I was referring to a stock transmission. If you have a built transmission it is not as hard. Last comment from me on this.

 

hard on what? give us some specific parts that its hard on. dont just say 'oh its rough on the trans, dont do it.' its not dangerously harder on anything. all you're doing is telling the trans to shift at a different point. its not going to hurt anything.

as for downshifts... i'm not 100% certain if its the same for mopar transmissions, but for alot of chevys it will not downshift until it reaches a certain rpm/speed.
meaning that, if i'm doing 80 mph and drop the selector into 1st gear, it will not shift into first gear. when therpms drop enough to not damage itself, the trans will kick down into 3rd, then down into 2nd at a lower speed, then finally into 1st.

again, this is with chevy transmissions, not certain with the ram's trans.

 

I put a shift kit in the truck earlier this year. It shifts fairly stiff from 1st to 2nd anyways, so I normally don't take it down to 1st gear when starting out because I can't get the shift sequence right and it shifts too hard when I manually shift. 2nd to 3rd isn't a problem since I'm not hammering it while doing the manual upshift.

I agree that you have to be careful downshifting. When towing a trailer, I'll pull it down a little earlier than it what it will downshift automatically. It all depends on where I'm at on the hill, the throttle setting, etc. I know the "feel" of my truck, and have a good idea of when it will shift. I got out of the rip and tear stage years ago. I have too many bills to pay now.

I'm a pretty light footed driver. Therefore, my truck shifts too early sometimes so I'll shift manually, depends on road condtions, speed, and whatnot. I would love to have a manual tranny, but an auto is what I ended up with in this GREAT truck. I also wanted to be able to haul six people, andwith anautomaticits a lot easier to squeeze all six people in the truck. Just imagine grabbing 4th gear with a manual and the mother-in-law sitting beside you!! [sm=insomnia.gif][sm=happy046.gif][sm=jawdrop.gif][sm=outcold.gif] Need I say more?

Actually, the guy who I get to do my inspections is a great tranny mechanic. He put in my shift kit and did some work on my Caravan. He doesn't have a problem with pulling it into the lower gears. He claims that you boost your line pressure when you do this, so when pulling a load up a hill its actually better to drop it down a gear manually. His words, not mine. If your not beating it, I don't have a problem doing this.

 

What will happen whenshifting atWOT at the track? Why does "the torque converter taking over for the clutch" require letting up on the gas?



Also, I'd like to knowjust what parts are damaged, and why downshifting would damage the trans?
What parts should be upgraded to avoid this? Clutch pack? Valve body?

I want very much to add a floor shifter to my truck. I'm considering a manual reverse valve body. I'm having a hard time finding out the best way to go about this.

Ilike to shift manually, but I hate using the stock shifter. Very poor control, too easy to miss-shift, IMO.

 

Exactly ... that's why you have to floor it for an instant after dropping it into 2nd ... blippingthe throttle like that drops it into "passing" gear (2nd) but because the shifter is in 2 ... it's held in 2nd gear and decells like a ****. I guess that hitting passing gear (which is a dreaded downshift) tears up the tranny ... Isuppose I'd better stop goingWOT to pass someone.

 

You don't know my Mother In Law![sm=kiss.gif][sm=happy046.gif]


Wish I could afford a 6 speed conversion![sm=gears.gif]

 

I have always manualy shifted when towing racing and traveling on 2 lane highways. I am very hard on my truck but also take very good care of it and do routine maintenance often to make sure I keep running well. My original tranny lasted me 253,000 miles and the only reason I ended up rebuilding it was because I had let the tc go out and kept driving it because I couldn't figure out was wrong. On the rams transmissions you will go into what ever gear you put the selector in so be very careful shifting this was you don't want to drop it into first doing 70mph.

 

Back when I was in my 20's, I used to shift automatics like Formula I's.
I replaced a few (2 or 3 over some years).
Back then, you could get one rebuilt for $300-$400 (thou at least once I paid closer to $700).

It costs a tee wee bit more today (like $1,200+) for a rebuild...
And now that I'm older, I don't mess with the auto, put it in D and leave it alone.
Haven't broken one yet.

It must be kinda like an old man told me many years ago:
It ain't really a bad thing to do until it's broken.

 

when shifting if it is to the flor the tc clutch never comes on oversomewere between 60-80% throttle tcc is disabled. this is also why the tps can be important with the eletric trans. i dont bother doing this in the truck, but all my camaros and my chevelle, to the floor 6-7000 rpm bang, bang. never hade any problems downshifting manuely either,help slowing down and improves brake life,but it depends how early you do

 

i do the same thing sometimes.. ive left it in first a few times and ripped around the back streets at work when i leave usually b/c im in a pissy mood.

but yea.. if im city driving.. ill leave it in 2nd and cruise .. watching rpm's and speed

coming off the freeway exiting slowing down from 80-85 ill drop out of O/D and then slowly shift down instead of riding the breaks.. ill upshift too when i really wanna get the speed up quick.. like on an onramp...

ill leave it in first or 2nd sometimes with there are fords or chevys close by and romp the throttle something feirce.. just for fun