48re needs help?

[ABorgardt]

My trans seems to be starting to slip. Rpm's make it to 3,000 just over half throttle. Its still able to pull but i dont know. Seems to do it in 1st, 2nd, and 3rd. Once i get lock up (in 3rd and 4th) i get absolutely no noticeable slip (Attitude is saying there is any either). Could this be able to be fixed with just a replacement torque converter? Am i going to need a rebuild? Would it be worth trying a trans service first? I very rarely ever get the juice up to level 3 let alone past it. Use it mainly in level 1 and when pulling i will turn it up to 2.

What do you guys think?

 

[BMeier]

I would pull the trans pan down and see what debris, if any, is in there. If there is no material on the pan floor or anything larger than normal stuck to magnet you might have a bad pressure switch in the valve body.

If there is a black layer of material than you will probably need to go into the trans.

 

[sweeda]

Ditto on BMeier. Don't drive it till you can look in the pan. Continued driving will just cost more to repair. The black in my pan cost around $4500. good luck!

 

[LRutigliano]

I would pull the trans pan down and see what debris, if any, is in there. If there is no material on the pan floor or anything larger than normal stuck to magnet you might have a bad pressure switch in the valve body.

If there is a black layer of material than you will probably need to go into the trans.

This got my attention... Do you have any pics of the black layer? I have seen a black layer on the bottom of my stock pan and also very slight on the bottom of the PML pan. But how much are talking about? The stuff I had was like dust and could be wiped off with your finger. The magnet was pretty coated with black too.



My trans temps are always low (140F to 150F) and I have never felt it shudder and I definately don't abuse it.



I'm saving for a rebuilt Source Automotive trans (billet input and output, 3x TC, new VB, reinforced flexplate and new clutches/steels and 5. 0 lever... ) but wondering when/if I should pull the trigger with the uncertainty of the economy...

 

[sweeda]

There is a normal wear layer and an ahh that is not normal layer. Thin after 25000 miles O. K. Thin after 5000 miles not good. Thick layer that raises the edges and leaves a noticable lump were your finger stops should be checked but you just dropped the pan and now have to refill to have him check it. I love my transmission guy. shows me the pan every service.

 

[Toolman9304]

Wow! If it is slipping that much it doesn't sound good the problem is when one to the components start to slip it creates heat and eventually takes the rest of the stuff out. I don't know where you are located at but if you give Dusty at HTS Transmissions a call and tell him what it is doing he will be able to figure out what the best thing is to do with it the number is 877-630-9122 or 616-897-6237

Bruce

 

[ABorgardt]

Ok. Just got home form work and started checking things out. Checked the fluid level out first. It was slightly low, about 1/2 inch under the 'ok' range, but still on the stick. I checked it in neutral. The best i can figure being that low wouldnt cause it to act this way, but i am by no means any expert. I went ahead and dropped the pan anyway. To my surprise the pan was clean. Debris on the magnet, but no more than i have ever seen in any other pan. Im going to change the filter and fill it back up with some cheap stuff for now and see what it does. If all is fine i will then invest in a full flush and go to synthetic. Anyone have any other ideas? Thanks

 

[ABorgardt]

I got the new filter installed, pan up and filled. Took it for a ride, checked the level, add some, and checked again. Reads ok now at 180*. Still acting funny. It almost seems ok up through 2000 rpms. over that is were it is acting up. seems to climb rpm ranges faster than it should. If i get into it, it pegs at 3000 rpms and stays there, get a power push in the @$$ and then it lets up, almost to the point were my body moves forward, hangs for several seconds and then decides 'oh *****, time to shift'. It hits second goes again, and does the same thing, just not quite as bad. I have no idea? Is this something a shift enhancer or a valve body may fix? I dont have the money to be trying things to find the problem, or to pay someone else too. $53 dollars just to drop the pan and change the filter... . Thanks again

 

[ABorgardt]

I would pull the trans pan down and see what debris, if any, is in there. If there is no material on the pan floor or anything larger than normal stuck to magnet you might have a bad pressure switch in the valve body.

If there is a black layer of material than you will probably need to go into the trans.

Im thinking that it is a bad pressure switch since there was minimal debris in the pan. Is there any way to verify this short of just replacing the valve body?

 

[ABorgardt]

I have now replaced the Output speed sensor and the governor solenoid, as per the recommendation of Bill at DTT. Problem is still there. After closer analysis, it seems as if it is shifting slow, late, or hesitating to shift. mainly now going from 1st to 2nd. It feels as if it is in gear and in neutral at the same time? Does that make sense? Is it needing a rebuild? Is a rebuild something i can do myself? I am mechanically inclined.

 

[AAdams]

not 100% certain about the change or not of the basic trans but up to 05 48re was still the same trans as was behind the big hemis of the 60s this then only had one competitor and that was the b&m hydro. the reason all the diesels in the dodge have had low horse power is because of their weak link(the torque converter) too many transmissions being rebuilt unnecessarily. if you are pushing the power up you need to install a heaver clutch(torque converter). you should increase your pressures(valve body) the old 727 about which we speak will handle more than you think. all they did was add over drive(over simplification) . if you do have it overhauled have the shop install the original 2nd gear band(60s)lined with kevlar,same thing as billett solid band at an extremely lower cost. no matter what if you boost the power too far and hotdog it too much it will come apart. unless you are a serious off roader, racer you need not put any other big moneys in your trans. have had our share of problems and these are the solutions,we do our 100000k plus a year towing.

 

[BMeier]

I wonder if there is'nt something sticking in the valve body, if there is no debris than the clutches are not starting to fail (yet). If for some reason the valve body is not getting enough pressure to engage the clutches fast enough, where their engaging slowly, if so than it wont be long before the clutches will start to fail. You might have to bite the bullet and take it to a trans shop and see if they can figure it out instead of trying to throw parts at it. There could be such a thing that the power train control module is not sending correct signals to the trans. I would not know how to determine that without fault codes. Worst case, pay a trans shop to troubleshoot it and fix it yourself.



Good luck.

 

[slomodiesel]

Dear ABorgardt: I have the edge juice with attitude also and I think that hesitation before shift that you feel is when with the attitude on, you are using the protection mode (example 1350 degrees on egt) and it (attitude) is backing off the fuel to not exceed the parameters you have chosen. Only with racing would I turn those protections off - but if you do it for temporary hot rodding (turn off attitude protection)- it will not back off your fueling. Remember you should probably not exceed level 3 with a stock transmission (especialy the convertor and stock valve body) if you change them both out you will have a transmission setup that will take a lot of abuse. Remember the bands are adjustable also when you have the pan off might check them too. Good luck!

 

[ABorgardt]

I went and saw a friend of a friend about an hour from me and he looked at it...
As of right now the diagnosis is the 2nd gear band. He is hoping he can slip a new one in without removing the trans. We are going to give it a try since i dont have much money to pay to rebuild it. It will be a temp fix until i can put the money together to buy a built transmission.