2004 transmission problem

[robjg]

I was driving my new 2004 Suburban with 600 miles on it when the "transmission hot" warning display light came on. I was going up a fairly steep grade on the freeway, about 75 mph and it was about 90 degrees outside. The transmission started shifting erratically between I think 3rd and 4th gears. As my wife was reading the manual, it said the erratic shifting would occur as long as the warning light was on. It also said to shut off the car and let the transmission cool, at which time the warning light should turn off and shifting would return to normal. By the time we figured out what to do ( 3 or 4 minutes) the light turned off and the transmission seemed to be working fine.

When I got off the freeway, I immediately noticed hard shifting between 1st and 2nd gears. The hard shifting did not go away and I took it to the dealer the next day. The technician was able to duplicate the shifitng problem and said the transmission fluid smelled burnt. The service advisor said they will remove the transmission to try and get an exact diagnosis of the problem, but in all likelihood it will need to be replaced.

After searching through the posts in here, I have not seen any similar problems with a brand new vehicle. Has anyone heard of this and is it a known defect with GM? Hopefully it's a fluke and the new transmission will be problem free. I'm just hoping it isn't the start of a nightmare lemon law battle.

[GC1954]

I have a 2003 with 62,000 miles which I have had the transmission service at 25,000 & 50,000 miles just to take care of it like I dis with my 1989 Suburban which when I sold it had over 400,000 miles on the original Motor & transmission.
My 2003 just blew its transimission climbing a steep grade on the interstate which it went into a lower gear. With no warning of Temp, Check Engine or Transmission light ever coming on. I stopped the truck and when I check the fluid it was full but smelled burnt. The dealer who has it since Friday Nov. 25, 2004 told me it had to be replaced. So I had to rent car and drive 500 miles one way home and go back when it is ready. No Warranty unless a recall is issued approx. $3,000+ to fix. Please let me know what was the verdict on yours.

[utahawk]

I have an '03 Burb and the tranny has been replaced. It was slipping, the kind where the PRM's go up and you barely move forward. They initially did a recondition on it and when the problem persisted I insisted they replace it. It only had 15,000 miles on it at the time. Now eight months later it's downshifting with a clunk and slips now and then as well. I will be going to a different dealer this time and demanding something be done before it goes out of warranty and I have to start footing the bills for it.

[robjg]

They replaced the transmission and it has been problem free since. It was covered under warranty. The dealer offered to rent me a car, although I declined. I didn't need it. I got the Suburban back in 2 days. I am very satisfied with the way everything was handled by the dealer, especially considering it was not even the dealership I puchased the vehicle from.