Transmission problem question

[rlittle]

Has anyone run into the problem I have been encountering of late with my transmission. (96 with auto and about 70K miles completely Stock except gages)

Truck has been running fine but of Late with the outside temps climbing here in Phoenix the Transmission occasionally will act like it is slipping. transmission Oil temp climbs rapidly to over 200 when it happens the truck drops out of OD and the engine speed goes up but with no real power increase as was the case in the past with only my 200 but in it.

When I pull my trailer (6000 pounds) it does it a lot even when it is not in OD. When the Transmission Temp goes below about 200 all appears to return to normal. A little unnerving when you are trying to pull the trailer up a hill and all of a sudden the engine speed goes up and up it shifts down but it feels like the some one threw out the anchor. Get to the top of the hill or pull over and let the transmission cool and all is well again.

I understand that the transmission should go out of OD at some temp setting but you should not lose power.

Oil in transmission was changed it was brown but not to bad and I still have the problem. . transmission rebuild time??? Also is there any way of picking the transmission temp off of the computer to see what is going on.

Thanks

Rollie

 

[rhoads]

temp

I don't have a auto,but my brother -in -law" Did"!

I told him when he got it to put on a add on cooler before he ever hooked to his first load!! I don't know what temp it will kick out ,but to get and Auto to live longer you want to keep them at 170 deg. . . That was told to me by a shop guy that used to work for Jayco mfg and they had a fleet of 100 P/u's Delv campers daily cross country. There fleet was 99. 9 % Dodge.

By your milage my in-law was thru his d/c warranty transmission,2-

installed a BD torq. conv'er,then re-placed under warr" and told no more warranty,then he installed as i remember a Red line cooler w/2 cooling fan's ,he mounted it under the bed and then started to get better result's but still some slippage. But he could maintain 170 Deg under load a t 98 out side temp.

Then when he was in for further compaints the shop disconnected the factory" camper special " cooler and the results were like you were running down the road and lost your towed vehicle. Felt free. The factory unit caused a restriction.

Dont remember what converter he went to after the 2nd BD failed. The transmission shop told him when the converter gets hot the fins flap like a flag in the wind which cause's them to fail.

With what you describe Id at least install the cooler ,It has two fans with sensorsin line to engage,they also installed an over ride switch in the dash.

If your running empty up the hill you would think you would be able to maintain under the kick out temp setting,even if the a/c is engaged!

 

[ATSDiesel]

rlittle,



I saw your post and your questions. Clint and I just got back from Munice Tunder Days.

He went (almost directly) to bed. So... I will bring these ( your)questions, concerns, and post's to his attention in the am.



We would love to help you, if it is welcome, by you , ofcourse. Give me until Monday. Enjoy the rest of your weekend... ... !!!



Ranee and (sleep'ing Clinto--) ATS-Diesel Performance / Transmissions and Torque Converters

 

[Heetseeker_1]

dig up a coffee can

It's toast. Bust out the savings and get it rebuilt before you damage any hard parts.



Sorry, but 70k with a truck that tows is pretty good. Mine started slipping at 38k with mild upgrades. The TC was baked.



Steve.

 

[Extreme1]

It sounds like the trans is downshifting a little prematurely. The throwing-out-the-anchor feeling is caused by not have the TC locked up anymore.



It could be that your TPS voltage is outside target range or that the kickdown cable (if a '96 has one) is out of adjustment.



Do a couple searches and you'll find good instructions on adjusting both.



Also, where is your temp sensor for the trans?

 

[rlittle]

Transmission Problem question.

Thanks for the information, my temp probe is in the transmission pan I forgot to say that and that I have a big pan on this thing with three extra quarts of fluid in it.

What confuses the heck out of me is that when the transmission is below about 200 degrees the transmission works fine. Talked to the dealer and they just gave me the run around as there transmission guy can not get the truck to do it because he is not towing anything and just drives it around the block after it has sat for a couple of hours. He just hooks his little computer up to it and says there is nothing wrong.

There is only about two weeks left on the warrentee and I am not sure if dealer is just trying to stall until the warrentee is up. I do not want (afford) to do an overhaul if I do not have to right now so any one with any experience like this would be appreciated.

