Hey all. I have a 98 ram van 3.9 with a 3 speed. When shifting from 1st to 2nd the trans is holding first a little longer than normal before shifting into 2nd. It shifts into 3rd just fine. Also, when the van is warmed up tje problem is gone. Thanks for any help.

Keith

 

When is the last time you had the trans fluid and pan filter changed? Many times a regular service will correct this type of problem.

 

Hey Rustyram and thanks for looking at my post. My son changed filter/fluid about two months ago and it was fine till last week. Could my son (he is always in a BIG hurry) have done something wrong? He used atf4. Any ideas?Thanks much!

Keith

 

well depending on how much extra he did, you may be a bit low on fluid. I did mine recently and ran into that. I had let it drip out for a long time when adjusting the rev/1st band. Do you know if he did the internal band ajustment in addition to the F/F? did he clean the pan & magnet too? the last two should have been done, but I dont think they would cause the problem you are seeing now if they were not.

 

Hey igadget. The pan and screen were cleaned though they were pretty clean. No, he did not adjust anything. I will re-check the fluid level again. I will report what I find. As i stated once it warms up it shifts great. As a matter of fact it shifted great this mourning even when it was cold. Also, it does not slip at all. Thank you very much for your time!

keith

 

sounds like a sticking solenoid. not an expert on the AT's but had a similar problem on my 2000 ram... swapped a sensor & solenoid and fixed the problem. you might want to have a shop take a look at it.

 

Hey Steve. Since my trans is non-electronic, would it have a sensor/solinoid? The chiltons i have is next to useless in terms of the transmission. I will procure a factory manual next week. Till then does anyone have anymore ideas as to my problem? Thanks much!!!

Keith

 

humm, I missed the 3spd part... go to the 2nd gen ram forum & at the top is a thread "Dodge info" or something like that, in there you'll find a link to a Merry Christmas thread that has a link to the 2001 ram manual. in there you'll have info on your motor (should all be the same) and possibly on your tranny. IDK if the 2nd gen ram trucks came with the 3spd or not but it's worth a look.

also i believe all the newer trannys are controlled...

 

Yep, a '98 will have at least one sensor and/or solinoid on it. Not sure if they would cause this particular kind of problem though. I know the lock-up torque converter solinoids can stick sometimes - does it have a lock-up torque converter?

 

Now I could be wrong about this, but it sounds like typical transmission behavior towards cold weather. I know my 42LE when it is cold, is slow at shifting. It takes it extra long to shift between 1st and 2nd. At the stop sign, if I only stop long enough to be considered a full stop, I sometimes feel a delay because the transmission is still in the process of shifting back down to 1st. The thing I have found to be a solution to this is allowing the car a little warm-up time. This allows the transmission fluid to warm up and become less thick.

If I haven't had the time to allow it warm up time. I manual shift it down to L right before I stop. This gives it the time it needs to shift. I have also found this to be the case with the 41TE. I've never driven a vehicle with the 32RH (or is it a 32RE if it existed) so I don't know for sure about your transmission. If the fluid level looks okay, then try starting it a couple minuets earily is my advice.