I'm looking for some advice on some tranny problems I am having. I have a 97 Ram 318 4x4 automatic tranny:

I purchased this truck last November and had the transmission serviced mid-December. Ihad the transmission serviced becauseI just bought the truck (ie didn't have a previous service record) and there was some slight grinding noise in reverse. Upon servicing, no real problems with the tranny were noted. Almost a month later, I pulled out of my drive way (in reverse) and drove about 3 blocks before my truck died (lost acceleration power) and I was able to coast onto a side street. Once at a stop, I could really smell tranny fluid, and then the gushing tranny fluid on the ground when I got out of the truck.I had the truck towed to a trusty service station who analyzed the tranny for leakes and replaced a worn transmission hose. Part was replaced- no big deal (for now). Apparently by the stain on the pavement, which I noticed later, the gushing of tranny fluid initially started when I shifted into reverse after starting my truck.

A couple weeks later I was driving home from hunting (about 20 minutes) in freezing rain, so I used 4 wheel drive the whole time. I don't recall exactly why I knew I needed transmission fluid, but I stopped to grab a quart. I didn't have my manual, so I went to the nearest parts store and asked the guy behind the counter which fluid type I needed, and he told me ATF + 4. Which of course, I filled immediately. Fluid was replaced- no big deal- right?

This last Friday I went to put my truck on the street (in reverse again)from the drive way, and no more getting to the street (about 30 feet)- the bleeding began again, and I was out of fluid. Upon looking under the hood- I noticed the hose (which was obviously new) had popped off from the tranny cooler. I took another vehicle to the parts store (where they know me by name now) and asked about the hose popping off. The guy behind the counter thought maybe there is to much line pressure, which would require a line pressure test. I had my trusty Haynes manual- which told me that for 2000 and earlier models, I should use Mopar ATF +3, type 7176. While at the parts store (and now that I have a manual) I started initially questioning the first parts store for their fluid type suggestion. The only ATF fluid on the shelf with a 3 was the Dexron-Mercon - which I asked the staff if it was the same- which they said "yes" it was.

I proceed to go home, popped the hose back on, and filled with this new AT fluid. I started my truck, moved through the gears slowely, and gingerly left my house for the store to get cat litter (to clean up the spilled fluid of course). Once at the store, and stil questioning between ATF 3 and 4, I decided to look in the actual truck manual. Where of course it still says something different- ATF + 2, and use of the wrong fluid could result in deteriation of shift quality and/or torque converter clutch shudder. So, by now I'm really confused.

I justdrove to thegas station to get rations- and on the way back I noticed some problems in shifting. I just read the allpar.com website about differences in AT fluids and possible fixes, but I still have questions:

Are the shiftingproblems called shift bump?
Was I wrong to assume most of the fluid was out of the tranny to just do a hose reconnect and refill?
Shouldn't a line pressure test have been done with the initial tranny servicing?
What's the correct AT fluid I should be using?
I assume I need to get rid ofthisDexron-Mercon fluid, can I unconnect the hose again and refill with the correct fluid?
Any other problems I might need to look for?

The situation explanation got a little long, but I would appreciate any help with this before making the situation worse.

Thanks in advance

 

OK your first problem was.. buying the truck when there is grinding in the transmission. thats a huge problem anytime. never "no problem". there are never any quick fixes for a transmission. secondly.. just because its raining you shouldn't have driven in 4wheel the whole time ( but why use it if you dont need.. its not going to save you from getting into an accident).4 wheel is basically if your driving in snow.. or need to get out or through mud or pulling something.
the diff between ATF3 andATF 4 is that AFT 4 is a newer version of AFT 3. atf4 is cleaner, has more cleaning and lubricating properties than atf3. its OK for your car.
at any first sound of problems with the truck you should have taken it to have the transmission rebuilt.
the back pressure from your hose popping off could be because you over filled your transmission.
also by the way.. the manual was printed before DODGE came out with ATF4.
either way. i would have your transfer case, and your transmission looked at ( since they both hold hands in the operation of your truck).
this is a major problem for any truck, and your only causing more problems by driving the crap out of it with a crap *** transmission. anyone who has a dodge will tell you dodge makes a crappy transmission.
you don't buy a dodge truck because you like the way it works. you buy them because you love them. and dont mind dropping coin on it.
when i had my transmission rebuilt it cost just over 2k to have a heavy duty transmission.
take care.. hope you fix yout truck.
Shannon


PS. hanes manuals are like map quest.. they give you directions around your elbow to get to your A-hole.
2000 dodge ram 1500 4x4 rebuilt trans over 185k miles and still going strong.

