Hi all,

-99 Dodge Ram 4x4, 5.2 V8
Went to get the oils changed in my transmission and axles. The truck had an issue with jerking while in overdrive, which I thought a service might fix. Other than that no problems, smooth shifting other than the 3-4 shift being a little sluggish/slipping.

Well. We found piece of snap ring in transmission pan and ended up removing the transfer box and overdrive unit. It was the infamous snap ring inside the overdrive unit. While at it we had a look at the clutches and ended up installing a powerpack and new snap ring. Replaced filter and put everything back. Adjusted the bands according to manual, refilled and started her up to get her to temp. Checked level when in operating temp and off I went.

The car shifts a lot firmer than before with no hesitation which is to be expected with a brand new powerpack. No more jerking in overdrive and reverse is firm and strong.

But then all of a sudden the car started revving up to 3-4000rpm before shifting. It seems it's happening mostly in 1-2, but also 2-3. I have to rev past 4000 to eventually get it to shift. Another way to fix it seem to be to put it in neutral, back into drive and it gets better for a while. Parked the truck when I got home and had some lunch. Went back out and the truck runs great again. No shift problems. Drove for 20-30 minutes no problems. Then all of a sudden the same problem reoccured.

This was only yesterday, so I haven't been able to find out more, but is seems to be an intermittent problem. Oil level is checked multiple times and is at 80% of OK range at operating temp in neutral. Nothing else on the truck has been touched. Will check the throttle position cable, but it hasn't been adjusted since it ran great before the overhaul.

I'm so bummed over spending a lot to get this fixed and upgraded. Help!

 

Who did the work?

Mine sometimes likes to hold first gear longer than I think it should. I though changing the electronics would solve that.... Nope. It's better, but, still like to hold first once in a while. I didn't the governor pressure sensor, borg warner heavy duty governor solenoid, and the output speed sensor, along with a band adjustment, fluid/filter change. It shifts better, and the problem is reduced, but, it's still there.... No idea why.

 

The work was done by a trusted friend who runs a performance workshop. They have no real experience from this type of gearbox/truck, but very experienced generally with building complete racing machines. I was there for some of the work.

I'm just stumped over why we've replaced one problem with another. The truck shifted just fine before. Nothing that didn't need to be touched has been touched during the overhaul. I adjusted the throttle position cable today, it was set a bit tight, but no difference. I was hoping that would do the trick. Today the truck shifted great the first 10 minutes of driving, then it decided to stay in 3rd until I put it in neutral and then back into drive. Then it shifted.

I will triple check the ATF level when I get home later. If it isn't related to ATF level being too low, my best guess would be that something electronic decided to give up or glitch, since the problem is intermittent. I will admit that we refilled ATF with gearbox in park. After some more research it says it should be in neutral. I can't imagine it affecting anything since nothing is moving In park, but will still check level in neutral just to make sure.

Still, none of the electronics related to the gearbox has been touched except from plugged out during overhaul of the direct drive/overdrive unit and then plugged back in.

So, either electronic or ATF hot/cold-related is my conclusion this far..
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Is the tv cable adjusted properly? Return spring ok? I had this issue and adjusting tv cable took care of all my late shifting issues

 

And, is the TV cable in good shape? I had a similar issue and ended up replacing my original TV cable, as I found that it was binding up periodically, likely due to rust on the inside of the cable that accumulated over the years... Once I replaced and adjusted the TV cable, no more shifting issues occurred.

 

I have adjusted and triple checked the TV cable with no good results. I've even tried going a little bit on the loose side and a little bit on the tight side. No real difference. I should also mention this truck only has 11000 miles on it and has been taken care of throughout its lifetime.

After driving the truck some more I can further explain what's happening. The problem is actually getting worse and worse. At several occasions yesterday and today the car suddenly decided to go from OD in 50mph to 2nd or 3rd gear. Flat surface, very little throttle.

