Trans rebuild? 2000 Silhouette

Hello all. This is my 1st post; am hoiping for some advice.

I have a 2000 Silhouette, 3400 enginr, 86000 miles. Gold package with towing package. We towed a camper for a few seasons, but haven't for a year or so.

Am experiencing the hard shifting that I've seen in this forum before. Shifts fine when cold, but once warmed up, starts shifting hard, and taking a long time between gears; by that I mean that it seems like the trans is TRYING to shift (revs don't increase), but it takes a few seconds to actually get into the next gear. From this forum and links, it would appear that I need a new PCS.

Dealer wants $700 to replace the PCS, and $1200 to replace the PCS AND valve body. Got a 2nd opinion from a nationwide trans shop (Cottman). They're seeing the code that indicates PCS is compensating to the max, and placing the trans in 'long shift' mode. Apparently this is a 'limp-in' feature designed to protrct the tranny?

At any rate, they're saying that a simple PCS replacement isn't addressing the real issue, and are recommending a rebuild. Their line of reasoning is that the PCS is designed to compensate for wear in the plates. At a certain point, they become so worn that the PCS can no longer compensate. So replacing it might buy me a little more time, but eventually I'll be looking at a rebuild. Their price is $1500 - $1800 depending on the condition of the hard parts, which according to them should be in good shape, since I still have all 4 gears, and there's no excessive noise or other symptoms to indicate a lot of parts need replacing.

Sounds reasonable to me, but I'm no wrench; I can change oil, plugs, brakes, and do maintenance with the best of them, but when it comes to trannys or major repairs, I'm at the mercy of the shop.

So my question(s) to you gurus; am I being fed a line of B-S here? Is there a hard and fast way to tell if I have worn plates, or ? I don't mind shelling out the money to fix something right, but don't want to bend over, either, if you know what I mean! :)

Any and all advice gratefully acknowledged.

Joe

Any codes? Ifthe pwm is at maximum adapt it is either bad, common, or in fact pressure is being lost internally and the pwm is doing it's job. A comprehensive scan, a scanner will revel slippage in the trans which would account for the problem, a pressure test might confirm press. loss also, but the pwm may be boosting it and you will thinks all ok, is the fluid burnt.

Thanks for the reply.

Yes; there's a code (I can't exactly remember which, but I did see it on the shop's scanner); the test that accompanied the code on the scanner indicates PCS is boosting at max pressure, and the transmission is in 'long shift' mode. The fluid didn't appear to be burnt when I changed it and the filter just last weekend, hoping that this was the problem (at 86000 miles, 1st change, I'm ashamed to say).

Here's something interesting, however; when I changed the fluid and filter, there was of course the dark grey sludge at the bottom of the pan. I'm inexperienced at judging how much is TOO much, but it certainly didn't appear to be a lot; I wiped it up with a couple of rags and cleaned off the magnet. THIS weekend, I changed the fluid and filter on my Olds Intrigue (89000 miles), and there was MUCH less sludge on the bottom of the pan. Barely any, in fact. So, it may be that what I thought was normal on the Sil was in fact excessive?

So let's get down to it; if I go the rebuild route, are there certain things I want to be SURE to insist they replace (like this PCS, and the other solenoids)?

I'm not ready to jump just yet, will await other opinions from the forum, but want to make sure I get the job done right if I go this route.

Thanks again....

Joe

What happened??

I rode it for a while, was gonna fix it and keep it, but the wife and I decided that having TWO card approaching old age (have a 1999 Olds Intrigue with 90,000 and the Silhouette with almost 90,000), we didn't want to have to be constantly fixing one or the other of them. So we traded it in on a Buick LaCrosse.

It's the wife's car; I can't get comfortable in the seats. Besides, I like the looks and handlind of the INtrigue better. Other than that, it's an excellent car (got the CXS model with the sportier suspension and more HP under the hood).

We both miss the minivan, though.