Replacing Transmission Solenoid

[sw2wagon]

This is my first post having just found this website. I have a 2000 SW2 with 82,000 miles. Awhile ago the "service engine" light came on. I took it to the local Auto Zone to have them diagnose the code. They said it was the transmission but I didn't get the code number. I then took it to the Saturn dealership for a diagnosis. The mechanic told me that the solenoid that engages the torque converter into direct drive was bad. As I recall the estimate to replace this was close to $1,000. He said it would not hurt to drive the car and that all it would effect was a slight decrease in the gas mileage. I decided to let it go for the time being and it drives fine. I have been a do it yourself-er for a long time and after watching the youtube video I'm confident I can change it myself. My questions are exactly which of the 5 solenoids needs replaced its location on the valve body? Also are there any pressure adjustments required after replacement ?

Thanks In Advance For Any Advice

[kevman]

i just replaced mine, but the whole valve body because anyway, like my tranny guy told me, the other ones will follow,so you just have to change the whole valve body and it s faster that way and also ,you wont have any problems again with the other ones, then your gona have to take it off again and change the middle gasket every time and 38$ also. the whole valve body cost me brand new out the box 350$ !! hope this helps !!

[Special Forces]

Originally Posted by kevman

i just replaced mine, but the whole valve body because anyway, like my tranny guy told me, the other ones will follow,so you just have to change the whole valve body and it s faster that way and also ,you wont have any problems again with the other ones, then your gona have to take it off again and change the middle gasket every time and 38$ also. the whole valve body cost me brand new out the box 350$ !! hope this helps !!

Brand new huh? I'd like to see the proof on that. If it came from Saturn, it doesn't have the Sonnax upgrades that's for sure. $350, when you can have an upgraded one from me for less than $200 when all said and done.

And it's not true the other solenoids are on the way out. Here's why: The pressure control solenoid is being actuated many many times a second to control pressure. This happens over the course of it's life day in and day out. The other solenoids are being actuated on an "as needed" basis, depending on what gear the transmission is in. So those solenoids are getting a lot less use than the pressure control solenoid. Think of the pressure control solenoid being aged in "dog years" and the others being aged in "human years". You can see it gets much more use over the course of it's life then the other 4 do.

So that would not be a correct statement to say "the others are on the way out".

As for your repair sw2wagon, if it was me I would want to know the code first hand, show me the numbers if you will. I want to know before I repair something that I know for sure what the problem is. Hearing someone else say "its the transmission" or "its the torque converter" wouldn't do it for me.

I digress.

$1,000 is something I would laugh for hours with. It's a $40 part and if you timed me I can do it in 42 minutes. Hardly a thousand dollar job. If you want to tackle it yourself there is a video by someone on here that changes out the pressure solenoid as you already are aware of and confident to go on with.

With that said the torque converter solenoid is #3 in this diagram.



Any questions just ask!

[sw2wagon]

Since my first post I went back through my records and found the report from the Saturn dealer. Listed under the category of Tech Comments was the following..."TECH PERFORMED DIAGS FINDING CODES, 740, 741, AND 789, TCC SOLENOID STUCK OFF...TECH RECMD VALVE BODY REPLMT EST COST, $1052.90 PLUS TAX". Can anyone translate these codes and tell me what is wrong and exactly what parts I need? Like I said before we have been driving the car and it runs and shifts fine with the exception of it doesn't shift into top gear. I guess that is 4th gear?

Thanks Again for Your Time

[mattelderca]

Going by the dealer diagnosis, you are just not getting converter lockup. This may feel to you as not shifting to fourth gear, but you probably are. When cruising along at a steady pace, push the throttle down a bit and watch the tach. Do the rpm's climb about 500 rpm before you accellerate? Or does the car just accelerate with little tach movement? You should be able to just replace the solenoid. It should not cost more than a few hundred to replace the whole valve body!

[sw2wagon]

My reasons for repairing this are: #1 - to make it correct and maximize gas mileage and #2 - to turn off the " service engine " light. I'm hoping through these posts that I can get help diagnosing the codes and determine exactly which parts that I need to replace. Thanks

[sw2wagon]

I forgot to add that I'm still a little confused. Do I need to replace just the solenoid or the entire valve body? Am I correct in thinking the solenoids insert into the valve body? If so replacing the #3 solenoid should enable the torque converter to lock into direct drive, correct?

[fdryer]

Originally Posted by sw2wagon

.... ..."TECH PERFORMED DIAGS FINDING CODES, 740, 741, AND 789, TCC SOLENOID STUCK OFF...TECH RECMD VALVE BODY REPLMT EST COST, $1052.90 PLUS TAX". .....

Strictly from line interpretations from our How-to library listing almost every OBD II error code;

DTC P0740 TCC Enable Solenoid Circuit Electrical
DTC P0741 TCC System Stuck Off
DTC P0789 Shift/Timing Solenoid Intermittent

There are some great pics from members putting up pictures of their valve body repairs, replacing solenoids, if you try searching. SF has probably the best handle on your issues and it would be worth waiting for a reply from him.

[Special Forces]

Replace the solenoid I told you to replace and you'll be fine. The solenoid is frozen and needs to be replaced. It sounds like you already found the video on how to replace the pressure solenoid, simple replace the one I told you to instead and drive it. Total cost $50.

https://www.wittrans.com/showfilter....85&Section=128

Product # D10421AC

Pop that into the #3 spot in the valve body and lock and load!

