My wife's truck seems to have a problem I have experienced before. An A500 is basically a 904 with an overdrive bolted on the back, so it doesn't surprise me. But the transmission shifts oddly. Engagement is fine, and 1-2 is fairly solid, but it jumps right into third after the 1-2 shift regardless of throttle input. The only way to keep it in 2nd is to hold it with the shifter. Then as soon as you put it back into D, it bangs right into 3rd. I used to have a 1984 Diplomat with the 318 and a 904 that did the same thing, you get up to 13-14mph it'd shift into 2nd and then immediately drop into 3rd about 16-17mph. What does it mean?

Also wonder if some bits interchange with other Dodge products. Tail lights look similar to 96-00 Caravan ones and have one less backup lens than a 97-04 Dakota piece. Front seats look interchangeable between Durango and Dakota. Also they redesigned the dash in 2001, do the ashtray and glovebox still fit the 98-00 dashes?

 

Sounds like you need to have the bands adjusted.. most people don't know that they should be adjusted every time the transmission fluid is changed.

Here is an overview
http://www.dodgeram.org/tech/transmi...T_band_adj.htm

 

^ Thanks for the link ^

I know that it can be adjusted to stay in 2nd gear longer as I had mine done. The thing here is that the trans ins't the same one but it still can be done assuming it is out of a 5.2L. The 4.7L is non adjustable.

 

No prob, I stumbled upon that link several months ago and thought it would be a useful one to help out with. The site has other great info on it as well.

 

I through that in the DIY by the way!

 

I just wanted to update this thread since no one ever does that. The problem was not fluid or bands. Everything was in spec there. The problem was when the mechanic installed the '99 motor, he never hooked up the cable running to the transmission. We drove it like that for 18,000 miles with $1300 in the bank waiting on the transmission to fail. Then while changing spark plugs at 190K, I noticed the cable hanging off a stud on the firewall. Hooked it up and no more problem. In fact it shifts a little late from 1-2 now (around 18-20mph) and normal from 2-3 (25-28mph). Awesome. Kickdown on the highway is now possible without hitting the OD button.

Another note, we hadn't added any transmission fluid since the original engine change. When our mechanic changed the radiator, he never topped it off. So we had to add about a quart to cover what was in the cooler. When he changed the water pump, he didn't top off the transmission again. I forgot to check it because I was so excited about fixing the cable I didn't check the fluid level. Then recently the radiator had to be changed again. It took 2 quarts to get the transmission full. There are no leaks. Everything is dry under the truck. Not even an oil leak. I'm pretty sure it's pulling the radiator those 3 times that caused the loss of fluid.

That's it for now. From all I can tell this *IS* the original transmission to the truck. There is no indication that it is a replacement, no chalk/pencil markings, no nothing. So I can only assume it is original and getting 204K out of a transmission is pretty good for these, right?

 

204k is not bad at all out of the origional trans, on a 5.2/5.9 its impressive especially if you tow/neglect the trans

 

If the mechanic forgot to do the simplest things like topping off fluids, I'd think about looking for a better mechanic!

 

i agree with dan if he forgot to top off fluids, i would wonder what else he forgot (maybe nothing yet, but do you really want to trust him in the future??)