I have had 3 rams in the past. I love the truck and i want to get another one but i know the issues i have had with transmission troubles. My first ram was a 2000 4x4 with a 318. I went through 5 transmissions before i traded the truck in on a used 2001. I only had 130,000 miles on it. I want to get another 01 but what can i do right off the bat to make sure im not blowing transmissions. any help would be great

 

My suggestion is to disregard automatic and aquire manual

 

Five?! Jesus I would have stopped at one.

If you're serious about the transmission, get a Sonnax Sure-Cure kit or have it rebuilt by a reputable company. Unfortunately Monster Transmission doesn't make an A518 rebuild kit (you b@st@rds...) so you're on your own there. But I would go ahead and get the Sure-Cure and a Torque Converter from Monster Transmission.

Someone here recently though bought a sure-cure kit from Sonnax and posted up a review. Aim4Squirrels Sure-Cure Kit Review

Sonnax is an awesome company.

Also, for extra insurance, pop in an auxiliary transmission cooler and a Mag-Hytec 727-DD Transmission Pan. To go the extra mile, install a temp probe in the Mag-Hytec pan and place a transmission temp gauge on the a-pillar. But that might be going a little to far if you don't tow and/or its your daily driver.

 

i don't tow all the time but i have a 14' pop up camper that i use and about once a month im towing a new car home. with my first ram the only reason i didn't get rid of it after 1 tranny was because it was all under warranty. dodge replaced them every time. i drive in a lot of areas where there are tons of stop lights and stop signs and damn old people on the road (thats florida for you) so its hard to have a manual in anything i drive.

I know i want to be able to tow and drive normally i just don't want to deal with tranny issues any more. i just have to find a good tranny shop here in st pete and see what their reviews are by other people around here. i only know how to build ford transmissions, too many drag ready mustangs, had to learn after a while

 

my other question is, how hard is it to install the sonnax kit? i have done shift kits before, is it like that?

 

Here is the ram i am looking at getting



1997 DODGE RAM 4X4

 

i wish ihad those doors, and not my rotted ones....if you get that lets trade doors

 

That looks like a nice truck!

 

im getting it for $3700

 

The Sonnax kit is like a shift kit. You don't really have to drop the tranny, just the valve body.

If you live in Florida, I'm going to assume its warm down there. I would go ahead and either add the transmission cooler or the Mag-Hytec diff cover. The diff cover drops the temperatures about 15 to 20 degrees due to the additional fluid in the pan. The cover also have a spot for a temp probe and a dipstick to the check the fluid level.

But if you do a lot of four-wheeling and offroad driving then the pan will probably be too bulky for your use.

And if you do tow a car, it might be worth it to go ahead and add a temp gauge on the a-pillar.

Diesels are well known for their towing capabilities and they usually will throw up a pyrometer, transmission and turbo boost gauge. But you have a gasoline engine so for a dual pod a-pillar try tranny temp and whatever else suits you.

Good luck!