It also continues to sometimes get stuck in 2nd or 3rd gear when leaving a red light. 1st to 2nd is almost always smooth, but suddenly it won't shift into 2-3 and 3-4 no matter how much I rev it (although I haven't gone up to the red line, seems pointless). BUT if I pop it into neutral while coasting, letting the engine go back to idling, and then back into drive, it shifts.

The ONLY other thing that was touched at the workshop was a band adjustment. Front and rear where adjusted according to the Haynes manual (8nm and back out 2 7/8 turns if I remember correctly). We have even tried readjusting the front band when hot just to make sure. Nothing else has been touched and the car hade NONE of these problems before.

 

That sounds a lot like an electrical issue. Would be interesting to see what governor pressure looked like when it was acting up. Might just be a dirty solenoid, or failing pressure sensor.

 

Update:

We have major problems...
On my way home a while ago the car started jumping out of gear for no reason. Worse than before. From OD to absolutely nothing. I pulled over and stopped. Put it into park and back into drive. Then it wouldn't shift from 1-2. Put in in neutral and back into drive and it shifted. As soon as it wen't to 3rd it jumped out of gear again. Did the same procedure and managed to get to my street. I then started noticing a whining sound from the gearbox and eased it to my driveway very slowly. Have never heard any noises before. Checked oil in tranny (in neutral) and it's perfect.

Went in and started googling more about what could cause it. People keep referring to the TV cable, so after an hour or so I wen't back out to check both ends of it. It looks fine, spring is where it should on the tranny and it's adjusted by the throttle body as it should. Decided to take it for a short test drive to see how it would behave with engine/tranny cooled of. Put it into drive, no noises, let go of the throttle and started driving. Wen't through 1st and 2nd gear, no noise or whining, and then it suddenly jumped out of gear again. Whining noise quickly came back. Turned around aiming to get back to my driveway. Lost drive completely and gearbox noise is getting worse. Tried to put it in manual 1st, no drive. Reverse popped in and I could reverse, then back to drive and 1st engaged. I could not rev more than 1200-1500rpm before losing all drive. Gearbox does not sound happy.

I managed after a lot of struggles to ease it in 1st with gearbox whining back to my driveway. I'm completely guttered over this...

Recap:
1. Turned the car in to a workshop for oil change in transmission and differentials along with filter change since I'm looking to sell the truck and wan't everything in order. The only symptoms I had was some jerking in overdrive, which I thought a service might fix.
2. Workshop let's me know there's a piece of a snap ring in my transmission pan
3. Workshop proceeds to take off the transfer box and overdrive unit, I order a new snap ring
4. Workshop let's me know the steel plates in the OD-unit are somewhat warped. I decide to get an upgrade done while we're at it and order an Alto Powerpack. Workshop believes this is probably the main reason for the jerking in overdrive.
5. Workshop installs new snap ring and powerpack and buttons everything up
6. I ask the workshop to adjust the front and rear bands while the pan is off. It's adjusted according to the haynes manual.
7. We refill the transmission with ATF +4

It's been 4 days since I left the workshop and the truck is my daily to and from work. I had absolutely no problems with shifting before this.

Could someone please help me figure out what could've happened? What can have gone wrong with replacing the direct clutch and snap ring?

 

If they put extra clutches and steels in there, did they also use a thinner apply piston?

If its just the same number, then that shouldn't be an issue at all.

Try unplugging the 8 pin connector, drivers side of trans, about halfway back. This disables all the electronics. Take it for a drive, bearing in mind, you won't have ANY automatic function at all. You will have to shift manually. If the trans goes into the gear you tell it to, when you tell it to, both up, and down, then its just the electronics. If you still have issues, then it's time to rebuild the rest of the trans.....

 

Yes there's extra clutches in there. 2 more than stock if I remember correctly. It was installed according to the instructions that came with it. No thinner apply piston was used, I would've probably heard about it since I ordered the parts myself.


I will unplug the 8-pin connector and give it a try. But then again I'm having some horrifying noises from the tranny now, so...