Would anyone happen to know roughly what a Dealership charges to diagnose a 2000 1500 Ram 46RE Transmission?

When cold, the Trans. seems to go into neutral (disengage) when at a stop sign or light. When given some gas, it reengages with a jolt. The problem disappears after about a half hour of driving. It is also sluggish in up shifts 2-3. with occasional slipping. Bands are adjusted, new filter and fluid. TV cable also checked and w/in 1/32" on throttle stud. No OBD Codes present.

Probably whatever an hour to an hour and a half labor charge is, at their current rate.

Yes ^^ whatever the hourly rate of the place will give you a rough idea of an hours time of diagnostic cost. Shop around reputable auto repair places along with the dealer.

welcome to df.

beware that a dealership will be your most expensive option, for both diagnosis and repair.

if you have a local transmission shop that is not hated by all their previous customers, you MIGHT save money by taking it there. you can likely also get a free diagnosis/estimate which will probably include a test drive, maybe check pressures.

read over MonteC's transmission thread in the DIY sticky section. if you had only shifting problems - there might be some good news. but if bands are properly adjusted, serviced, etc, and its still slipping and jolting, the news is not going to be good.

Thanks to everyone for your responses.

It may seem too obvous, but is the fluid full when in neutral and warmed up? Also, double check the shift linkage. Another member had a variety of issues with his, and it turned out to eb the shift linkage adjustment. Just verify those are good before spending any money.....

+1 to dhvaughn's post. Dealers do NOT specialize in trans rebuilds. Some parts swaps taht owners can do, and replacement with stock transmissions are more their forte.

Local "good" tranny shop is better option, unless you live in an area like I just moved form - there were NO tranny shops!

other possibility f someone you know has something like a MT 2500 or Solus scanner, it will diagnose trans problems.

See the service manual here on DF in the FAQ/DIY section and there is an explanation of testing with 2 gauges.

Thanks for that info. GDStock. Yes, the fluid is in the "OK" range when warm and in neutral. I will check the linkage tomorrow. It did bind on me once months ago and now the shift indicator doesn't always show correctly. Sometimes when in D it may show R. Perhaps something slipped.

I moved to the Berkshire Mountains in Massachusetts two years ago and there are not many options for me either as far as Local Tranny Repair Shops. Nearest civilization is forty minutes away in any direction, but the Deer, Moose, Bear, and Bald Eagles are plentiful!

Thanks again-

The trans shop I use will hook up the mt-2500 and test drive it with you riding along, for free. Did a shop adjust the bands? Low fluid will give that jolt into gear feeling to.

Check linkage first. Then you can adjust the orange indicator. It is operated by a string (go figure) on the steering column. Remove knee panel and look for the little white plastic thinggy (technical term) with a little white ****. Turning this will adjust the orange gear indicator.