Well, summer is just about over and my car has missed it. I just installed a built 700r4. The 700r4 has all the usual goodies in it but something is wrong. After getting the tranny all setup with the EZ tv system I find that I have 3 issues with my tranny.

1. presure after warming up never goes below 110
2. all gears seem to shift OK except 3rd (will only shift after reaching over 3500rpm) once it shifts I can cruise at 2000rpm. adjusting the tv cable seems to impact the other gears but not 3rd
3. the tranny will not downshift under throttle. If I slow down it down shifts but if I step on it even in fourth it will not down shift.

Any thoughts?:(

You might post this over on both Team Chevelle and NastyZ28, b/c there are a bunch of good tranny guys on all three boards and I ain't onna them..

pdq67

PS., Jakeshoe come's to mind right off the top of my head..

TV valve stuck in VB.

Any chance it could be something I did when installing the spring for the EZ system? The TV seems to have smooth operation when I disconnect it an pull it.

You cannot tell how the inner TV valve is operating by how the cable feels. you must watch the gauge.
If your pressure gauge is staying at a static PSI, then you have a sticking TV valve.
If you have higher pressures in reverse that rise with TV pull, but not in P/N/OD/D you have a sticking TV boost valve.

Check out Bowtieoverdrives.com. They have a live troubleshooting chatbox.
Good luck!
Jeff

My 700R4 in my prostreet truck has never been right. May be the 468 bigblock is a bit much for it ? I want to try a TCI constant pressure valvebody. It sounds like a great product.

My 700R4 in my prostreet truck has never been right. May be the 468 bigblock is a bit much for it ? I want to try a TCI constant pressure valvebody. It sounds like a great product.

Doesn't sound so great to me, it specifically says in their instruction sheet that is the TV cabvle isn't properly adjusted, it will cause trans failure, so what makes it any better than a stock VB?

yes jake is 100000 percent right if tv isnt right tranny goes in no time at all. that cable is lifeline to a 700-r4.who ever built your tranny did they put a spring behind the valve in the tv system.when you pull the cable it will come out ok than have way down it will all of sudden get little bit harder. if you flick cable on top you should hear a little click from tranny.you wont feel tension change or hear click if the valve is stuck.also no pressure change tv stuck. should be around 60 at idle.

hmmm what spring did you do or put in with the tv ez system? i never did nor see it.pm me with instruction sheet so i can see what you did or did wrong on it.

yes jake is 100000 percent right if tv isnt right tranny goes in no time at all. that cable is lifeline to a 700-r4.who ever built your tranny did they put a spring behind the valve in the tv system.when you pull the cable it will come out ok than have way down it will all of sudden get little bit harder. if you flick cable on top you should hear a little click from tranny.you wont feel tension change or hear click if the valve is stuck.also no pressure change tv stuck. should be around 60 at idle.
60 is too low at idle even on a stock trans.
We aren't talking about a stock TV setup on the TCI constant pressure VB.

hmmm what spring did you do or put in with the tv ez system? i never did nor see it.pm me with instruction sheet so i can see what you did or did wrong on it.

The BTO TV Made Easy system uses a spring that is about 2.20" long (.1-.3
longer than stock) and stiffer than a stock TV plunger spring, because there system has a longer arc of travel when configured on the "less aggressive" setting.

The constant pressure valve body eliminates the the tv cable being responsible for shift pressure. The cable will only be used for shift point adjustment. To sum it up, it saves transmissions that would be damaged if the cable were not adjusted properly and this has happened to many 700r4s. Why would you not want to use one ?

The constant pressure valve body eliminates the the tv cable being responsible for shift pressure. The cable will only be used for shift point adjustment. To sum it up, it saves transmissions that would be damaged if the cable were not adjusted properly and this has happened to many 700r4s. Why would you not want to use one ?

It "supposedly" eliminates the cable for being responsible for shift pressure.
I am very aware of how the TV system operates on a 700-R4 and 200-4R. I build GM automatics for performance cars on an almost daily basis.
However the TCi instructions for the valve body mentioned state that if the cable isn't properly adjusted, trans failure may result.
http://www.tciauto.com/Products/Instructions/instructions/376020.pdf

Read Step 24 and 26 carefully.

TCI is probably isolating the pressure regulator valvetrain from the TV circuit, so that line pressure is more or less static at say 250 psi.
Instead of fluctuating from 90 psi-300 psi or so.
This will create more wear on the pump, sealing rings, and other parts inside, create harsh gear engagement from park or neutral, etc.

The GM designed VB works fine when it is operating correctly, and contrary to popular belief, on a STOCK 700-R4 there is a failsafe that prevents line pressure from being too low if the TV cable is left unhooked or broken.

Mine works fine exept the shift into 3rd gear under full throttle seems to not go into gear properly. Does fine just cruising around.

The shift to 3rd gear is when the 3-4 clutches apply. These are the weak clutches in the trans and if the clearances are too wide, 3-4 release spring setup isn't correct, feed hole and band release hole aren't properly size, too much clearance on the servo/band, or any combo of the above, the 2-3 shift will be less than ideal.

Is this a BTO trans?

These are my presure reading fromt the Bowtie pressure test.
The first numbers are with the cable hooked up
the Second is with the cable disconnected
the third is under 1500rmp manually pulling the cable all the way.

Park 125 ,155,163
Reverse 180,225,235
Neutral 125,155,160
Overdrive 125,170,165
Third 125,180,150
Second,150,150,150
First 145,145,150

Your minimum pressures are too high. The first set of numbers. They need to be at about 90 psi.

Pull the cable off the carb, rev the engine slightly, pull the cable all the way out HARD, and let off about 20 times. See if the min TV drops. Looks like a stuck TV valve.

Thanks Jake, I'll give it a shot.

Mine is a BTE

Mine is a BTE

Call BTE and see what kind of customer service you get. Hopefully better than I have in the past.

Well, after almost a year of having the car parked I got the tranny straightened out. They dropped the valve body 6 times before they identified two Manufacturing flaws.

1. There is a section of the valve body that a spring fits into. They tried swap it with a corvette spring but it didn't help. I turns out that the manufacturer did not drill the pocket deep enough on the valve body for the spring to fully fit in.

2. The is a metal bracket that the TV comes in contact with. (Not sure the name but it has a sping loaded lever on it) one of the tabs had a slight bend to it that was barley noticeable when we compared it to another one. If was fairly thick metal and was a brand new part.

I was able to take the car on the highway for the first time and actually downshift under throttle!

Newbie, what yr. was your tranny? I am in the process of rebuilding a 700R4 myself. Mine is out of an 89 Suburban. I am just about to the point of going through the VB. Once I install the pump. What section was it that was not drilled out deep enough? Was it an aftermarket VB or stock? Hereitis has been helping me with a few questions. Thanks to all.