Current rebuild cost for 47re

[Crunch]

I was getting ready to leave town for Christmas, but put it off for a few days because of the extreme cold. I was out running errands on Friday and noticed the transmission was revving higher before shifting. Once I was at highway speeds everything seemed normal. Later that day I was running a short errand and the transmission didn't want to shift out of first. So for a 20 year old truck with almost 400K miles on it I'm thinking that no matter what the specific problem is, a rebuild is in order. I have a shop in mind, but would like to know what kind of price to expect. It's a May build '03, automatic/47re. Glad I didn't get on the road and have this happen, especially out of state and hundreds of miles from home base.

Thanks.

 

[sag2]

It really depends on the shop that is doing the rebuild. If there are no damaged hard parts it should just need clutches, seals and maybe some bushings. The valve body is more than likely worn out so that would be a replacement item that can be fairly expensive. The converters are not inexpensive either, OEM reman is $1600 and there are still a few in dealer inventory. OEM master rebuild kit is $500 and still a few dealers that stock them. If you are stock there is no need for a bunch of upgraded parts, after all it lasted 400k on OEM parts. I don't see how you can get away for under $4k with a quality shop doing it. Compared to $70k for a new truck, all in all probably not a bad investment if the rest of the truck is sound.

 

[Crunch]

It really depends on the shop that is doing the rebuild. If there are no damaged hard parts it should just need clutches, seals and maybe some bushings. The valve body is more than likely worn out so that would be a replacement item that can be fairly expensive. The converters are not inexpensive either, OEM reman is $1600 and there are still a few in dealer inventory. OEM master rebuild kit is $500 and still a few dealers that stock them. If you are stock there is no need for a bunch of upgraded parts, after all it lasted 400k on OEM parts. I don't see how you can get away for under $4k with a quality shop doing it. Compared to $70k for a new truck, all in all probably not a bad investment if the rest of the truck is sound.

$4K is about what I figured, but was seeing prices at low as $1500. The transmission still works, it just doesn't want to shift out of 1st so I'm hoping the main problem is just a clog. But with 400K on the truck I have to be prepared for anything. But God is certainly looking out for me, as this is twice this year I've had problems that didn't leave me dead in the water a long way from home. I was just getting to leave town for Christmas, and it would have really sucked to have this happen hundreds of miles from home with the cards stacked against me. I'm also a big fan of OEM parts most of the time, and this transmission has really earned its keep. I've always tried to be kind to it, but with some loads I couldn't help feeling like there were times I beat it like a rented mule...

 

[Killer223]

will it manually shift out of 1st?

 

[Mark31]

Consider a lower stall converter. Made my ride feel like a gazelle instead of a sow in the mud.

 

[Crunch]

will it manually shift out of 1st?

No, I've tried that, along with engaging/disengaging the overdrive. I was about 10 miles from home and noticed the RPMs spiking when taking off from a stop. But it was still shifting and when I was on the Interstate everything was fine. Got home, and a couple of hours later is when it wouldn't shift out of first. That's when I tried manually shifting and engaging/disengaging the overdrive. Haven't tried driving it since Saturday because of the extreme cold, but it's getting back to normal now so this afternoon I might see if that helps.

Consider a lower stall converter. Made my ride feel like a gazelle instead of a sow in the mud.

I've never had any complaints about how the transmission has functioned since I bought the truck. My preference would be to go with OEM parts if they are available, but if not then I'll have to consider other options.

 

[sag2]

A $1,500 overhaul is certainly possible if it just needs clutches and seals. But it needs a converter and possibly the valve body unless you can repair any worn parts with Sonnax parts.

 

[Ozymandias]

Can be as simple as a 20$ output shaft RPM sensor. If that is gone it shifts by speed which means almost full throttle needed.

Proper diagnosis please before tearing the trans apart. Don't fix what isn't broken.

 

[Crunch]

A $1,500 overhaul is certainly possible if it just needs clutches and seals. But it needs a converter and possibly the valve body unless you can repair any worn parts with Sonnax parts.

Yeah, I would consider $1500 a sweet price. I'm working on getting it into the shop now, but the Christmas holiday has really scrambled normal operations for who is open, in town, etc. At least the weather is good here in Texas...

Can be as simple as a 20$ output shaft RPM sensor. If that is gone it shifts by speed which means almost full throttle needed.

