Auto Trans

[tmacc]

Robby Ram,
What "flash" did you get for your PCM?
Your Right. Ford does need the Cummins.

jthorpe,
Just curious. How often did you service your trans?

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'01 2500 4x4 4. 10 White/Driftwood QC plain SLT auto trans snow prep camper package tow package bed liner mopar mud flaps Reading Ind. 33" tall contractors cap. Toys: 3 mountain bikes, a cyclo-cross bike, and a road bike, plus a couple of whitewater kayaks. Yeah, I know their human powered, but the bikes are fun to modify too. Like spending $$$ to make trucks more powerful, It takes $$ to make bikes lighter. Titanium isn't cheap.

[This message has been edited by tmacc (edited 01-05-2001). ]

 

[Deezal Man]

cscpusher wrote:

Brent, the automatic is prone to problems, just like the 5 and 6 speeds are prone to problems. If you were to do a survey, I'll bet the same percentage of people had problems with each of them.

This is a great summation of my previous post.

Jack, As far as the "Boy doing a man's job", if you haven't... this simply doesn't apply to you. So don't take offense. . But I also didn't think it was out of line to mention that "SOME" do and have abused these trucks.
To me, this is an important point, because anyone can ***** about the auto. . but only those who haven't exceeded the rated limits are entitled to complain. IMO

I re-read my post... and I don't think that I'm praising the auto and/or bashing the manual. Both have good points and bad.
Some have been reliable... . some haven't.

 

[WCrovo]

I totally agree with Jack, 100%, all the way, end of story. Arrogance is not a factor. You gave your opinion Ron and you got mine. The new trannys are not like the old ones, I think Daniel hit the nail on the head. I dare to contradict that! Before the electronic controls they were decent. I have said before even if they are "THE BEST" for drag racing it is not the best for towing.

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2001 2500 tow, camper, SWB, ETH, Bright white.

 

[DGFoster]

Well let me give my 2 cents,I have a y2k 3500 quad cab 4x4,and it has 57000 miles on it and it is an automatic,and I have not had any problems,and let me say this,all 57000 are towing miles,heavy boats,and travel trailers.
I think and believe it is all in the brake in,you have to take care of your trans. I use all amsoil product,atf+4 and seems to work great,after a long tow in a hot climate,pull the stick and if you can put your fingers on it,I think it must be staying cool,and mine is cool,and I am running a VA box and 275 injectors,but I dont go out and bake the rear tires either,you let the power of that cummins do the work,but do it gently,and be easy on it.
My friend has the same truck,and dont tow grocerys as well as anything eles,he just drives it,and he has had 2 torque convertors put in it.
I have seen older dodge trucks with autos with 200,000 miles on them and no problems.
I think you will have some problems with anything you buy that is mass produced... .

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David Foster

 

[tmacc]

Hey Jack,
I'm with you on being upset at a trans that blows up at only 42k. I've got an auto, so I'm trying to make it last. I also drive in a lot of rush hour traffic. When you are in traffic, do you keep the OD off when under 45-50 mph? I saw a post from Bill K that he doesn't use OD when under 50 mph, it made sense to me, so I usaully don't either.

Walter,
The older 3 speeds sure were tough. I got 235k out of a Ford C-6 trans in my 85 F-250 and it did a fair amount of plowing back when the right coast had real winters. And, I have to admit that I was less than punctual about regular maintinance.

 

[BrentMW]

Regarding oil for the 47re trany, what is recommended choice for those who want to keep their auto for as long as possible?

2001 QC, 4x4, LB, 47RE trans w/ HD TC Tow package

Originally posted by tmacc:
Hey Jack,
I'm with you on being upset at a trans that blows up at only 42k. I've got an auto, so I'm trying to make it last. I also drive in a lot of rush hour traffic. When you are in traffic, do you keep the OD off when under 45-50 mph? I saw a post from Bill K that he doesn't use OD when under 50 mph, it made sense to me, so I usaully don't either.

Walter,
The older 3 speeds sure were tough. I got 235k out of a Ford C-6 trans in my 85 F-250 and it did a fair amount of plowing back when the right coast had real winters. And, I have to admit that I was less than punctual about regular maintinance.

 

[Max340]

Jack, If the groove is too deep, I'd have to say its a manufacturing flaw. I agree, a better effort at fixing the problem should be made, but... how do you tell which ones are bad without disassembling or failure pointing it out? If it works, let it go is a rule we follow ourselves in some cases, hardly makes sense to gripe about the samme rule applied on a larger scale. However, I agree, each failure for that reason even if beyond warranty, should be fixed at no charge.

