Living with Smarty Jr. and auto

[Prairie Dog]

So a buddy of mine is interested in putting a SmJr. on his mint 06 DC auto with 22K on it and want's to know if the trans will hold up to the 30 or even the 70 hp setting. The truck is otherwise totally stock, even the tires.



What things should he know to avoid to make the transmission live or should he forget it altogether?



What about towing?



Thanks in advance!



Scotty

 

[cerberusiam]

The 70 HP setting, a lot less lifetime than 30 HP for sure. The reuction in TQ management is going to go right to the weak spot in the transmission. Towing will just accentuate the weak areas.



Along with the Smarty I would advise a shift kit, billet band strut and anchor, billet fornt servo. All that can be installed without dropping the transmission.



The line and apply pressures need to come up in the trans to make it last. Crank them too much and other things can break, chiefly the front band.

 

[RankRam]

Scotty,



It depends on the loose nut behind the wheel, If he drive's his truck in a sane fashion, the 70 setting won't hurt the truck. I put 25,000 on my 06 and most of those miles were with the Smarty set at level seven. I always rolled into the throttle slowly and towed heavy on level three. When I finally had enough cash to have Reb at Brown's Diesel build the trans right, the stock clutches looked pretty darn good!



Either I was really lucky or the 48RE is more stout than we think..... I think it has more to do with treating the trans with some respect and not hammering the throttle on the low end of the rpm range.



Long story short... ... Go easy on the throttle when not up to speed and when you are towing, don't lug the engine... ... The mighty Cummins has enough torque to tear up any trans if you don't treat it right.



Disclaimer: Been drinking all day, hope this post makes sense!

 

[NavyDood]

It depends on the loose nut behind the wheel.

So very true.

Everyone's driving style (aka common sense when towing) and vehicle will vary. For me, I know my 04 305hp/555tq truck and my driving style. I run my smarty Jr. on the 70hp tune all of the time unless I tow somewhat heavy (8000+ lbs) or heavy (21K combined). When I tow heavy I revert back to the 40HP tune. The Smarty Jr is very engine friendly and the safest of any tuner on the market IMO. I have been using my Smarty Jr. for over four years and 100,000 miles on the 70hp tune. I don't race stop light to stop light and don't mash the go pedal from a dead stop, I roll into it. My transmission still operates like the day I bought the truck in 05 and my truck has 185,500 miles on it. The Smarty Jr. does NOT raise rail pressure which eliminates any concern for injector issues. Last August I towed my 5vr from MD to TX going the northern route thru PA, IN, IL, MO, AR and TX. My combined weight was 21K. I had the 40hp tune installed and the A/C was on the whole trip. The outside ambient temps reached as high as 106°F when I was going through AR and TX and my transmission temp never went over 160°F with the cruise set at 65mph and OD on. One last note… the 40hp tune drops my EGT's by 150°F easily when towing my 5vr.

 

[blacksheepdiesel]

My '06 is a two owner truck, me being the 2nd obviously. The trans has been serviced but never worked on. It now has about 580,000 miles of which the first 533,000 were spent hauling oilfield equipment and has had a Smarty Jr for a long time. I swapped out for the Smarty set on SW3 and now deliver campers all over the country. The trans still feels strong and has never disappointed me. I agree totally with what RankRam posted about rolling slowly into the throttle.

Godspeed,
Trent

 

[Prairie Dog]

Great info everybody. I don't think he'll go for it if he had to do any trans upgrade . At least he doesn't tow anything now.

I keep trying to get him to let me loan him my Smarty. He'd be hooked but he might also be PO's at me if he killed his transmission later.

I'm not sure how sane he drives now. . Not too bad I think, he hates fixing stuff (30+ years mechanic). I've known him since we were both 5 yo. We've raced everything from wagons to bikes to MC's, cars. If I were to spank his ars at a light sometime, that would cinch it! #ad