Possible to swap in a ZF8HP tranny?
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Rookie
Joined: Oct 2013
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From: Arkansas
Possible to swap in a ZF8HP tranny?
My transmission has 180,000 miles on it and has been rebuilt once and is starting to have problems again (I know, you can't polish a turd and the 46RE is definitely a turd). So rather than have it rebuilt, I'm just going to buy an aftermarket overbuilt tranny. More gears are better than 4 gears, so I'm wondering if I could swap in the ZF8HP that they use on the current 1500? I know it will require a stand alone computer and some kind of adapter for the bellhousing, but other than that, does anybody see any problems with this idea?
Champion
Joined: Sep 2012
Posts: 4,869
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From: Central VA
Well, it appears that this transmission has already been adapted to numerous vehicles already, however, those are newer model vehicles - https://www.popularmechanics.com/car...peed-15855273/
What you are proposing is likely doable, however, you might want to check to see if someone makes the standalone transmission controller and bellhousing transmission adapter. You will also likely need to deal with the cross-member mount, driveshaft connectivity and whether or not the transfer case can be adapted to it. I've found over the years that most anything is doable with plenty of time and money.
Might want to talk with these folks about the bellhousing adapter - http://jvxracing.com/
What you are proposing is likely doable, however, you might want to check to see if someone makes the standalone transmission controller and bellhousing transmission adapter. You will also likely need to deal with the cross-member mount, driveshaft connectivity and whether or not the transfer case can be adapted to it. I've found over the years that most anything is doable with plenty of time and money.
Might want to talk with these folks about the bellhousing adapter - http://jvxracing.com/
Last edited by AtomicDog; Mar 1, 2018 at 01:48 PM.
Record Breaker
Joined: Jul 2014
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From: Wisconsin
I agree. Yes it will fit. The real question should be, Is it practical for you? My guess is that you are time and money ahead to get a modded 46RE. Also consider the amount of time and patience needed to figure it all out. That being said, if you still want to tackle it, do some research and come up with an honest estimate of time and $ to complete the project. Take 1/3 of that and add it to the original number. If you come in at or under that number you did good.
Grand Champion
Joined: Feb 2015
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Instead of getting a aftermarket overbuilt trans look at the different upgrades available for the 46re from patc.
https://transmissioncenter.net/
https://transmissioncenter.net/
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Rookie
Joined: Oct 2013
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From: Arkansas
I already looked at the overbuilt upgrades from PATC and was planning to buy their 46RE stage 2 tranny. But then I started thinking (I know, that's when the problems usually start), and these trucks could really use a 5th gear -even in stock trim. Mine now has an estimated 450 hp and 500 lb. ft. torque, so even though the stage 2 can handle the power, it just doesnt have enough gears to use it efficiently.
Reading up on the 8-speed, it increases fuel efficiency 11% over the 6-speed it replaced, and 15% over the earlier 5-speed in the same vehicle with the same engine. So a 20% increase in fuel economy over the 4-speed is probably a reasonable estimate. Not to mention that it completes shifts in 200 milliseconds, and has enough gears to keep the engine in its power band regardless of what I'm towing or what speed I'm driving. In a daily driver that I intend to keep driving for the rest of my life (hopefully 30+ years), I'm thinking the fuel savings would pay for the additional expense a few times over.
It may prove unfeasable, but at this point I think I'm going to look further into this. Thanks for the lead on bellhousing adapters. Hey You, would you mind sharing the leads you researched on computer management and mechanical adapters for the 8-speed?
Reading up on the 8-speed, it increases fuel efficiency 11% over the 6-speed it replaced, and 15% over the earlier 5-speed in the same vehicle with the same engine. So a 20% increase in fuel economy over the 4-speed is probably a reasonable estimate. Not to mention that it completes shifts in 200 milliseconds, and has enough gears to keep the engine in its power band regardless of what I'm towing or what speed I'm driving. In a daily driver that I intend to keep driving for the rest of my life (hopefully 30+ years), I'm thinking the fuel savings would pay for the additional expense a few times over.
It may prove unfeasable, but at this point I think I'm going to look further into this. Thanks for the lead on bellhousing adapters. Hey You, would you mind sharing the leads you researched on computer management and mechanical adapters for the 8-speed?
Administrator
Joined: Apr 2010
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From: Clayton MI
I think I was lookin' at these guys, mainly because the 8.0, and cummins have the same bell housing bolt pattern.
