Allison MD3060 unlock tutorial

[TJones]

Originally Posted by bapos

Ted....

I had that same conversation with Alex and he was less than cordial about it. I asked with out giving trade secrets what kind of is your process cause I know in some trucks with tuners the dealer can see code of having a tune in your ecm that would void warranty? He was not overly nice about his answer and we will leave it at that.

As for this guy.... he uses nothing but allison stuff to do it. He is a allison specialist so he REALLY knows what he is doing. There has been no question he could not answer. I pointed him to this thread and has pointed out some very no so correct information. Its not wrong but said in certain ways that is not the way to do it.

I feel that what he did is no different than if you were to go to a legit dealer that has access to all the tools allison would give to that dealer. This was a very good and powerful learning experience. Also if you have no clue of what you are doing dont attempt this. You can brick this transmission pretty easy if the wrong thing happens.

Bricking the TCM or worse causing mechanical damage to the transmission is my concern with after market tuning. If the parameters were changed with OEM software by someone who is allison trained would be much better.

Ted

[bapos]

Originally Posted by TJones

Bricking the TCM or worse causing mechanical damage to the transmission is my concern with after market tuning. If the parameters were changed with OEM software by someone who is allison trained would be much better.

Ted

You will be in very good hands if you go with him.

[o1marc]

They must know we are looking. Every other model TCM I can find for $300, soon as the number 3060 pops up, the price jumps to $1000. found one for $950.

[bapos]

Originally Posted by o1marc

They must know we are looking. Every other model TCM I can find for $300, soon as the number 3060 pops up, the price jumps to $1000. found one for $950.

Arent you wt2? I know he said in some cases you may have to upgrade with a different harness as the wt2 stuff he said was tricky but he did not seem to think it is impossible.

[PatrickBaptist]

Originally Posted by bapos

Update.....

It is amazing when you get enough people involved in problem solving and you come up with a solution. Yesterday I had a very well skilled allison master remote in to my bus ( via laptop) and performed my flashing of my 3060 and we now have 6th gear. So yes it can be done.

I have talked with this person and he is able to help others do this same thing for a reasonable (more than any others in that have been brought up in here) price to get it done. Now there are some things you need to have on your end. You need a windows based laptop.... internet access.... and an adapter that will communicate with your bus. We did find out that a Cummins inline 6 adapter DOES NOT work with the pccs flashing software. So to be safe you need to have a nexiq, dearborn, or noregon and will have no problems. He is working on a way to connect to the persons computer and have all the software on his end but thats not always a 100% possible and you have to go back to old school on it.

So if you have a WT3 tcm.... you are in good shape. Contact me if you wish for me to put in touch with him. This will happen via email and he will make plans after that.

Bapos

Yeah but about what is the price range or so on that?????

[Ab01ns]

Originally Posted by bapos

Ted....



I had that same conversation with Alex and he was less than cordial about it. I asked with out giving trade secrets what kind of is your process cause I know in some trucks with tuners the dealer can see code of having a tune in your ecm that would void warranty? He was not overly nice about his answer and we will leave it at that.



As for this guy.... he uses nothing but allison stuff to do it. He is a allison specialist so he REALLY knows what he is doing. There has been no question he could not answer. I pointed him to this thread and has pointed out some very no so correct information. Its not wrong but said in certain ways that is not the way to do it.



I feel that what he did is no different than if you were to go to a legit dealer that has access to all the tools allison would give to that dealer. This was a very good and powerful learning experience. Also if you have no clue of what you are doing dont attempt this. You can brick this transmission pretty easy if the wrong thing happens.

I am having some minor issues with my transmission and would love to chat with him.

I don't think they're electrical or TCM related but I'm not a transmission guy

I would happily pay home for his time. Let me know if you can arrange this

[StatTarget]

Originally Posted by bapos View Post
Update.....

It is amazing when you get enough people involved in problem solving and you come up with a solution. Yesterday I had a very well skilled allison master remote in to my bus ( via laptop) and performed my flashing of my 3060 and we now have 6th gear. So yes it can be done.

So... Who ? and can we bug the Master ?

[bapos]

Originally Posted by Backwoods Wanderer

This is how the process to unlock 6th gear in the Allison MD3060 transmission unfolded for us:

1. Call the technical service department at your OEM and tell them you'd like to unlock 6th gear.
2. The OEM will make a determination based on review of the mechanical specs from the build of your bus. You will also need to send a picture and make/model description of your tires so they can verify the static load rating. If you do this in advance, it could save some time. Their engineering department will then make a decision as to whether the bus can handle the added stresses and speed. This can be a lengthy process and I might add doesn't contribute to their profits in any way so be patient!
3. If approval is granted, the bus then needs to be brought to a certified Allison service center to perform the work. Liability waivers will need to be signed.
4. The service center will contact Allison and request a 6th gear unlock code. If Allison is satisfied with the paperwork, they will generate an unlock code specific to that transmission and you're good to go.

This isn't an expensive thing to do but it is difficult. I wish good luck to anyone looking to try this.

If all else fails, you can always replace the rear axle with one that has a lower gear ratio. If you're handy and resourceful this can be a good option.