That would be an even sweeter price. I have a friend who was having transmission problem with his 3rd Gen, and took it to a dealer. They practically rebuilt his transmission over several visits before "discovering" that is was a sensor that had malfunctioned when it got transmission fluid on it. I'll definitely check the sensor first.

 

[bcbender]

Not sure if its relevant here, but some of the aftermarket oil filters of the 545RFEs and 68RFE have been known to split under a certain conditions and cold operation where a pressure spike in the suction splits the filter allowing it to suck air (Ram added a rubber check valve). As Ozzy said, rule out the easy things before going into a R&R.

 

[253]

I got my 422,000 mile ,48 RE completely rebuilt with better upgraded parts at a very good reputable shop near me for $3,000, it wasn't broken when I decided it overhaul it, just did it for preventive maintenance., just sayin.

 

[Crunch]

Have an update, and also a correction. I just noticed that in the title and first post of this thread I referred to my transmission as a "47re". Don't know why I didn't notice that before, but it should be "48re". As for the update, I didn't get my truck into the shop until Tuesday, primarily because I was planning for the possibility of a rebuild and would need to rent a car while that was taking place. Because of the Southwest Airlines nonsense the entire rental car business was turned upside down. On Wednesday I got a call from the transmission shop that the problem with with the sensors (shout out to @Ozymandias for seeing that possibility!), and it is now fixed. Also had the transmission serviced since that interval was due anyway. Price is $625, but I'm not complaining since I was already prepared for the worst. I'll know more when I see the itemized ticket. Picking it up Thursday.

There is also an interesting side note to how I decided to take my truck to this particular transmission repair shop. I called three shops. The first has done work on my truck before and I like their work. They could look at it, but if it needed a rebuild they farm out the work to another shop. That didn't sit well with me. The second shop was, shall we say a national chain that shall remain nameless even though we all know who I am talking about. I figured they have the benefit of size and experience. Problem with them was that the guy on the phone sounded disinterested, like he heard transmission stories all day long and this was just one more. I also figure that they probably churn through 10-15 technicians a year and it would pretty much be fast food transmission repair. The third shop was a guy who had been in business for more than 10 years, sounded interested and asked all the right questions and had good reviews. I also concluded that this is his livelihood, depends on satisfied customers to support his family and is more likely to have technicians who stick around. His rebuild price was also cheaper than the others. Did I choose wisely? Time will tell. I'll drive the truck locally for a while to see if any bugs pop up before I get too comfortable. Growing up, transmissions were what I knew least about when it came to auto repair. Now that they are so different from those days I know even less. And with all the electronics involved it's all the more complicated.

 

[Crunch]

Got the truck back Thursday afternoon and it shifts like it should and the transmission seems strong. The shop owner replaced the sensors and solenoids, saying that the solenoids were sludged up pretty bad. They didn't have to drop the transmission, so there was no deep dive to look inside. I'll put it through its paces on short drives around town for a while before I take it on any long trips. I was about to leave town when this happened, and that would have been a major disaster to have a transmission go out when I am in a different state. "What? You're from Texas? It's going to cost you $12,000 to get this fixed..."

 

[Rowdy Dalton]

I was getting ready to leave town for Christmas, but put it off for a few days because of the extreme cold. I was out running errands on Friday and noticed the transmission was revving higher before shifting. Once I was at highway speeds everything seemed normal. Later that day I was running a short errand and the transmission didn't want to shift out of first. So for a 20 year old truck with almost 400K miles on it I'm thinking that no matter what the specific problem is, a rebuild is in order. I have a shop in mind, but would like to know what kind of price to expect. It's a May build '03, automatic/47re. Glad I didn't get on the road and have this happen, especially out of state and hundreds of miles from home base.

Thanks.

FYI, my transmission was having similar issues, about 5 years ago. I decided to have a BG transmission flush. Nothing. This reputable shop said the transmission needed rebuilding, but they just swapped trannys that were rebuilt, ~$4,000. I took it to several other shops, their experts looked at it, drove it, and all concluded it needed rebuilding for around the same price. Each was a swap or rebuild. I then remembered about the "Front Band Adjustment". I read up on it, watched a couple of videos, and decided it was worth a shot. Literally 10 minutes later, after crawling under the truck, I gave it a drive. It now pulled and shifted like a " Scalded Ape". The transmission was slowly going downhill, for so many years, it wasn't real noticeable. Five years later, and I'm having zero issues. It pulls strong, shifts strong, and no issues.
There are plenty of videos out there.



.