[Tommie]

Hey SF! You sound like the person to ask this: Does lockup happen in second gear and up? My SL1 behaves like it does unless I have a 5 speed auto...LOL.

Originally Posted by Special Forces

Brand new huh? I'd like to see the proof on that. If it came from Saturn, it doesn't have the Sonnax upgrades that's for sure. $350, when you can have an upgraded one from me for less than $200 when all said and done.

And it's not true the other solenoids are on the way out. Here's why: The pressure control solenoid is being actuated many many times a second to control pressure. This happens over the course of it's life day in and day out. The other solenoids are being actuated on an "as needed" basis, depending on what gear the transmission is in. So those solenoids are getting a lot less use than the pressure control solenoid. Think of the pressure control solenoid being aged in "dog years" and the others being aged in "human years". You can see it gets much more use over the course of it's life then the other 4 do.

So that would not be a correct statement to say "the others are on the way out".

As for your repair sw2wagon, if it was me I would want to know the code first hand, show me the numbers if you will. I want to know before I repair something that I know for sure what the problem is. Hearing someone else say "its the transmission" or "its the torque converter" wouldn't do it for me.

I digress.

$1,000 is something I would laugh for hours with. It's a $40 part and if you timed me I can do it in 42 minutes. Hardly a thousand dollar job. If you want to tackle it yourself there is a video by someone on here that changes out the pressure solenoid as you already are aware of and confident to go on with.

With that said the torque converter solenoid is #3 in this diagram.



Any questions just ask!

[Special Forces]

Originally Posted by Tommie

Hey SF! You sound like the person to ask this: Does lockup happen in second gear and up? My SL1 behaves like it does unless I have a 5 speed auto...LOL.

Lockup happens in every gear except first ONLY when the transmission is up to temperature, guided by the temp sensor on the transmission AND the engine temp sensor (the infamous ECTS, now you know why it's so important to transmission control).

Basically a couple miles of driving and the TC is being locked up in all gears except 1st.

[Tommie]

Thanks!

[sw2wagon]

Thanks to everyone who has posted and offered their help.

SF....I ordered the solenoid that you specified from WIT this morning. Looks like a pretty straight forward installation. Are there any "adjustments" necessary after installing the solenoid? My time and $50.00 is way better than spending $1,000.00 at the Saturn dealership. I'll post after this project is done to let you know how it turned out.

Thanks Again!!!

[sw2wagon]

I replaced the TDD solenoid today. It took only 2-3 hours but I took my time and even stopped for lunch. It really couldn't have been much easier. The biggest nuisance was getting the hoses and cables out of the way to remove the valve body cover. I drove it for about 20 miles after I finished with no problems. The "Service Engine" light went out and everythings fine. Thanks to all that posted and helped me through this process!

Once again a SATURN FAN

Scott

[CND_SC1]

Hope it's fixed for good.

Keep us updated once you've driven it a couple of days.

[sw2wagon]

You're scaring me....is there reason to believe it's not fixed?

Thanks

[alordofchaos]

Congratulations on saving $950

I like browsing this forum even when my car is operating fine; learn new things all the time. Plus, I'm a little better prepared for the next thing that can go wrong

Your transmission is probably fine (I say probably only because it's 10 yrs old now). Just keep the ATF and filter fresh (30k miles)

[SL2 Ride]

Originally Posted by Special Forces

Brand new huh? I'd like to see the proof on that. If it came from Saturn, it doesn't have the Sonnax upgrades that's for sure. $350, when you can have an upgraded one from me for less than $200 when all said and done.

And it's not true the other solenoids are on the way out. Here's why: The pressure control solenoid is being actuated many many times a second to control pressure. This happens over the course of it's life day in and day out. The other solenoids are being actuated on an "as needed" basis, depending on what gear the transmission is in. So those solenoids are getting a lot less use than the pressure control solenoid. Think of the pressure control solenoid being aged in "dog years" and the others being aged in "human years". You can see it gets much more use over the course of it's life then the other 4 do.

So that would not be a correct statement to say "the others are on the way out".

As for your repair sw2wagon, if it was me I would want to know the code first hand, show me the numbers if you will. I want to know before I repair something that I know for sure what the problem is. Hearing someone else say "its the transmission" or "its the torque converter" wouldn't do it for me.

I digress.

$1,000 is something I would laugh for hours with. It's a $40 part and if you timed me I can do it in 42 minutes. Hardly a thousand dollar job. If you want to tackle it yourself there is a video by someone on here that changes out the pressure solenoid as you already are aware of and confident to go on with.

With that said the torque converter solenoid is #3 in this diagram.



Any questions just ask!

Hi, i'm in a similar boat with a 2002 SC1, so i'll be dealing with the valve body soon.

Can you tell me what you mean by the "Sonnax upgrades"?

[Chazberry]

Originally Posted by SL2 Ride

Can you tell me what you mean by the "Sonnax upgrades"?

The Sonnax story here . . .
http://www.sonnax.com/system/instruc...SC-TAAT-IN.pdf

[ShawnV]

Originally Posted by sw2wagon

You're scaring me....is there reason to believe it's not fixed?

Thanks

It's fine.