Lost 3rd Allison in 20k

[Cat568]

3 MD 3060's in 20k miles in my 2000 Diplomat 275 ISB. Friday Ridgefield WA Western Star in Ridgefield reported my 14,000 trans burned up.
No codes, until it stuck in 4th
Fluid change 3k ago at Brazels, Centralia WA, no problems reported, highly rated shop.
4th trans in
We cant afford to trade our home.
I know this is unheard of. I'm a staunch Allison guy. Ran heavy equipment my whole life, army too. All Allison driven. Love the damn things. Still do.
Someone may know what's going on. I sure dont.
Allison says out of warranty. Last was installed approx 10/
Hope this thread is in the right place, and I cam find it again.
Thank you
John and Anna Smallwood Longview WA

[firedoc]

Watching with interest. Allison’s are usually pretty bulletproof!

[nodine]

Originally Posted by Cat568

3 MD 3060's in 20k miles in my 2000 Diplomat 275 ISB. Friday Ridgefield WA Western Star in Ridgefield reported my 14,000 trans burned up.
No codes, until it stuck in 4th
Fluid change 3k ago at Brazels, Centralia WA, no problems reported, highly rated shop.
4th trans in
We cant afford to trade our home.
I know this is unheard of. I'm a staunch Allison guy. Ran heavy equipment my whole life, army too. All Allison driven. Love the damn things. Still do.
Someone may know what's going on. I sure dont.
Allison says out of warranty. Last was installed approx 10/
Hope this thread is in the right place, and I cam find it again.
Thank you
John and Anna Smallwood Longview WA

I would look very close at the transmission cooler. It is sometimes integrated into the radiator. On our coach it is a separate unit but still part of the cooling system since the radiator coolant runs thru it. I believe the reason Monaco went to the separate unit was because so many of the integrated units had failed allowing the coolant fluid to mix with the transmission fluid. At any rate, as a minimum you should take a sample of the transmission fluid and have it tested for coolant contamination.

Bob

[bigjim8499]

My bet is on the cooler too Those 3060 are bullet proof
Jim E
06 exec

[Cat568]

The cooler was replaced/re rodded after either the 69k or the 75k trans replacement, can't remember which, and not at home. We live in it. I watch the engine trans temp pretty religiously. Any in town stop and go, long mountain pass up or down, construction delays, I'm never in a hurry, I just pull over or shut off. Only 2 times had to do that, during in town construction with 40 min delays. Always go to N. Those times, we were moving just enough to warrant not shutting off.
Thanks for the ideas.
Always Transynd only

[jacwjames]

I would also check the cooler lines to make sure there is not an obstruction causing restriction (or no) flow.

[RamiDav]

Hi John ,

This is a problem most of us would have thought impossible .
We sincerely hope the problem can be found and repaired at the least
expense to you .

I'm with Bob and the others thinking oil cooler , I would insist that
a new larger oil cooler be installed along with a temp gauge .

Look at the top of this page click on RV Forums
and under Power Train Garage is Allison Transmissions .
That would be a good place to post a thread also .

Ray , Marilyn & Semo our little fur boy
03 Windsor

[Cat568]

Thank you all!

[nodine]

Originally Posted by Cat568

Thank you all!

Cat568,

If the same place has replaced all three transmission that failed that sets a red flag, no matter what their reputation. Automatic transmissions in cars easily go for over 150,000 miles without any trouble and the Allison is a heavy duty transmission designed to withstand harsh conditions. It would be nice to know what is failing and if it is always the same part. It is my understanding that when a transmission fails in a destructive manner the fluid can be contaminated with metal filings and other debris from the failure. If the first transmission had such a failure and and those particles got into the torque converter they would need to be cleaned out. What if the place doing the work is not draining and flushing the torque converter. Just a thought. You indicate you are very conscious of the transmission temperature so it is unlikely that the failure is a result of high temperature. The fact that the transmissions have a very short life and assuming they were built or rebuilt to Allison specs and the temperature is not running high then either the transmission fluid is contaminated with radiator coolant or metal particles, the filters in the bottom of the transmission have not been changed and are stopped up, or their is a problem with fluid flow inside the transmission. Depending on where the sensor is, the majority of the fluid could be cool but an internal section of the transmission is plugged. If these same guys are rebuilding the same transmission then they could be making the same error on repeated rebuilds. I smell a rat here. I would suggest finding a low mile transmission complete with torque converter in a junk yard and having someone else install it. Don't go back to the same place.

Bob

[Cat568]

They are rebuilt. They have swapped. The first was changed in Ridgefield WA at Pacific Power. The second approximately 5k later by Central Power Systems in AZ. C4 clutch always involved. We don't have many options. On disability. Pretty ill with lung cancer. This ain't helping.If Allison doesn't help with cost, our traveling days may be over. The AZ shop cleaned and flushed cooler. The eng never gets hot, just normal temps. Fluid changed 3k ago. No contamination noted. By a shop i would trust with my life. Brazel's in Centralia. They already said if it was them, don't worry. It would be fully covered. No word from Allison today.

[Cat568]

I thought the dang thing was supposed to protect itself. No codes. They hooked up computer and, no codes erased by me, no old codes, nothing. One code, d1 5143, after it died. If I was an engineer (and wealthy) I'd say, here's a transmission. Come in to service center every 1,000 mi, so we can run diagnostic. Computer hookup, fluid analysis, pressure checks. Cause I'd be insanely curious. I'm swimming in a sea of 10 million happy customers, of a truly great product. I'm afraid I won't be noticed much.

[Cat568]

Just came from Allison. "Out of warranty. We have no responsibility, and will not do the work" I understand.
If anyone thinks this is an exceptional case, that merits a little more consideration, or compassion, please message Allison, through e-mail or fb page and mention that. It could make a huge difference. I will not post anything else about this, unless asked, except the conclusion.
Thank you All
John and Anna Smallwood and Family
White Poodle, Black Poodle
2000 Monaco Diplomat 40'
275ISB MD3060

[Mutt]

Does your MH have the additional Tranny Cooler that was added...and installed in front of the Rear Radiator. Not sure when Monaco started the replacement cooler, but there was a recall because the transmissions were getting hot. I'm sure others on this Forum remembers the Recall????

[Outbound]

Makes you wonder why the original transmission lasted so long before OP started losing transmissions.