I have a 2003 Cadillac Deville with about 120,000 miles on it.
The SES light came on and I had some maintenance done at STS.
The light came back on the night I picked it up. I took it back the next day, they said it was related to the transmission and they do not do transmission repairs. They cleared the light and said if it came back on they could flush the transmission and maybe that would take care of the problem or they suggested I should take it to a transmission repair shop.
The error codes are p0741 & p1860
Once in a while at the beginng of a drive I experience a sluggish acceleration, it does not last long( a second or 2) and then runs fine for the remainder of the drive.
My questions are:
1) I am cautious to spend the money on a transmission flush on something that may or may not fix the problem, Should I try the transmission flush or is this a waste of money?
2) Is this something that shold be repaired right away?
3) What needs to be repaired or replaced?
4) Where should I take this for this repair, a dealer , a local repair shop, or a transmission place?
5) what is this going to cost me?
I thank you for your advice and hope you all have a wonderful day,
Thomas Van Blarcom
What you need is your best, local, independent transmission shop.
What you likely have is a malfunctioning PWM TCC (pulse width modulation/torque converter clutch) solenoid and/or a leaky valve body bore for said solenoid. However, that is ust a common problem on those transmissions and it could be from other kinds of issues.
Has the transmission ever been serviced before? If it hasn’t been serviced regularly (like every 30K miles or so) then don’t be surprised if anyone you see advises that you just rebuild the whole thing.
If it turns out that PWM solenoid work takes care of it you’re probably looking at $600-800. If you go for a full rebuild/rebuilt unit you’re probably looking at $2500 - $4000.
These 2 fault codes indicate trouble with the Torque Converter Clutch and/or TCC electrical solenoid. If I were a betting man (and I am) I would bet that the TCC Solenoid has failed electrically and is causing both fault codes. I’d also bet that the TCC solenoid failed in such a way that it melted the electrical plug that connects it to the wiring harness, and possible melted part of the harness itself.
The good news is that these 2 parts only add up to $100 or so.
The bad news is that if I remember correctly the transmission has to come out of the car to get to these parts–they’re inside the side cover on the valve body.
Don’t bother with a transmission fluid service–won’t help a thing.
Fix this sooner than later.
Plan on a thousand bucks or so…maybe a little more, if once they get the transmission out and inspected they recommend replacing the torque converter as well.
There is a way to do it without completely removing the transmission - it does involve dropping the subframe & basically cocking it all toward the driver’s side to get enough clearance to pull the side cover. It does reduce the labor cost some, but I don’t think everyone will do it that way. And, of course, it is irrelevant if the best move is a total overhaul.
Thank you for your advice. Best regards, Tom
Thank you for your advice. Best regards, Tom
Buy the time you get that light to go out and stay out, you will have likely spent more money than the car is worth…