In all the tech manuals I have browsed,it never says to do the band adjustment with a warmed up transmission or a cold non-driven for 8 hrs one.Anyone care to share whether that makes a difference in the transmission band adjusting procedure?I'm leaning toward adjusting the bands when the tranny is cold to get better "tolerance values"in the band adjustment especially in older ones with higher miles and then warming the transmission up to get proper fluid level.I have a 44re tranny and I have found specs from 2 7/8 back off to 1 7/8 back off turns after 72 in" torqueing for front and 2 to 4 turn back offs after torgueing to 72" on rear bands in different blogs and manuals.Recently I did a front band to the 2 7/8 back off and the 2nd to 3rd is shifting at about 1800 to 2000 rpm at light throttle this week I'm goinna drop the pan to do the rear band ande flush the tranny through the cooler lines with 4 gallons oif atf+4 to make sure the fluid is correct-weather permitting.My truck does have alot of miles and I don't know whether the tranny was ever replaced etc.It shifted AT 2200 TO 2600+ 2nd to 3rd before adj on cold days and 1st to 2nd has been at about 1800 to 2000rpms 3rd to 4th is about the same...I posted this thread to see what others have observed or done and I know that most trannys need rebuilding after asbout 70 to 100ths miles etc, but band adjusting seems to be vague on these transmissions.All insights and opinions are thanked in advanced.

 

Need some spaces in your book.

Bands do not need to be adjusted on a warned up transmission. Also, drop the pan, swap the filter with a new Mopar one and then button it back up. Refill with ATF+4 and you are done. I would recommend against any flushing from there. On the next service, repeat and any old fluid from the lines will be gone at that time too. Again, never flush through the lines and/or cooler.

IndyDurango

 

The flush through the transmission lines is for the fact I don't know if the fluid now in it is actually atf+4. >space< And the band adjustment from different sources say 1 7/8 to a 2 7/8 turns backoff and 2 turns to 4 turns backoff for the rear band. >space<
Like I said the trasmission has quite abit of miles on it and I don't have the cash to rebuild it at the moment so correctly adjusting it seems to a good idea. Ty for the input.

 

OEM fluid is AFT+3 so after you band adjust it and replace the filter (OEM) then before you install the pan install a drain plug:
http://performanceparts.com/part.php?partID=4692


Then you can drain the pan just like an oil change. You can also install a deep well pan with one of these drain plugs on it. This will flush out the system.

As for band adjustments, the service manual says;

FRONT BAND

The front (kickdown) band adjusting screw is
located on the left side of the transmission case
above the manual valve and throttle valve levers.
(1) Raise vehicle.
(2) Loosen band adjusting screw locknut (Fig. 64).
Then back locknut off 3-5 turns. Be sure adjusting
screw turns freely in case. Apply lubricant to screw
threads if necessary.
(3) Tighten band adjusting screw to 8 N·m (72 in.
lbs.) torque with Inch Pound Torque Wrench
C-3380-A, a 3-in. extension and appropriate Torx™
socket.

CAUTION: If Adapter C-3705 is needed to reach the
adjusting screw, tighten the screw to only 5 N·m
(47-50 in. lbs.) torque.

(4) Back off front band adjusting screw 1 7/8
turns.
(5) Hold adjuster screw in position and tighten
locknut to 41 N·m (30 ft. lbs.) torque.
(6) Lower vehicle.

REAR BAND

The transmission oil pan must be removed for
access to the rear band adjusting screw.
(1) Raise vehicle.
(2) Remove transmission oil pan and drain fluid.
(3) Loosen band adjusting screw locknut 5-6 turns
(Fig. 65). Be sure adjusting screw turns freely in
lever.
(4) Tighten adjusting screw to 8 N·m (72 in. lbs.)
torque.
(5) Back off adjusting screw 4 turns.
(6) Hold adjusting screw in place and tighten locknut
to 34 N·m (25 ft. lbs.) torque.
(7) Position new gasket on oil pan and install pan
on transmission. Tighten pan bolts to 17 N·m (13 ft.
lbs.) torque.

 

Ty Hydra,I saw those specs in an online tranny pdf and I'm goinna do those band adj. on the tranny cold.And then refill the system with atf 4 and see how the shifts are.Ty again for the info guys and I'll post if I see any changes in rpm's for shifting.
As of today with 2 7/8 backoff on the front band my 2-3rd shift is at 1800 to 2000 rpm's -it was at 2500 and would drag to almost 3000 especially when it was cold out before I adjusted it.
1st to 2nd is 2000 cold and 1800-2000rpm warm- no band adjustment yet.3rd to 4th=1800 rpm with light throttle for all these shifts and the fluid is clean and no burning smell.Transmision cable appears to be operating perfectly in sync with the throttle and tps is at a start point of 0.6 volts transitioning to about 3.38v smoothly and back to 0.6------too much info=yup.
Filter,bands [front to 1 7/8 and rear band to 4 turns backoff] and atf+4 fluid to be changed this friday and I'll post if I saw any change in shifts for bad or good.

 

DoM,

While I have my bands adjusted every 2 years with trans service and front/rear diff service, I hear the process isn't that hard DIY. With the instructions, your probably good if you are mechanically inclined at all. Seems so.

On the fluids, don't flush. Just drop the pan, swap the filter (stocer MOPAR is the best choice) and refill ATF+4. Any old +3 will cause no issues and with that new pan plug, you can do a fluid only swap anytime you are inclined however it wouldn't be necessary for a while.

Good luck,

IndyDurango

 

Ty,Indy for the info.

 

No Problem!

HTH,

IndyDurango

 

Ok,I did the the trans band adjustment with the transmission cold to specs to the ones Hydra posted {which are right on the money with the mopar service pdf}.
took a bout 7 quarts to refill system=all atf+4
Tranny shifts at 1600-1800 with light throttle and about 2000-2500 at 1/2 to 3/4 throttle.[Peeled the tires up and got a menacing grin from a driver in an 08 mustang gt}
Before I did this adjustment I ran a bottle of the Lucas tranny stuff in it for a week=it helped the shifts when the tranny was warm but not when the tranny was cold=30 degree weather.
So any peeps reading this thread make sure if your tranny starts to shift at higher rpm's or feels funky when it's cold..Do the bands if they haven;t been done in awhile!
Ty to Hydra and Indy for specs and input.
I would have done the drain plug but they didn't have it in stock.And the magnet in the pan was pretty clean for a tranny with 190,000 miles on it=not sure if it was ever rebuilt etc.

 

My Durango would not shift into 2nd until 3.5K rpm so i did the band adjustment out of my Haynes manual.

Front Band (outside the Transmission)
Torque to 72 in/lbs
Back off 2 7/8s turns

Rear Band
Drop pan
Torque to72 in/lbs
Back off 2 turns

After doing these adjusments I lost 2nd gear all together. The Front Band adjustment was odd...I had to almost screw it in all the way to get it to seat and get 72 in lbs.

The Rear Band was odd too. when i started the lever had about an inch of play to rock back and forth. now there was no play to the lever.

Also i noticed you have different back off ammounts on here.

When i first drove it it tried to shift into 2nd but when it did it was like putting the brakes on and after that I shifted back to 1 and cycled back to drive. then it would shift into 3rd about 4.5K but no 2nd.

Did i mess something up? What could be the problem? HELP PLEASE.