[rickultrah]

On the upper, did you have more than 4 check balls?

[rickultrah]

Also, I think I received a different kit than you. I just left NGD a message and hopefully Tyler get me squared away soon. As info, I got the dreaded p0700 codes, and GM said my valve body was toast and voided my warranty due to being tuned/altered.

[radz28]

My upper had 4-check balls; lower had 5.

Well crap. It looks like you were having trouble before the upgrades and GM gave you the middle finger? It's been my experience he's been pretty responsive. I know he can get busy. I didn't get special treatment from him or anything, so I know that's just the way he operates.

[rickultrah]

Awesome, thanks for confirming. I found this forum and the video after I started the brain surgery on my valve body.

[radz28]

Originally Posted by rickultrah

Awesome, thanks for confirming. I found this forum and the video after I started the brain surgery on my valve body.

BINGO. This was the my first time getting into a slushbox, aside from an easy filter change. I've pulled apart a few mansmissions and gear boxes (done many clutches, a few converters), but autos' are black magic to me.

My hope was to try to inspire others with this thread, as I think the intent for Roddrz was, too. Were it not for him, I probably would not have undertaken this effort; maybe after NGD's recent video, but not before that. Anyways - my point to your comment is I agree, but after doing it, it wasn't that bad. I learned a lot, and while I feel more confident, I don't want to do it more, lol. It's so messy and a PITA to do on my back and all the clean-up and smell - I'm ready to move on.

Anyways - it was brain surgery to me at first (and not that I am one now), but it is NOT as bad as it looks. I really don't think I have a lot of mechanical aptitude, and think others could easily do this with enough direct, tools, and time. I hope that's how it came across, because I DO think this is doable for most people.

JMHO.

Fingers crossed on some helpful input from NGD

[rickultrah]

Is your valve body working correctly after your upgrade? I put mine back together and am getting a couple of codes for solenoid A and solenoid G. I had a solenoid G originally, and that was my reason for upgrading. Im going to call NGD tomorrow and see what they say. At this point, I may just buy a new valve body from GM and ride it for another 30k miles.

[randeez]

mine was a little "clunky" at first as fluid moved back into everywhere it was supposed to. after a short drive and rechecking fluid everything was good. only thing i noticed was a bit of a harsh downshift coming to a stop that i guess the adaptives worked out because that is pretty much gone now also.
no codes

[rickultrah]

Thanks Randeez, I received a prompt call from Tyler from NGD this morning. We talked through the issue and we believe it to be a bad wire. I'm not sure if someone has been in the valve body before (I doubt it because the original owner never told me she had an issue), but I did notice that the hard vinyl wire management guide by the torque convert clutch solenoid was actually broken. This could have been an issue from the factory assembly. Instead of probing every wire in the valve body harness, I have a new harness from the dealership arriving in the morning. I'd much rather pay $89 for a new harness than to try troubleshooting a bent or kinked wire. I will post the results.

[radz28]

Originally Posted by rickultrah

Is your valve body working correctly after your upgrade? I put mine back together and am getting a couple of codes for solenoid A and solenoid G. I had a solenoid G originally, and that was my reason for upgrading. Im going to call NGD tomorrow and see what they say. At this point, I may just buy a new valve body from GM and ride it for another 30k miles.

Mine seemed to take a handful of miles to smooth out a bit. I'll circle back to this below.

Originally Posted by randeez

mine was a little "clunky" at first as fluid moved back into everywhere it was supposed to. after a short drive and rechecking fluid everything was good. only thing i noticed was a bit of a harsh downshift coming to a stop that i guess the adaptives worked out because that is pretty much gone now also.
no codes

Mine took some miles to smooth out, and I didn't comment too much, because I was having some throttle body (TB) learning going on, and it seemed to be at least contributing to what was going on. As the TB started coming under control (and timing started returning to the positive at idle), I could feel the downshifts (especially 7-6-6-5) smooth out more and more. Admittedly, I had changed some of these definitions in the TCM (not really downshifting, but just pressures and quickness - only really on upshifts though), I thought they could be tied together more than I would know. But - the more miles I put on, the smoother things worked out. NGD already stated shifts will automatically become more direct and that's what I seem to get.

I feel like my experience is like randeez.

Originally Posted by rickultrah

Thanks Randeez, I received a prompt call from Tyler from NGD this morning. We talked through the issue and we believe it to be a bad wire. I'm not sure if someone has been in the valve body before (I doubt it because the original owner never told me she had an issue), but I did notice that the hard vinyl wire management guide by the torque convert clutch solenoid was actually broken. This could have been an issue from the factory assembly. Instead of probing every wire in the valve body harness, I have a new harness from the dealership arriving in the morning. I'd much rather pay $89 for a new harness than to try troubleshooting a bent or kinked wire. I will post the results.

Was it the harness that is kinda' pinched around where the temperature sensor is? If so - that just seems like a stupid design. I could see where the OEM harness conduit was pinched-up a bit from getting smushed in there. It seems like a stupid afterthought, but I don't know the logic behind it, so it's just an enthusiasts' opinion. That sucks, but I think your choice was the right way to go. Why take more time than necessary for less than $100. What sucks is the $150+ in fluid...

[randeez]

i probably shouldnt say short drive, it was a few drives running up and down thru gears light throttle, progressively more throttle, checked fluid a few times.

unfortunately about to drop pan, and maybe transmission all together, i think its eating the front pump gear. i noticed a little bit of shiny crumbs, def not clutch material. sort of ignored it since it was shifting perfect and WAS quiet, but it just started making noise.

[radz28]

Originally Posted by randeez

i probably shouldnt say short drive, it was a few drives running up and down thru gears light throttle, progressively more throttle, checked fluid a few times.

unfortunately about to drop pan, and maybe transmission all together, i think its eating the front pump gear. i noticed a little bit of shiny crumbs, def not clutch material. sort of ignored it since it was shifting perfect and WAS quiet, but it just started making noise.

That sucks, obviously... I hope it works out okay. Best wishes it's squared away as painless as possible.

[radz28]

ric': Here are the images I hope are helpful:

[rickultrah]

Update: Talked to Tyler at NGD and he thought that I may have a bad wiring harness. I ordered a new harness, actually there is a pigtail at the end that you also have to order. I got everything installed again and filled with fluid. Tried driving it but kept getting a p2732 code. So I'm going to see what Tyler says tomorrow.

[radz28]

This is going to be a silly question, so please forgive me, but - were you diligent in making sure ALL of the shift valves for those solenoids could literally plop out of the bores, under pure gravity, with no outside influence? That is, would they literally fall out of the bores by just tipping the valve body on it's end? Those valve cannot hang-up on anything at all, to my direct experience and understanding.

I'm sorry for your continued frustrations and fighting with this thing.