Does anyone know if the computer keeps track of the temp in the transmission in degrees or if it just kick the truck out of OD when the temp goes to high? Also can the dealer transmission guy check to see if there is a slipping problem or overheat problem with his little computer.

Thanks

Rollie

 

[Heetseeker_1]

Slipping = overheating

If it "slips, it can't hold therefore it heats up.



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I do not want (afford) to do an overhaul if I do not have to right now so any one with any experience like this would be appreciated.

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It happened to me... very similar if not exactly like you are experiencing, sorry.





If you are going to get it fixed under warranty, you might have to get tough with the dealership. I would call them and tell them to have a mechanic standing by so you can pick him up and show him what it's doing. Don't take 'NO' for an answer!



Good luck



Steve.

 

[Dan_69GTX]

Yes, I like that idea - go there with the trailer and "force" them to go along with you.



When I lived in Glendale I bought a car from "Larry Miller" - boy did I get screwed on service and the car (found out part was repainted and they already started the warranty before I bought the car - yes - I bought it as a new car). So hopefully you don't have to deal with them. One time a bolt was missing from the rear - causing a knocking sound. Their "mechanic" couldn't find it - so I had them put it back on the lift and showed them where the bolt was missing.

 

[fortunate1]

Bring a Big Stick for enhanced persuasion

If you've got warranty left, USE IT!!! Claiming on a warranty one day before it expires is as VALID as a one-day-late claim is invalid. You've got to show up with a trailer and drive with it (and their best mechanic) until you reach the conditions that concern you. And don't let the dealer bully you; you paid good money for the truck and the warranty. Brown ATF is cooked ATF: too hot.

tdramrmbr makes a very good point. ATF has got to be kept clean & COOL for it to last very long. And if it doesn't last very long it's not going to protect your transmission very long. Using a deep pan will help, and I've had great results from the addition of extra coolers in the line. One has a fan for air flow during stop-and-go situations. Good Luck!

 

[shendren]

just had a similar jumping of my rpm - i suspect it was going in and out of lock up. probably electrical. is your trans temp sensor integrated with the gov. press sensor inside the pan? is it in the line? mine was inside the pan. i replaced mine (easy- but messy) and the truck runs fine so far. be sure that your tps is functioning properly. make sure that your throttle return springs are intact (thanks rammin).



good luck. scott.

 

[rhoads]

Tran's fluid

IF--you want to get more life out of your auto add a nother cooler tommorow. . These veh's do not have enough even with the HD factory upgrade.

It is't just Dodge-which i hate to say it is the weak's of the lot. .

next is the ford,then the chev,which is given more life due th the low towing power.

Put a temp gauge in any auto -hook to a trailer and back into a parking slot up a slite incline and watch what happens to the temp guage!!!! Killer heat... ... .

If your are over 60-go camping & live in the flat lands,keep speeds around 55 mph say 12 times a year you mostlikely will not see a early failure.

Improve the mouse trap of suffer the cost... Sorry

 

[Extreme1]

I revise my earlier suggestion

It sounds like it's heating up enough to force downshift. It is supposed to do that but there is (I think) something wrong to cause the overheat in the first place.



If the fluid was brown and stinky, I'm guessing there are problems from slippage of the torque converter (TC) clutch or one or more of the clutch packs in the trans.



I'm not a trans expert but I'd call one, Dave Goerend is knowlegable and helpful (link in my profile). I'd want to ask someone knowledgable whether the trans should be rebuilt or not, I'm thinking yes.



A couple questions:



1) Who did the trans service?



2) How often was the trans serviced?



3) Did the service make any change in when it overheats and downshifts?



4) How does the fluid look now?



Taking the trailer to the dealer and taking the mechanic for a test ride when it's hot is a good option at this point.



If it needs rebuilding, I'd fight to get it done under warrantee. If that dealer won't help, find one that will but don't tell them you are going to, they might put a flag on your vin.



If you don't get it done under warrantee, don't get stock stuff put back in. Been there, done that.



The power loss and dragging the anchor feeling is from the governor in the fuel pump defueling at higher RPM's. A 3000 RPM Governor Spring Kit from Piers will make the stock engine & trans combo work a lot better when towing. It will allow the engine to pull hard to a higher RPM.



Let us know how you make out.