CEL = Need tranmission replacment!

Bought from an indy dealer a 99 Rodeo LSE a few montha ago with 46k. had a prepurchase inpection performed and it passed with flying colors.

last week the CEL and "check trans" light simultaneously suddenly appeared...took to autozone for free code reading and found the problem to be P1870 (slippage in transmission).

took to isuzu dealer to determine next steps. they dropped both pans and found metal due to torque converter coming apart. they recommended a transmission replacement which was done at no cost due to original 5 yr/60k powertrain warranty (thank goodness for the isuzu warranty!).

QUESTIONs ==> what would typically cause the torque converter to "come apart"? if a tranny flush is performed at least every 2 years, shouldn't the tranny last well over 100k?

when purchasing a used vehicle, how does one check to see if the torque converter is coming apart?

i guess the lessons to be learned here is when purchasing used cars: i) "buyer beware" when prior maintenance history is unknown and ii) seek out vehicles which are still under warranty.

rgds,
brian

POOR GM DESIGN
thaknkfully the 04 models got a new tranny
hoping it will hold up a bit better