Engine/Transmission (1998.5 - 2002) NV 5600 near miss

[Heavy Metal]

After having read some threads on the subject of trans. oil changes, for my next change, I deciced to pull the cover off of my transmission and remove & clean the magnet rather than my normal method of removing just the bottom bolt . Friday I drained it and pulled the cover off. I stuck my hand in to find the magnet, but instead pulled out a handfull of twisted pieces of metal-fragmented bearing race I think. I cleaned out what I could reach, put it back together and filled it back up with Rotella (transmission shop is only 4 miles from my house and I didn't want to put that high dollar Mopar lube in it just to have it dumped back out on the shop floor). I have to go to San Antonio this afternoon and feel fortunate to have found out about this Friday at home rather than this afternoon somewhere on the side of I-10. Funny thing is, a guy at one of the local diesel shops told me just a few days ago, after I asked his opinion on a modification I am considering, not to pay attetion to half of what the TDR guys say because most them don't have anything better to do than work on their trucks all weekend and get way too carried away. Glad I didn't listen-it saved me alot of money and roadside #@$%! . Hopefully my truck will be out of the shop by tomorrow.



Bryan

 

[MCummings]

San Antonio eh?

TDR Member charlan lives in San Antone.



What kind of mod are you thinking of doing next?



Bearing race in the 6-speed, eh? hmm, Guess I should check mine out.



Merrick Cummings Jr

 

[Mundgyver]

Did you notice anything out of the ordinary with the shifting

 

[scotty1]

Be Careful

My 6 spd was full of crud and first thing DC told the dealer was "Check the fluid".

I had the stock lube in.

Mine came apart with less then 60K on it.

Dealer stated that there was some bad gear sets.

The bearings in the 6 spd are smaller then the five speed but the gears are much bigger/heavier.



Dunno if yer lookin for warranty... just a heads up about the lube.

 

[Heavy Metal]

I got my truck back yesterday afternoon. Went by in the morning to check on it while it was apart. Man, that thing's a brickhouse! Anyway, it had to be completely dismantled-everything else is in great shape. Appearantly just a defective bearing. There were no warning signs whatsoever. It's always shifted slicker'n greased owl poop and was no different on the way to the shop even knowing that I had a bearing coming apart. I was just very lucky that I discovered it while changing my fluid.

 

[jlhartak]

Maintenance is the key! To me the words "lubed for life" means it may be a short life! My son told me his (dare I say it) Ford felt like the driveshaft was grabbing or binding. When I pulled the shaft the u-joint caps fell off and rust and groundup needle bearings fell out. A little time in your garage under the truck changing lubes and looking things over sure beats laying in the dirt along the highway, tow bills in the remote parts of Canada and Alaska can go into the hundreds of dollars.

 

[Pit Bull]

I understand they did some internal upgrades to the 6 speed, beginning with the 2002 model year trucks.

 

[jwinnie]

Bryan,



If you don't mind me asking, How much did they get you for the rebuild?

Mine has been making a noise for a while but for what the local transmission shop quoted me ($2800) I could just buy a new one!

Does this price sound right?



Thanks,



John

 

[MCummings]

Might want to check BluMenthals... www.blumenthalsmfg.com



They have cpmlete 5 to 6 speed conversion kits for $2,800.



You should be able to get a rebuilt one for $2,200-$2,500 + Shipping (~$100)



Hope this helps.



Merrick Cummings Jr

 

[Heavy Metal]

jwinnie

... ... it cost me $649. 00. Very lobor intensive. The internals are very heavy-it took two people to load the gears. 10. 5 hours labor. I had this done at a transmission specialty shop & they charged me actual time not book time as the dealer would have. Their labor rates are better than dealer also. Plus they gave me all parts at cost-the owner, luckily, happens to be a friend of mine. Dealer would have been much more expensive. If you are out of warranty I recommend you shop it around at reputable independent shops. Complete disassembly/reassembly of any transmission, especially the NV5600, is by no means a quick and easy job and labor ain't cheap.

 

[Heavy Metal]

BTW

This was not a complete overhaul. They just replaced the bad bearing, seals, and assorted pins and retainers. Everything else was in excellent condition and I had a hard enough time coughing up that cost-couldn't bring myself to spend anymore. This guy is a former employee of the dealership and is DC factory trained. They do all of the overflow work for the dealership. Says this is the first time they've had to go into a six speed but have seen many five speeds with 5th gear problems and automatics with a wide range of problems. Not trying to start a transmission war-just repeating what someone that works on these trucks all the time told me. In short, barring any defective parts, such as my bearing, the six speed, according to all that I have read and been told, is the most trouble-free gearbox offered for the CTD Dodge trucks.

 

[jwinnie]

Thanks for the info, It sounds like you got a great deal. I think the local transmission shop was just being safe by giving me the "worst case" estimate. They told me $500 just to disassemble it to inspect. Sounds like you were right about it being labor intensive . I'm wondering if I'm making a big deal out of this as it just sounds like something loose while decelerating/accelerating at low rpms. The noise started at about 20,000 and has slowly been getting louder ever since. I've changed the fluid twice, cleaned off the magnet and found nothing unusual. Not sure what to do as I have a 3000 mile trip coming up in June.

Thanks for any opinions,



John

 

[Pit Bull]

John, I guess your out of warranty? Sorry if that seems like a dumb question. I know some 2001's had a 100K mile drivetrain warranty???

 

[jwinnie]

3yr/36K on mine



I am my own warranty station!!



John

 

[Pit Bull]

I lived in Marietta back in 1985 off the 120 loop. My house was on Rockcrest back by the private Christian school. Real pretty area.

 

[Heavy Metal]

John,

If you have a noise, I would definately have it checked out. Like I said before, I had no external signs that something was wrong-no shifting problems, noises, nothing. I know that's alot of money to have something checked out, believe me, it was hard for me to spend what I did just to change one bearing. Just to try in put it into perspective, let me say this: a $650 transmission repair bill at 101,000 miles is nothing compared to what I have spent on trackbars, balljoints, and intermidiate shafts In other words, like the old saying goes: "better safe than sorry". If I were going on a 3000 mile trip, I'd rather know for sure that I'm safe than wondering if I'll be sorry.



Bryan



1998 KTM 300SX-MXC conversion-250SX flywheel, FMF Gold Series moto pipe & powercore2 silencer, revalved suspension. REAL dirt bikes don't have valves!:-laf :-laf

 

[Texas Diesel]

Originally posted by Pit Bull

I understand they did some internal upgrades to the 6 speed, beginning with the 2002 model year trucks.

I was told the opposite, they are still exactly the same as introduced in 99 ( or whenever )

 

[jwinnie]

In late '99 they went with a lager input shaft and clutch but those are the only upgrades I know of. I got a list of different transmission shops in my area hoping to get a deal like Heavy Metal did. I'm kicking myself now I just had the transmission out a couple weeks ago for my SBC install. Oh well, live and learn, I'll keep you guys updated.



John



Bryan, I gave up those smelly bikes when I bought the DRZ (got tired of changing rear tires once a month ) now the only time I smell 2stroke is right before I pass one:-laf

I am impressed with the KTM 380 though, that thing is a hoss!!

 

[Big_Daddy_T]

The transmission man told me. Any noise, other than normal, coming from a transmission is catastophic. I wouldnt drive it till it was looked at.