Hello All,
I have a chance to get 2001 46RE transmission for one of my trucks which is 1996.
Both trucks are 5.9l V8 Ram 1500 4x4 so the tail housing is fine, but I'm more worried about connections.
Are all transmissions interchangeable for these years, or will I need to change something?
Are the sensors and connectors in the same place?
What about transfer case? Are the connectors the same there as well?
I can adapt any connectors where necessary and rewire any harness.
I'd like to know if it will work and if anyone else had successfully done the same thing.
Thank you,

 

At a minimum, the tail housing will need to be re-used from the '96 transmission, as it has the VSS sensor in it that your PCM will require. The earlier transmission output shaft may also be needed to drive the sensor. The electronics (solenoids & wiring) in the transmission need to match the '96 electronics, too. The transfer case will also need to come from a '96 - '97 truck as well.

 

Unfortunately, I don't have currently transmission for the 96 model. So I don't have any parts I can interchange.
01 transmission has 3 connectors. 2 on the main body and one on the OD section. That would be the VSS sensor, right?
One the 96 setup I also have VSS in the transfer case (one that you can change gears in to accommodate for tires size), but there is no such a sensor on the 2001 transfer case.
So is the VSS sensor on the OD section of the transmission (2001 model) the same as the VSS on the transfer case for the previous models?
Truck has 1996 ECU and wiring and I'd like to keep this configuration with newer transmission.
Anyone has listed differences in these two transmissions 1996 46RE and 2001 46RE?
I do have transfer case from 1996 I will be using. This is the one with Speed sensor.

 

Being yours is a 4x4, the VSS is in the transfer case, not the trans. The problems you are going to run into are: First, electronics mismatch. Things changed in 2000, and the electronics are not compatible. You can change the electronics to the older style, but, that still leaves you with problem number 2. T-case shifter mounting. On the 96, it is mounted to the trans, on the 01, it is mounted to the body, and there are no provisions on the trans for the shifter mount. That one is going to be difficult to work around.

 

My donor truck was sold as 2001, but the manufacturing date is 04/2000.
4x4 shifter is in fact mounted to the floor, but it looks like there are screw bosses on the transmission OD housing that can hold the 4x4 shifter in my 1996 configuration.

Transmission has 3 plugs on in. 2 on the main body and one on the OD section (this would be the VSS sensor).
I will be using the transfer case that has the VSS sensor on it installed. So in the sense I have 2 VSS available for wiring, one on the transmission and one on the x-fer case.
I don't mind changing the wiring in the transmission, but I would rather avoid rewiring a whole truck with newer ECU, dashboard, etc. to control newer transmission.
Does anyone have older 46RE transmission wiring I could use for my ride, or know the place where I could get one?

 

I think the internal harness is part of the O/D and TCC solenoid set. So, replace ALL the internal electronics, and you should be golden. How the governor solenoid is held in is different as well.... not sure what you would need to do there.

Check and see if those holes are tapped. If they aren't, get a bottoming tap of the appropriate caliber, and have at it.

 

Nice to see that Dodge got lazy in the later years and left the transfer case shifter mount bosses on the overdrive housing.