Hi all,
Got a 1997 ram 1500 5.9 magnum that has the 46re 4x4 in it. I first bought the truck with a blown up motor. My theory for why that happened is that the trans relay output on the ECM failed so the trans was stuck in 3rd gear and the high school kid who owned it had no fricken clue and just drove it that way but going 70-80 down the highway puts rpms on this truck into 5k range which is why I'm pretty sure it didn't last long. Either way. I bought the truck put a motor in it. Got it running down the road found the trans was stuck in 3rd (limp mode) all the time. Diagnosed the computer issue and installed my own 12v trans relay that turns on when the key is on. Drove it this way for a couple months everything was fine it was slow to shift into 3 so the 2-3 shift was late or just really delayed. Kind of figured this especially because I'm guessing the trans only saw 3rd gear for a long white. Read up on how things worked found that the throttle valve for the trans was a little out of adjustment. Adjusted and test drove. Truck shifted better for sure 95% of the time it shifted great. The other times it would not shift 2-3 at all unless I shifted N back to D then popped right in and continued on my way. I drove it this way for a while because I didn't have time to mess with it. This brings us to the present.
My main issue: I went to pass a truck yesterday so I hit the gas and truck shifted out of OD and into 3rd which is normally for this truck except mid way buy the truck it shifted down to 2nd gear which is not normal at all for this truck I was maybe at 65% throttle. That sent the RPMs to 4500ish and ever since then the truck has not shifted right at all. It will miss every 2-3 shift unless I go N back to D then it will sometimes pop in and be fine. A few times it will shift perfect with out a problem at all but thats few and far between. I read up some more and found a way to diagnose if its likely electronics or not by unplugging the valve body connector at the trans. So got under the truck and did that. Test drove and I manually shifted the truck 1st,2nd,3rd (D) and it shifted perfectly when I told it to except for when I shifted back down it did 3rd to 2nd fine but it would not shift back into 1st gear unless I put it in N then directly to 1st then it would. If I would go 1,2,3 then back down 3,2,1 it would not shift into 1st even if I waited to shift it to 1st a stop. So to get back to first I had to go 3,N,1. I don't know if the trans has a safety for that gear or not? After that I installed the connector again and was still able to shift 1,2,D then OD,TC. But I was also able to go D,2,1 and it would go to 1st like it should when I told it to? I thought 1-3 on these trans were off pressure only or am I mistaken? So ultimately do you all think that I have an electrical problem or an internal non electrical problem? I am willing to tear this down and learn as I go. I am a mechanic for my job but haven't really got into transmissions.
I should also add the transmission fluid is still bright red and doesn't smell burnt. Smells like normal ATF still

 

Getting any trans codes?

Might drop the pan, do fluid, filter, governor pressure sensor and solenoid. (go for the borg warner heavy duty solenoid....) and possibly output speed sensor. Adjusting the bands while you are in there wouldn't be a bad idea either.

 

Thanks for the reply. Not getting any transmission codes after I installed a stand alone transmission relay to get the transmission power again. Before I had codes:
P0743 TCC Solenoid circuit open or short
P0753 Transmission 3-4 Solenoid Circuit
P1765 Transmission volt relay circuit open or short
After installing the stand alone relay and clearing the code. No codes have come back. Even after what is did yesterday and not feeling correct since no transmission codes have showed up. Do you have a place to recommend I read up on how to adjust the bands so I don't do more damage than good.

 

Grab the factory service manual for your truck from here. Procedure is in there.

 

Thank you I will look into it. Another question. I have access to a cheap and rebuilt 46re out of a 2001 ram 1500. From what I have read the electronics are different inside of them and the connector that runs the sensors inside is different? Is the correct? If it is, is it possible to just put 97 sensors into the 01 where they should go and replace the internal harness then be able to run that trans? Or am I way off on that? This is worst case if sensors and band adjustment doesn't fix mine.

 

Governor pressure sensor mounts different on the newer trans, though I believe you can just swap out the retainer, and be good to go. The only different connector is for the pressure sensor, older is round, newer is rectangular. Swapping the electronics and such is indeed a viable option. External connector is the same.

 

Okay sounds like I might pick it up to have a backup as the he's asking only $150 could be a decent backup if I need it. Hopefully doing the other work will fix mine but we will see.

 

Was the FSM corrected on this? I read somewhere here about it saying to back off screw something like 2-3/8 turns but Haynes is actually correct at 1-1/4?

I've not adjusted bands on these units so I can't say.....

 

Band adjustment seems to be something akin to black magic. I have seen all sorts of specs for it, the difference being in how far you back off the adjuster screw..... Our one-time resident trans guru suggested about 2 turns on each. Another Dodge tech that we see around here says to back 'em off so you get a 1/4 to 1/2 inch gap..... I would be tempted to go with the 2 turns, see what the gap looks like, and then see how it drives. Maybe adjust to your taste after driving it a bit. (a trans pan with a drain plug comes in real handy here....)

 

Okay so I haven't had time to get inside of it yet but I figured I would try to adjust the trans throttle cable at the throttle body it was super tight up there for some reason and when I released the the locking tab the cable housing slide backwards about 3/8" then stopped and the cable wasn't super tight anymore. I readjusted it to how it should be based on what I have found online and that has helped. Still sometimes doesn't like to shift 2-3 or it revs out then shifts but generally anymore if it does it I can let off the gas and it slips in. Is it possible that throttle valve is messed up in the trans because I had adjusted that before to where I found it should be and it was off of what I had adjusted it the first time? I still want to go inside and replace electronics just figured I would update.

Also separate question. I picked up an 01 Ram 1500 NP231D transfer case. I knew that it wouldn't have the sensor port so I will have to get that part of the case and sensor but do I also need a new output shaft or are they still the same shaft? The one I picked up is the 32 spline output
The shift pattern is different also but I knew that going into it. It is 4H 2H N 4L vs what mine is currently 4L N 2H 4H