Haiiii. I'm pretty new to fixing vehicles, but I'm trying to learn! My 1998 Ram van 3500 has a couple issues, one of which being that reverse takes almost 10 seconds to engage! I've added more transmission fluid and my next step is changing the transmission filter. Is there anything else that people might suggest? Thanks in advance! ❤️❤️

 

Adding more is not the same as adding enough. Did you check the fluid level with the engine warm and running in Park?

 

I'll double check, but yes, with the engine running and warm I check the transmission fluid and it seemed to be in the "safe" area.

 

You should check the level when the transmission is up to operating temperature and in neutral with parking brake on. If it is just reverse, have you checked to make sure the parking cable is lined up properly at the gear shift and transmission? Can you move the gearshift past reverse just slightly prior to neutral and see if it engages?

 

I have a big transmission cooler installed on my 1991 and it will drain back to the pan if I am parked for a few weeks. When this happens I just leave the transmission in neutral for a few seconds so it can pump fluid throughout the system again. That being said, I can't move in any gear when this happens.

 

I'll check fluid that way for sure! I'm not sure if the cable is lined up properly. I'll definitely check, but the only reason I wouldn't think it has to do with a cable is because it takes the exact same amount of time for reverse to engage every time, without exception.

 

I drive the vehicle all the time so I don't think it has to do with fluid settling anywhere.

 

In the transmission line, there is a check valve that prevents transmission fluid to drain back to the pan when you shut it off. Upon startup the lack of fluid in the system can prevent the transmission from moving until fluid is pressurized again. The transmission fluid only circulates when in R, N, D 1 2. It does not circulate in park.

A common mod was to delete the check valve as that could also create your transmission to overheat if it gummed up.

Are you the original owner? Is this a new problem that just happened? Does it happen in drive?

 

Oh interesting i didn't know that it didn't circulate in park, but now that I think about it, it makes perfect sense.

I'm definitely not the original owner, nor was the person who sold it to me. I'm not sure how recent of a problem it is because the previous owner only owned it for a couple months before having to sell it to pay something else off and the problem existed when he bought it. It doesn't happen in any other gear, only reverse.

 

If that's the only problem it has, think I would just learn to love it, and not worry about it.