Hi there.
I think i have a big issue with my transmission. Especially with my kickdownband. I bougt my van 3 month ago. Since then, i repaired and checked a lot of parts. Today i wanted to adjust my bands. But when i tourque the bolt, it did not stop. I can screw it with my fingers until it is gone. SO i think the band is not okay any more. Right? My question is, can i fix this problem without completely tear down the whole transmission?
Thanks and sorry if there some mistakes.

 

its quite possible that the anchor fell out and is laying in the pan, however, I did read somewere that it is possible to replace the band without a complete teardown, but, you will have to cut the old one out, it wont just slide out, there is a replacement band designed to slide in though, I just cant remember who made it ..

 

I drop the valve body a bit so i could see that the anchor and the bigger strut are still in place and when i screw the bolt in, the anchor pushes the band forward. I'm a bit confused why everything seems to be in place, but there ist no resistance when i screw it in.

 

I tear down the valve body and find the problem. SOmething is broken. It is not the band. I dont know the name of this thing, so i will describe it and hope you guys understand what i mean.
There is the little strut and the big one. The big one is holding the band and on the other side the metal part which taps onto the spring. And this Metal part is broken. Now i see that it is only hold by a short metalpin.
Now my question is, could i remove the backplate of the tranny, so i can pull out this pin or do i really have to tear down the whole tranny? Please no

 

Yes you do...sorry.

 

Thanks for your honesty. Because its sometimes very hard to get parts for u.s. cars in Germany, i have to wait threee weeks until i can hit the road again. Tomorrow i get my car back from my mechanic. 700€ just for this little piece of metal. Anyway. Thanks for your help. Hope i can count on you when i have the next problems

 

I had a problem with my transmission not long ago. Was not shifting from 2nd to 3rd on medium to hard acceleration unless i backed off on the pedal. Also while passing or on an incline it would kick down to 2nd gear at 65-70mph.

This is the thread...

https://dodgeforum.com/forum/dodge-r...on-issues.html

I had read about adjusting the front band /kick down too so gave it a try, on my first attempt to tighten the adjuster screw it went almost in the transmission like you described, I stopped thinking that this went too far so backed it out and tried again but was my torque wrench not clicking once it got to the correct setting.
Replaced my torque wrench and adjusted it according to the instructions but the problems became worse and couldn't get past 2nd gear at all.

Took it to a tranny guy here in town and what he found was the shifting problem was because the governor pressure sensor and switch were bad and also the wire harness had chaffing causing bad electrical connection. Afterward he did tell me I did ok adjusting the front band to spec so needed no other adjustment

All that said, what I'm getting at is the question, why are you trying to adjust the kick down? If your van is shifting funny and hanging in gear too long or shifting down too easy you may be getting a sign that a sensor is failing...

You never described what the original symptoms you are having for someone to give advise for.

 

There are numerous things that may have gone wrong here. Its difficult to advise you without more information as to the issue you were originally attempting to fix.

From what information you have given it does sound like the nut that is on that backside of your front band adjuster screw might have fallen off inside the transmission, and yes, that might require a teardown to find and re-install it. But that does not mean the entire transmission is bad.

On the 42RE - 46RE transmission there is a kickdown cable adjustment, a front band adjustment, and a rear band adjustment. Each has a specific setting and should only be changed if you have a specific issue you are trying to fix. The front and rear band adjustments require an inch pound torque wrench which most people reading this probably don't have in their toolbox. For reference, the correct setting is 8 N-m ( 72 inch pounds), then back off (unscrew) 2 and 7/8 turns for the front, or 2 turns for the rear. You then tighten the locknut.

If you remove the pan and find a flat nut lying there in it ( from the front band screw) it may be able to be reinstalled, but as has been stated, it could require a complete teardown to allow access. If you can provide more information I can provide you with more detailed information.

In my experience and from my investigations the most common problem with this transmission is usually due to overheating or failure to change the fluid causes it to get "gummed up", and the shift solenoid and shift governor pressure sensor subsequently burn out and require replacement. Its only about $100 for both parts plus about $10 for a cheap pan gasket (or $35 for the nice reusable Mopar gasket). The pan frequently warps resulting in leaks later on so IMO its a good idea to replace the pan with a better one when doing this maintenance. Dorman 265-827 is very nice and comes equipped with a drain plug.

 

Hey guys. First time Dodge owner here. I was gonna post a new thread, but I dont see how and this one is close to my situation. I bought my 97 Ram 4x4 with the 46RE about 3 weeks ago. I believe it's the 46RE anyway. On the way home, it stopped shifting into 2nd gear. The trans pulls strong and does not slip. It was stuck in first gear and would shift into either 3rd or OD at about 50 mph and 5,100 rpm after releasing the thottle. Research and posts from here led me to attempt to adjust the front band, When the adjuster screw turned all the way into the trans case, I relalized my issues were a little deeper than an adjustment. After reading post after post, I came to a conclusion that I needed to drop the valve body on my trans. I found the front band strut and anchor laying on top of the valve body. I inspected the front band and it is wore out. My question is what kind of band am I looking for that will allow me to replace the old one without tearing down the trans. The front drum is clean and shows no signs of scratching nor scoring from the bad band. It just wore enough to drop the anchor and strut. I know I'll have to cut the old band to remove it, but cant find a slip, flex, nor snap band to assist with easy replacement. Any help would be awesome.