 

Everything Shannon said is true but I wanted to add a small reminder. Make sure you change your transmission filter. I have a 97 Dodge Ram that one day I was driving to work as I do everyday and my truck just slowed down to a stop. The engine was running but I had no gears. After checking everything out I couldn't find anything wrong so I towed it to a transmission shop. They told me that my tranny needed to be replaced because it was shot. They wanted about $4300. So I took it to another shop, they said it was shot and wanted $3500, again I took it to another place and they said they could rebuild it for $1500. So I went with that. A few hours later they called and said the tranny was shot and needed to charge another $1000. All they did was take the pan offand figured I needed a new tranny because they saw a few small metal shavings. I didn't hear any grinding sounds in the tranny in the first place so I really didn't believe any of the shops. So I went to the shop, picked up my truck and decided to work on it myself again. Before I did anything to it, I purchased a new filter, put it on, filled the tranny with new fluid and started it up. I haven't had any problems since. My truck has 350,000 miles and it's still running great. I saved alot of money and learned that a simple maintenance is very important. You may want to try the same thing before blowing $$ on a new tranny. Good luck.

97' Dodge Ram 1500 4x4
360 V8
350,000 miles (original owner)

 

Thanks for the help with the tranny - although I am still having problems in general with the truck. On wednesday I was on my way home when I heard a dull "pop" from the engine. Even though I pressed the gas pedal, my RPM's and speed would drop. If I repressed the gas petal, I would get acceleration again and it would be some time before the pop would happen again. The frequency of the "pop" has increased to where it happens within a block or two after coming to a stop, and will continue every few blocks. I'm guessing some sort of misfire or loss of compression in the cylinders- right now I'm rather fed up with this truck.

Any suggestions?

 

I basically have the same truck as you mines a 1998 4x4 w/ 5.2
Even tho the trans needs a rebuild...... Its either a 500 (904 w/OD) or 518 (727 w/OD)
Hmmm grinding noise in transmission in reverse - could be a bad bearing, could be broken pinion gears in the planet carrier or chipped teeth. As for poping, does it come out the intake? poping is caused by timing that is off. get some codes off the truck when you can. Lets see what you have found.

 

Hey man- thanks for the reply. I've had a bunch of problems with the truck, so when things go wrong I've started to get a little pessimistic about actually how much has to be repaired "this time". I've been doing majority of the repairs myself, until I get in over my head, and then I shell out a few bucks and take it in.

As far as the truck goes for right now- there doesn't appear to be appear to be anything major wrong with the tranny. There isn't so much a deep grind, although it does make a little bit of noise in reverse- but nothing major. I've had the noise looked at by a reputable place, and they couldn't find anything. As far as the bogging down- I assumed it was a compression problem (pessimism again), but it turns out that the bank 1 oxygen sensor was out (the c/e was on, and could tell from the code). This is the upstream sensor, which is actually in the cat. No problems once replaced.

The next thing on my agenda is passenger floor carpet keeps getting wet. I've read a few posts that suggested the A/C- but I've only had the A/C on once. After I got the carpet dried out, it was wet again a few days later and it hadn't rained inbetween. The moisture has no smell to it, so I'm thinking it's a clogged hose of some sort on the passenger side.

I keep thinking I'm over the hump with repairs, then something else comes up. Luckily for this forum, I've saved a bundle and gotten the help I've needed - thanks!

 

And by the way- despite some of the posts I've read on the website, the Dexron-Mercon Tranny fluid is just fine- atleast for my truck. The tranny actually shifts smoother and sounds better (ie. in reverse) than it did with ATF +4.

 

Sweet, As for Vehicles in general being a Dodge, Ford or Chevy these issues can happen & adding to that ANYTHING CAN HAPPEN. When you look for transmission fluid for a truck or a car ALWAYS check the dipstick because It will say the type of fluid neededon the dipstick, If not check owners manual.

 

FYI, neither Dexron nor Mercon should be use in a newer Dodge transmissions, as it will not hold up in the trans and can cause it to burn up. You should only us the type of fluid listed in the owner manual on the trans dip stick. In the case of AFT+1 through ATF+3; ATF+4 has replaced the older fluid and is backward compatible.