Hi all, I own a 2007 Monte Carlo SS. I have been to Chevy 6 times under warranty for this Transmission issue. Each time they told me they did not find any error codes or problems on the test drives. I find this hard to believe. My Transmission shifts hard at times like it is missing gears or not engauging. All seems to be happening in first gear. I brought the car back to them about 2 months ago (out of warranty) for an Engine Burning Oil issue which by the way I also brought to their attention 5 TIMES UNDER WARRANTY. And all of a sudden (you guessed it) They admitted the Engine was burning oil and I wound up having to pay $1000.00 to tare down the engine and $250.00 to flush out the Transmission (even though they did not find a Transmission issue for a 7th time). They told me the Cylinders were not scored and were fine so they changed the Pistons and Rings. Supposedly they said the job cost $3600 +. My A--, How nice of them, (not). Being I paid for the tare down, your telling me Pistons and Rings cost $3600. BS, Still to early to see if the Engine is still burning oil. And here's the kicker-(The Car only has 50,000 miles on it and I had a 6 year 60,000 mile warranty on it). So now I am still stuck with this Transmission issue which they do not have an answer for. Any suggestions on what I should do next. And going back to Chevy is not an acceptable answer unless it's in front of a Judge.
Atlantic Chevelet Bayshore Long Island

 

From what iv read the LS4 will burn a quart between oil changes. So you have no warranty anymore? I would have had gm put in a new trans under warrnety but too late for that now. The dealers live to take your money. Sorry you got put through the ringer. It all depends on how much you want to put in the car. Usually you drive the trans till it dies then get it rebuilt.

 

Glad I didnt have this issue with my 07, I still have the extended warranty for my trans until 103k. But do you switch between premium/regular gas? I would try using a seafoam gas treatment, fill it up with premium as it burns easier through our cars, then burn it all out until your car rings on empty, then fill it up using which ever gas you prefer, regular or premium. This stopped my hard shifts alot, which probably arent the tranny, but the spark plugs. I talked to chibi about this awhile ago and he recommended a early tune up. Try getting a shift kit to smooth out the tranny hard shifts, thats on my list to get as well.

I have a 2007 monte carlo SS as well, 89k miles."

And also the only way around the oil part is tune out DOD, or get a new oil pan thingie, I cant remember where GM said that would fix the issue but id have to find the link later.

 

Hi Timbo, Welcome to the forum.

First off, "Stay away from that dealership!" They are screwing you. plain and simple, you should have never had to take your car back that many times for any issue and if you do that is a sign to stay away.

Find yourself a good reputable mechanic, even a backyard mechanic as they won't charge you anywhere near what the dealer is charging. Ask around to all the people you know and see if any mechanic or garage' name comes up repeatedly as reputable service guys. No offence but if a garage quoted me $3600 to change pistons and rings I would buy either a new car or go to a wrecker and get a used motor and take my chances that way.

I'm not certain with your year, but I know with my car's transmission when it is shifting hard 9 times out of 10 it is the solenoid in the transmission causing the issue as it sticks and causes the pressure to build up causing a hard shift, this fix is approx 700 or so to fix at a tranny shop in my area, so it should be relatively close in your area if not cheaper, or you can purchase a used tranny after yours dies and go that route. Flushing your tranny may have made it worse at it might have loosened the gunk that builds up within and now it could be causing more problems, again I am not 100% certain if this is the same with your tranny as it is a different year than mine, I just know with mine it could be a bad thing. There are more knowledgeable forum members that will hopefully chime in and give you some advice.

I would definitely contact GM and advise them of the issues with the dealership as they go on a customer service rating to get awards and customer service stars (however they rate the dealers nowadays) and it should be brought to their attention the difficulty you have had and the fact that you continued to bring it back to their dealership for service. It may not get you anything other than the satisfaction of knowing that hopefully the shop manager will get an earful, at least it is some gratification.

 

Yeah our 7th gen trannys are weird sometimes, if the dealer isnt finding an issue with the tranny, try my method, it eased up my shifting due to me mixing gas types. Granted the car says it can take either or, but in the same tank i think it confuses the PCM. It caused hesitation when taking off, basically bad fuel. So I cleaned it up with some seafoam, which im gonna do again, and then Rock it out. Ill check my tranny fluid when it warms up. Try shifting from R - 1 And then reving in park and pull off. Sometimes it helps swish the fluid around and lube it up. Also a tune up early wouldnt be bad

 

You will burn oil with these motors that's just a fact you have to live with. Unless you tune out the DOD or AFM in the 07. Ive never seen a manual from an 07 but my 06 states clearly that premium fuel 91 octane and up is recommended. Using regular gas will give you all sorts of weird knocks and ping in the motor and could as previously mentioned above contribute to you tranny problems. A good rule of thumb is to stay far away from any dealership service departments unless they are fixing a recall or they have agreed to honor the warranty before the work is done. I would also follow up and report your experience with this particular dealership to GM.

 

Thanks for your responses guys. I called GM to file complaints and they told me to deal with the human relations woman at the dealership. What a joke. Seaform? Although the engine supposedly cost $3600 for the work to be done, they charged me $1000. I could have went to my mechanic and got a rebuilt engine for $2000.00. I use regular gas. I know they recommend super or premium. It's just so damn expensive. What is this seafoam stuff? Would using a higher octane gas help this issue with the Tranny and why? Thanks fellas in advance for your help.

 

By the way you do not tell Chevy just to change the Transmission. Thats not how it works. If they keep insisting there is not a problem. They are not going to swap out the Tranny. I also filed a complaint with recalls.gov.

 

And what good is a warranty that isn't honored. By the way the engine was burning 2 quarts of oil between changes. Sorry for the 3 threads in a row. Just trying to answer all your questions. Thanks

 

2007 SS - Premium Recommended for performance, not NEEDED. It doesnt cause a knock , the only knocking you get is from bad fuel with these cars. If you keep maintence up you wont much of a knock - EDIT Knock range substible to 8-10 range, I forgot about that, however mine doesnt. The bad fuel caused mine to have hesitation, which could be because of carbon build up.

Seafoam is a carbon cleaner -> How To Seafoam Your Car’s Engine To Clean And Dissolve Carbon Buildup | diysrc

It helps clean carbon off of plugs, in the engine, tank, and injectors for better performance and overall cleaning.

See here for LS4 info LS4 FAQs - LS4 Store

Ls4 Gas - Premium Vs Regular -
Premium Fuel vs. Regular Fuel: The Debate!

Regular doesnt hurt, but mixing the gas, aka fueling 10 dollars of premium vs 20 dollars of regular - Causes a knock in the engine. To fix it, burn out ALL the gas to E, use Seafoam to clean the gas, fuel up with PREMIUM, then burn all of it out to your car DINGS with E, meaning you hear a chyme on the inside of the car, then fuel up with preferred gas. I have done this and it works.

I recommend doing this, and then also doing a tune up, as the 07 is over 5 years old, no matter the miles, its still over 5 years. It should be treated as a car with 100k+ Miles. I will be doing a tune up, tranny fluid/filter change, and seafoam my oil. Also clean your intake, and MAF sensor as well.