According to the technical service bulletin PI4075, it’s common for the transmission to overheat in the 2007 – 2009 Saturn Outlook equipped with the 6T70 transmission or 6T75 transmission.
What Transmission Do I Have?
General Motors had to issue this technical service bulletin because of the number of complaints made by owners about their Saturn Outlook transmission overheating. The first symptom would be a message in the drivers information center (DIC, if so equipped) which read “transmission hot – idle engine “. This is often accompanied by the diagnostic trouble codes/DTC’s P0218 and/or P0634.
In order to help technicians determine the cause for the transmission overtemperature problem, GM recommended asking owners a number of questions to start. For example, right before the transmission overheated, how fast were they driving, what type of roads were they on, were they using the cruise control, how far did they drive, were they towing a trailer etc. Many times, the answers to these questions would provide the reason for the transmission overtemperature.
If there was nothing unusual about the way the vehicle was being driven, then a test drive was needed. The technician would connect a scan tool so they can monitor different vehicles sensors and systems, like the transmission fluid temperature sensor/TFT, the engine coolant temperature/ECT and the transmission control module/TCM. The data collected here can help technicians to determine whether or not the problem lies with the engine or the transmission.
According to GM, here are some of the most common reasons that a 6T70 or 6T75 transmission will overheat:
1. Too much transmission fluid
Having too much transmission fluid can actually cause the transmission to overheat because the excess fluid will foam and prevent the ATF from lubricating or cooling the moving parts. Plus, the extra transmission fluid will increase the internal pressure, which will not only cause the transmission to overheat, it can damage the seals and other components as well.
2. Dirty or old transmission fluid
As transmission fluid breaks down, it’s no longer able to cool or lubricate the moving parts as it was designed to. Therefore, if the transmission fluid is not clean and bright, it can actually contribute to transmission overheating.
3. Restrictions in the transmission cooler circuit
The transmission cooler is obviously very important to keeping the ATF at a normal operating temperature. So any kinks in the lines, or restrictions can cause the transmission cooler not to function properly, which will result in an overheated transmission.
4. Mechanical problems
It’s advisable to check for proper shifting functionality, and look for any DTC’s that may indicate mechanical failures for the transmission. Any of these can overheat the transmission.
What Transmission Do I Have?
While the Saturn brand didn’t stick around for much longer, the Saturn Outlook was actually a pretty decent SUV. Unfortunately though, it was let down by the transmission. So if you want to fix all of your transmission problems at once, then you should consider a remanufactured 6T70 transmission or remanufactured 6T75 transmission from a company like Street Smart Transmission. They completely reengineer these transmissions to fix all the factory design flaws that way you transit your new transmission will far outlast the original. Then they back it by 3-year/unlimited mile nationwide warranty. If you would like to learn more about this option, click here.
