Dealer says my 97 Rodeo has transmission slipping (a little)

[ntbushwick]

Hello. I will try to make this short while providing as much information as possible.

I took my 4WD 97 Rodeo to the dealer for service of a short (causing my battery to die), and to find the cause of my check engine light. The computer diagnostics returned two error codes, PO440 and P1870. They decided to replace the accumilator piston cover to fix a trans leak and perform trans service. They also replaced the cannister valve assembly. The total cost was $880, which I paid. I was told this would fix my issues.

A day after getting my Rodeo back, the check engine light came back on. And I also noticed that the 4wd was no longer working. Note: I have never had an issue with the 4wd.

So, I took it back to the service shop and they are now saying I need a new transmission because it's slightly slipping. And they are also saying it "could" have been caused because the transmission fluid was low when I took it in to them.

I am very uneducated when it comes to automotive service, and I do not have the money for a new transmission. My question is, what are the odds of their servicing the transmission, causing the now need for a completely new transmission. And why didn't they discover this earlier before I spent nearly $900 on the previous repairs.

What are my options? Thank you all for reading this.

NT

[rodeo02]

This is tough to diagnose without knowing what OBDII codes are present now. What is the maintenance history of the transmission? If the trans fluid has never been changed it may be too late. 4L30E's dont last long being run low on ATF if it was leaking. They also need to have new ATF every 40Kmi or so if you want them to last over 100Kmi.

G/luck
Joel

[ntbushwick]

The P1870 code came back. I bought the isuzu when it had 110K miles. I am not sure on the maintenance history. It now has 150K miles.

[amigo-2k]

These trannies are picky about voltage.

Your problem could be something as simple as a bad ground.

[ntbushwick]

Personally, I do not feel any slipping. I would be able to feel it, correct? Only problem that I notice is that the 4wd no longer works - after their "service".

[ntbushwick]

Originally Posted by amigo-2k

These trannies are picky about voltage.

Your problem could be something as simple as a bad ground.

Interesting. They disconnected my radio because they said it was shorting out and causing the battery to die. This was fixed prior to the transmission service. I did not test the 4wd after this was fixed. COuld this be part of the problem?

[rodeo02]

Originally Posted by ntbushwick

Personally, I do not feel any slipping. I would be able to feel it, correct? Only problem that I notice is that the 4wd no longer works - after their "service".

The 4L30E compensates for itself when components age/wear. Yours might be to the point where it can't 'adjust' for wear anymore. If the fluid/filter are clean, I'd try an ATF additive in it until I decided what to do (fix, sell as-is, etc..) I dunno a brand off-hand, but there are liquid adds to help eliminate AT slip.

G/luck
Joel