sans the shims plus the other disposable shop supplies to put the thing back together. If anyone wants a copy of the invoice please PM and I will email it to your personal email address. Again this is no guarantee that this will be the fix for your particular trans issues but the pattern I am reading and seeing is just too large to ignore. DOCUMENT it early with the dealer so your warranty is covered. In California we do have a lemon law. But I don't want lemonade! I want my Orange Krate to be RIGHT! The folks at Oshawa don't want lemons either.

[Orange Krate]

Originally Posted by n201mw

I also have felt something like this but I thought it was me. I just learned to drive a manual transmission so I was really hoping it was just me screwing up. I have definately felt a little grind going from 1st to 2nd, and again from 2nd to 3rd. I havent noticed any certain conditions when it occurs. It is in storage for the winter so I guess Ill have to bring it in late this spring to see what the dealers say... Does anyone use that stupid 1-4 shift? I saw there was a thing to get rid of that. Does that void any warranties?

The fact is...many dealers will use any excuse to void a warranty based on mods and after market bolt ons. You SHOULD NOT have to buy any after market equipment to make the car RIGHT! We should be able to drive in and drive out of the dealer with a brand new car that is fully functioning, mechanically correct, that shifts smoothly and correctly without DAMAGING it by normal driving habits. I have heard people using this device but that will not cure nor fix the underlying problem. Because all you are doing is electrically eliminating one issue but the true issue is MECHANICAL. I would bet a months wages that this issue will evolve into a TSB or perhaps even a recall. Keep in mind that Chevrolet is focusing on the Volt and Convertible Camaro and they do not want any bad press before this vehicle comes out! It would be devastating to sales. Ditto for any upcoming Z28 announcement or whatever they choose to call it. As I said before...if it isn't right in the SS it sure as heck wont be right in the Z28 or convertible. With TREMEC transmissions being built and placed in Fords and Chryslers you can bet TREMEC has a vested interest to get a fix out ASAP! Maybe I am just too hopeful and optimistic!?!?

[BowlingSS]

I hope everyone gets this trany problem fixed. I hope the A6's do not have any problems.

Bill

[SwedeandBlondie]

Elvira still has a burning oil smell from time to time and she's got about 2600 miles on her already. So far so fabulous. I think the power steering pump is makin some noise, but Blondie drives her like she stole her all the time.

[wacdmc]

I guess I can say luckily for me, it's not a problem that's bad enough for me to have some knucklehead "mechanic" at the dealer to start poking around my car. In fact, most would never notice it. In my case, I will just enjoy the ride and see what happens. I can say this though, if this car gives me problems, it may be my last GM product. I have a 2007, $50K Duramax truck that took me two years to get the "common problems" fixed because GM is either too stupid or just too cheap to build a solid product. Don't get me wrong, I've been driving GM's all my life and had some that ran 100K with nothing more than oil changes. Let's just hope this potential trans issue is an easy fix...

[Orange Krate]

Originally Posted by SwedeandBlondie

Elvira still has a burning oil smell from time to time and she's got about 2600 miles on her already. So far so fabulous. I think the power steering pump is makin some noise, but Blondie drives her like she stole her all the time.

Hey Swede try putting some of the Royal Purple in the power steering. I am going to do that next. The Royal Purple radiator treatment seems to have lowered the operating temp about 15 degrees overall and the Royal Purple oil also seems to have added a little bit more bump in power to the engine and it is noticeably quieter when running. I want to put the Royal Purple in the trans and rear end after they do an oil assay and the dealer documents the problem on Friday.

[BowlingSS]

Originally Posted by wacdmc

I guess I can say luckily for me, it's not a problem that's bad enough for me to have some knucklehead "mechanic" at the dealer to start poking around my car. In fact, most would never notice it. In my case, I will just enjoy the ride and see what happens. I can say this though, if this car gives me problems, it may be my last GM product. I have a 2007, $50K Duramax truck that took me two years to get the "common problems" fixed because GM is either too stupid or just too cheap to build a solid product. Don't get me wrong, I've been driving GM's all my life and had some that ran 100K with nothing more than oil changes. Let's just hope this potential trans issue is an easy fix...

I also have had GM's most of my life also and never had any problems with anyone of them besides normal stuff.

Bill

[SwedeandBlondie]

Originally Posted by Orange Krate

Hey Swede try putting some of the Royal Purple in the power steering. I am going to do that next. The Royal Purple radiator treatment seems to have lowered the operating temp about 15 degrees overall and the Royal Purple oil also seems to have added a little bit more bump in power to the engine and it is noticeably quieter when running. I want to put the Royal Purple in the trans and rear end after they do an oil assay and the dealer documents the problem on Friday.

Might have to do that. The pump's been 'whirring' and the cap has some residue around it. I've been keeping an eye on it.

It's not leaking oil, and Kim doesn't notice the smell. I only notice it from having driven some POSs in my time that leaked/burnt oil.