I also agree that the transmission should function over all situations. But a failure rate is to be expected, and yours fell in that area. Not making excuses, just saying its gonna happen to someone.

TMacc, I drove an 85 F250 that had three rebuilds in 120k on a C6, so as before, its a machine, and it can fail.

 

[Max340]

Jack, given that you have light throttle conditions and that you say the TC was shot, seems to me the transmission was a victim of circumstances beyond your control. It was not designed to keep locking and unlocking the TC at such a rate, and thus the debris from that wear and tear killed the rest of the transmission. Pure guess work without seeing inside the transmission, but the point is, the design was not the flaw, but the situation was.

Further, I think if you wanted to blame design, blame it on too small a lock up clutch surface, since it is IMO from what I read and heard, too small for the diesel application.

However, this is not the transmission as a whole. I know of many guys who run this thing well over 100k and have no problems, TC or other.

In short, I think the design works fine, and with a few tweeks (like the trannies mentioned in Landy's and Sox' cars, don't let Ron fool ya into thinking they were stock)and mods for power, it should deliver superior performance for a long time. No tweeks and mods, it should deliver adequate performance for a long time.

Either way, there will be some sort of failure rate, since it is a machine.

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Y2K 2500 QC Sport 4x4 LWB
72 Dart 340
89 LeBaron GTC 2. 2 TI

 

[jthorpe]

Originally posted by tmacc:
Robby Ram,
What "flash" did you get for your PCM?
Your Right. Ford does need the Cummins.

jthorpe,
Just curious. How offen did you service your trans?

Every 10k miles. I believe the requirement in the manual was either 12 or 15k. I don't remember. I service my vehicle on time every time. I am very anal about it so I know that isn't the issue. I was also never low on fluid as I checked it at every fillup knowing that I tow quite a bit.

 

[jthorpe]

Max,

I can only go by what the majority of technicians tell me since I am not a transmission expert by any stretch of the imagination. From what I understand, there were some lip seal grooves that were boored to deep and that caused a problem with early failures in some of the units. Dodge knew about it. If it's not a design flaw, then it sure is a manufacturing problem. Sounds to me like Dodge, instead of doing the right thing, is hoping that most of those units will run through the warranty period before the failure so they won't have to do anything about it for their older customers. From what I understand, they did fix it for the newer units but didn't offer that fix to their existing customers.

I don't see anywhere on the Internet or otherwise, including my manuals that say the truck wasn't designed for specific driving conditions expcept for other peoples' opinions. Either way, 42-43k miles is not a significant amount in my mind to cause such an early failure. I also understand that they're machines and they do fail. However, the failure rate for this unit seems a bit high to me. Don't worry, I also had an E4OD and a Ford stick that failed on me as well, when I lived in Colorado for different reasons. I actually made them do some work and I guess they didn't like it. I have always been very anal about maintenance so I know that's not the issue. It could just be a luck thing as well.

Either way, I am happy with the truck and plan on keeping it for a long time, as long as the transmission will hold up. What is the use of buying such an expensive vehicle if it's not going to hold up under certain driving conditions? I tow a lot, and I drive through a lot of stop and go traffic with and without the trailer. It's not like I can find a special road for Dodge trucks with 47RE transmissions that have no traffic on them. I know you're playing devils advocate here and I appreciate that fact. My opinion though is different in that I believe the truck should stand up and work as advertised.

 

[fessup]

I'm a new member but have owned a few dodge trucks with auto trans problems. 94 2500, 318 gaser with auto, blew the trany with about 50k miles used for some
towing (2 horse trailer max) some grain and hay hauling, I would call it light duty. truck #2 97 2500, 360 gaser, same uses as above 44K miles blew trany. 99
3500 with cummins, blew that trany at 24K miles, now this truck is used for hauling roofing materials and trailers up to 15K lbs daily. Maual trans not an option with
40K miles of city driving a year and non -stop cell phone use (3K min per months. Opps and almost forgot used for snow plowing quite a bit. All maintiance is
preformed by the dealer at or before recomended milage. Not a big fan of the auto but I like the dodge and the cummins. Next time the trans goes I will contact bill
for some expert help, but for now I will drive it until it blows again.

P. S. just purchased a 3 gauge kit so I will be able to see what the trans temp is doing.

Love this site!!!
Ian Fess

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99 3500 SLT Quad cab, Auto, 8. 5' Western Plow, stainless running boards, stock for now, Work truck with ladder rack and boxes