While I appreciate your message... I have been down all that road...... twice. Navistar is NOT..... I REPEAT.....NOT releasing liabilty any more. So you telling me how that process works is not anything new to me. I dont need to any worry about it... I got mine done. I am just trying to help others as Navistar and other bus makers are NOT going to do that release.

My goal is to help others find work arounds.

[bapos]

Originally Posted by StatTarget

So... Who ? and can we bug the Master ?

If you need information... I would suggest sending me a PM

[bapos]

Originally Posted by Ab01ns

I am having some minor issues with my transmission and would love to chat with him.

I don't think they're electrical or TCM related but I'm not a transmission guy

I would happily pay home for his time. Let me know if you can arrange this

Send me a PM and I can send his information there please.

[bapos]

Originally Posted by PatrickBaptist

Yeah but about what is the price range or so on that?????

That is set by him. I know what range he is looking at to do for people but that is not my place to go any further with that. He will take care of you. Its by far the best money I have spent on my transmission.

[jhagan]

They certaintly are.. I still have mine done. They are less likely to work with amateur bus folks. I have no problems with Navistar permitting access to 6th. When you operate a fleet, we will talk about what works and what doesn't..

[TJones]

Originally Posted by jhagan

They certaintly are.. I still have mine done. They are less likely to work with amateur bus folks. I have no problems with Navistar permitting access to 6th. When you operate a fleet, we will talk about what works and what doesn't..

Most people here don't operate fleets. Bluebird will not evaluate a 6th gear unlock request for a bus that is no longer owned or operated by a school district or commercial fleet.

Ted

[bapos]

Originally Posted by jhagan

They certaintly are.. I still have mine done. They are less likely to work with amateur bus folks. I have no problems with Navistar permitting access to 6th. When you operate a fleet, we will talk about what works and what doesn't..

As Tjones said ........ no one in here probably operates a fleet. Unless you are willing to take on everyones request to help them...... this "I have no problems " does not help ANYONE in here. The post is all about pretty much those who can not get it done through regular channels. So this is to help others find their ways to those who can help get that done.

Not trying to be an ass here but your post really only helped you?

[cadillackid]

im all about finding other ways to do this.. either with channels like Bapos found or things ive done myself like copying TCM data across the same platforms..



another thing people need to think about is driveshaft speeds... there are maximums that the transmission can take and there are maximums for different link shafts, U-joint angles, etc.. RE busses have much less driveshaft so long driveshafts arent as big of an issue as in FE busses.. with a 2600 RPM engine and a 0.65 OD you arent likely to exceed the max RPM for an MD3060 but some engines you can... and you can exceed the RPM of an unbalanced or poorly balanced driveshaft.. or a set that isnt phased correctly..



will it likely fly apart on your bus? more than likely not, however Navistar may be reluctant to open things up.. even with signed waivers of liability lawsuits still happen and even if the plaintiff loses Navistar still must expense legal counsel..



for those that feel you must always go through the channels.. the classic and custom car communities have been customizing and finding other channels than the manufacturers for many years.. ive been a part of that for many years.. turning up ECMs , building my own custom drivetrains, etc... this is nothing new.. its only "new" because it doesnt happen as much in the commercial vehicle communities as it does in the car world..



what Bapos found is a breakthrough for those looking to get 6th unlocked.. because it seems like a real channel that can be consistent hopefully.. previous it was the few that did it through the manufacturer or guys like myself that helped a few people here and there out but required me to be next to their bus as I dont have a bench harness to build TCM's..

[bapos]

Hey guys....

Just dropping a dime on this post to keep it going. For those who have not done this... please please please.... get this moving. You will not regret it ( if its possible to do yours) and will enjoy it. I have been converted and have had the best results of this. I messaged the Allison Master today to say TY again as well as Merry Christmas as he set me up with a very good gift.

Any questions PM me. I dont check this a lot of this is not the best at letting me know there are new messages so dont loose hope. I will check it more frequent

Bapos

[bapos]

Hey guys..... I totally blew it on some who sent me a message so I have sent that to those who did. I am not a fan of this PM system on here so if you want to reach out to me directly please email me at allupinthat2001@yahoo dot com........ i did not put that in standard form due to spam bots scanning so hopefully I dont get junk emailed to death.

But if you have questions or need to get in touch with the Allison Master email me ( which will be faster than here) and I will get you what you need to contact him.

[TJones]

I just had bapos's allison master unlock 6th on the bus. He unlocked it last night and I took the bus out for a test drive today. It worked flawlessly.

He really knows engine / transmission programing and is able to work remotely. You will need a laptop, good internet connection and a data link. He will need to download software so it would be best to use a laptop that has no personal info or irreplaceable files incase a virus sneaks in. I used a Nexiq1 data link. He can give you a list of compatible data links.

His pricing is very reasonable especially considering he had to spend extra time installing the software on my laptop because my internet was so slow. I won't speak for him on pricing you would have to contact him yourself. If you want his contact info email or pm bapos.

Ted

[bapos]

Glad it worked out. You will enjoy it everytime you drive it.

[cadillackid]

fantastic that we have a reliable good way of getting these opened up.. this rocks and kudos to Bapos and his connection!!