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      Allison 3000/4000 series transmission technical tips
The The Allison world series transmissions models 3060,3560,3000,3066,B300,B400 (R) 4060,4560,4500,B500 (R) models and variants are found in large variety of truck chassis and busses. models come  wide or close ratio gear sets, with or without PTO provisions, with or without retarder provisions and so on. to properly id these units you need the serial number off of the Manf. tag on the right side of the unit, some earlier tags show what model the unit actually is, part numbers etc. give serial number to any Allison Dealer and unit can be identified. beware of  wrong tags on cases as this can be a common problem. you may be able to identify unit thru OEM chassis Manf./VIN #. (Best bet is to ID unit with both Allison transmission serial number and thru VIN etc. Match the information from both!

Allison 3K/4K Tech Tips

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Truck will not up-shift out of first gear, may or may not have codes.
Cause: can be output speed sensor is no good, TCM doesn't know truck is moving. if Ckt. is good may not have any codes. this can also happen with input sensor and TCM will simply not know engine is running. however should set code if moving eventually.
Complaint: banging, or erratic shift feel on one or all shifts, may correct temporarily if adapts reset but comes back, no codes present.
Cause:  can be a damaged tone wheel on output (retaining pin on output can wear gear on 3000 series units causing this, Loose nuts on 4000 series units) damaged  on drum, damaged converter "bumps" and or erratic speed sensors/wiring from trans to TCM for one or more of speed sensors faulty. these are all very common issues with these units. can be seen using Allison DOC software, otherwise its trail and error! the slightest nick or dent in rear tone wheel,  drum ring, or damaged "bump" on converter where input sensor reads from can drive you crazy. wiring is common issue too, corroded wires, loose sensor connectors and so-on. On busses especially its very common to have deteriorated wiring from unit to TCM which can be some 40 feet away!
Recommended fluid for Allison 3000 and 4000 series transmissions
Allison Transmissions currently only recommends the use of TES 295/468 fluids in all transmissions. this is synthetic based fluid and available under the following brand names/suppliers: Castrol: Transysnd, BP Lubricants: Autran Syn 295, Cognis Corp: Em Gard 2805, International Truck: Fleetrite Synth.ATF. John Deere: HD Syn tran, Mobil: Mobil Delvac Synth. ATF, and Volvo N.A.: Bulldog Synth. ATF. They no longer recommend the use of Dexron fluids in any transmissions. However if you have pre 2006 Transmissions the recommended fluid before then was dexron 3 and equivalents
TID level ID information
There is a large variant with electronic controls in these units that can cause all kinds of unforeseen problems including no movement at all, electronic controls are identified as Pre-TID, TID1,TID2,TID3, 4th gen and even 09-up 4th gen transmissions. internal parts vary throughout!  Beware if changing one transmission from truck to truck and so on. you can create all kinds of issues that can be very hard to diagnose! There are other types of shifters out there as well. you may encounter ones with handles or smaller touch pads. Identify with TCM is best way if you cant ID with shifter.
allison shifter identification
allison transmission computer identification
Allison transmission ID issues
Allison transmissions are best identified with serial number and part number on tag which is located on right rear passengers side of transmission. There's a TON of wrong units in trucks, wrong tags and so on out there. (You may also encounter an Allison tag that's stamped wrong as well! It can be a real joyous occasion here!) The last guys got the laugh! Beware if changing one unit from truck to truck and so on. you can create all kinds of issues that can be very difficult to diagnose. See sample Allison tag below: 
allison transmission tag
allison transmission diagnostics codes
We offer Free transmission diagnostic help for Allison transmissions via E-Mail: Tech Help
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