Hi Guys,

Working on my 98 Dakota SLT V6. Mine has the auto 42RE tranny. Looking to do a partial transmission fluid change and a filter change. I have seen that it is recommended that while having the transmission pan removed, you should also re-torque the bolts that hold the transmission valve body to the transmission. Having a heck of a time finding a torque sheet that covers this. If anyone could link me to one, It'd be appreciated. Also while we are on this topic, any recommendations on a reputable filter and gasket for my tranny? Thanks guys!

 

I haven't worked on a 42RE, But I've done fluid/filter changes to 3 different 5/45RFE transmissions. I would imagine they would be fairly similar as far as routine maintenance is concerned. Anyways, The valve body torque on mine was pretty low, only 105 in/lb if memory serves correct. None of my three tranny's ever had loose bolts.

The first tranny got a filter/gasket kit from O'Reillys. No issues.

The next two got kits from Advanced Auto. Except with these I used a Felpro pan gasket purchased separately. I found the Felpro gasket material, engineering, and packaging is far superior to the cheapo kit included ones.
This applies to nearly all automotive gaskets in my experience. I will never use cheapo gaskets again on any vehicle I care about.

I also put a whole new transmission pan on all of them. You don't have to clean all the junk off a new pan, it has a drain, and isn't rusted out (if you live in rusty region). The reason I serviced my first trucks transmission is because rust ate right through the pan and it leaked. A
new pan in my case was under $40 each time so it's hard not to get one if you're still rolling with the original pan.

 

42 RE, Bolt, valve body to case: 12 Nm or 100 Inch Pounds

 

Speaking as a retired machinist I can tell you that bolt torques are generally dependent on 3 things: the material that the bolts are seated in, the size (and thread pitch) of the bolts, and the material that the bolts are made of. If you refer to a machinist's handbook - and carefully approximate & compare that info with your own situation - you will be able to arrive at a figure that will probably be remarkably close to the published value. I suspect that your transmission's case is some sort of aluminum alloy - which automatically means that your torque value will be lower.... AND I suspect that the bolts you will be tightening will not be all that large (I'm betting no more than 8mm diameter). So I would think that you will probably be dealing with inch-pounds instead of foot-pounds. One example I can give you is this: Several years ago I would occasionally rebuild a VW "bug" air-cooled engine. And when I reassembled the two halves of the crankcase I had to tighten about 6 or 8 fairly large studs. They were about 12mm diameter and were screwed into magnesium crankcase halves (meaning they would pull the threads out of the case if overtightened. OK, so here's the picture: Steel studs about 12mm diameter (standard - not fine - threads) and screwed into magnesium (think similar to aluminum). These studs were tightened to 13 foot pounds - and NO MORE! And there were no locking devices on the studs OR their nuts. AND the engines almost NEVER came apart running down the road. So you see? - It doesn't take much. Good luck with YOUR project.... FredT

 

12Nm is standard, as Magnethead stated.

 

You'd have a heart attack if I told you the torque spec for the crank bolt on the blower engine.

Hint: It's higher than the bolt on our Duramax tow rig.