Truck won't accelerate smoothly, revs high and shifts hard

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07-12-2024, 01:16 PM

RichardB03

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Truck won't accelerate smoothly, revs high and shifts hard

I have a 2002 Dodge Ram 1500 5.9 v8 and since my dad gave it to me it would occasionally get stuck after being at a complete stop, then rev up and jolt forward once it finally shifted, but this happened so infrequently that I didn't care or think that it was an issue. Last year my transmission suddenly blew up (cracked housing) so I replaced it with a good transmission (or one I thought to be good) from a junkyard. I rebuilt the transfer case while I was at it because it had been a long time since I could get it to go into 4-wheel drive. I got it all back together and it drove and shifted like butter, but still had the occasional jolt forward when shifting. A few weeks ago it started doing this more frequently where it would rev up to about 3000rpm and then jolt forward before shifting when coming out of a complete stop but still did not happen every time. A few days ago I was on the highway and the truck would rev up but not accelerate. The next morning it did the same thing, every time I tried to accelerate it revved up to 3000 or more rpm before shifting, and this problem worsened when I tried to go up even a slight hill. I did some research and made sure the tranny fluid was good and at the correct level.

My guess is the torque converter or clutch packs have gone bad, but I would like to know what more experienced people think the problem may be. Any insight is appreciated.

I've added some photos below of when my friends and I replaced the transmission for your enjoyment.