Rogan
US Army Tanker Vet
- Joined
- Jan 5, 2010
- Messages
- 263
So, I thought I'd bring this issue over here and see what you guys think.. It's been almost a year that I've been tinkering, fixing, replacing, etc., crap on this to try and get my 47RE to what it's supposed to be.. So here's the long read..
Middle of 2012, I picked up this 3500 DRW 12V auto 4x4. It had a little shifting problems, but wasn't hateful. It would wind up 1st gear then BAM! into 2nd, then be fine. It would only do this the first 1-2 change of the driving session. Once the engine was turned off/on, it would "reset" this process.
so I fixed that with an Output Shaft Speed Sensor (OSS) for $20. Then all of a sudden, it started going into limp mode.
Then I found out the truck was ORIGINALLY a 5 speed, and that a few owners back, swapped a Jasper auto from another truck to this one, made no changes to PCM configs, etc., and sold it. So the guy I got it from killed the trans in short order, and had it "built" by a guy in Maryland (more on this in a second)..
So guy #2 has it built with (as told to me) triple disc Suncoast, Suncoast HD VB, red clutches, kevlar bands, new auto PCM, fixed wiring harness to accomodate the automatic, etc.. Was built in 2/2012 and 3yr warranty, transferable. Okay, we'll see.
Back to the limp mode.. I tracked codes to be a Gov. Pressure Solenoid and Pressure Sensor. Took the truck to a local transmission place and paid $100 diagnostics. He ultimately told me he couldn't get into the PCM because the VIN of the truck didn't match the PCM .. What?
Bought the Borg Warner HD solenoid and sensor, a drain plug, gasket, and 8qts of fluid to do the job. Completed that, and it shifted much better. But OD was still amiss.. It would shift into OD immediately after the 2-3 shift. Then it would 'slip' through OD until the speed was up to around 40mph, then it felt normal.
Apparently, the trans builder was Eastern Performance Diesel.. That answers a lot of questions now, huh?
I noticed the OD button wasn't wired up, or into the PCM, so I did that. I also (at the same time) wired up a TCC lockup switch, pulled the Trans Control Relay, and placed a jumper between pins 30 and 87. This made the truck much easier to tow with, and felt so much easier on the transmission.
After some more wiring fixes, like actually adding the OSS wires from the sensor into the PCM (they, too, were missing.) I got tired of dicking around with a hodge-podged harness, so I bought a '96 auto PCM and harness off of a fellow CompD member. I installed that, so the harness was now 99% unmolested. 99% because I had to change 2 plugs from my old harness to the '96 harness. Wire colors and all were same, just the connectors were a little different.
Adjusted the tv cable, and away I went.. Now, I realized that the TCC lockup switch didn't work quite as well as it used to.. I.E., if the TCC switch is on, and I forgot to turn it off before coming to a stop, it no longer bogged the truck.. Just acted like a normal auto trans.
Pulled the jumper, replaced the Trans Ctrl Relay, and it immediately goes into Limp mode as soon as a gear is selected. Bought a new relay, also swapped with horn relay; no change, same issue. Several codes, too (don't have them handy at the moment.) Pull relay back out, place jumper, clear codes, and they stay gone.. Re-install relay and they come back with Limp mode.
Made a TPS pot (5k linear), and tried that, in place of the TPS. Worked awesome-.. for a little while. 40mi into a 50 mile trip, it just decided to drop out of OD @ 65mph.. Pulled over, checked connections, all seemed good. Started truck, and the OD was working again.
Return trip home, it worked great. Then, about 40-45minutes into the trip, it dropped out again. After 3rd time, I unplugged the pot, and reconnected the TPS and went back to manual shifting the rest of the way home.
Towing even as little as 3-5000lb, the trans really seems to labor with anything above about 2% grade. Even slow, pulling my 20ft trailer up a 4% grade driveway, 1st gear, it really seems to struggle, transmission-wise.. Temps will climb from about 150F to 190-200F in under a minute..
I don't have a DRB3, nor access to one. I'd really just love to take this truck back to a 5speed, but that's not financially feasible. I can't keep wasting time on trying to figure out what's wrong, either, but I have to..
Any input is greatly appreciated.
:bow:
Middle of 2012, I picked up this 3500 DRW 12V auto 4x4. It had a little shifting problems, but wasn't hateful. It would wind up 1st gear then BAM! into 2nd, then be fine. It would only do this the first 1-2 change of the driving session. Once the engine was turned off/on, it would "reset" this process.
so I fixed that with an Output Shaft Speed Sensor (OSS) for $20. Then all of a sudden, it started going into limp mode.
Then I found out the truck was ORIGINALLY a 5 speed, and that a few owners back, swapped a Jasper auto from another truck to this one, made no changes to PCM configs, etc., and sold it. So the guy I got it from killed the trans in short order, and had it "built" by a guy in Maryland (more on this in a second)..
So guy #2 has it built with (as told to me) triple disc Suncoast, Suncoast HD VB, red clutches, kevlar bands, new auto PCM, fixed wiring harness to accomodate the automatic, etc.. Was built in 2/2012 and 3yr warranty, transferable. Okay, we'll see.
Back to the limp mode.. I tracked codes to be a Gov. Pressure Solenoid and Pressure Sensor. Took the truck to a local transmission place and paid $100 diagnostics. He ultimately told me he couldn't get into the PCM because the VIN of the truck didn't match the PCM .. What?
Bought the Borg Warner HD solenoid and sensor, a drain plug, gasket, and 8qts of fluid to do the job. Completed that, and it shifted much better. But OD was still amiss.. It would shift into OD immediately after the 2-3 shift. Then it would 'slip' through OD until the speed was up to around 40mph, then it felt normal.
Apparently, the trans builder was Eastern Performance Diesel.. That answers a lot of questions now, huh?
I noticed the OD button wasn't wired up, or into the PCM, so I did that. I also (at the same time) wired up a TCC lockup switch, pulled the Trans Control Relay, and placed a jumper between pins 30 and 87. This made the truck much easier to tow with, and felt so much easier on the transmission.
After some more wiring fixes, like actually adding the OSS wires from the sensor into the PCM (they, too, were missing.) I got tired of dicking around with a hodge-podged harness, so I bought a '96 auto PCM and harness off of a fellow CompD member. I installed that, so the harness was now 99% unmolested. 99% because I had to change 2 plugs from my old harness to the '96 harness. Wire colors and all were same, just the connectors were a little different.
Adjusted the tv cable, and away I went.. Now, I realized that the TCC lockup switch didn't work quite as well as it used to.. I.E., if the TCC switch is on, and I forgot to turn it off before coming to a stop, it no longer bogged the truck.. Just acted like a normal auto trans.
Pulled the jumper, replaced the Trans Ctrl Relay, and it immediately goes into Limp mode as soon as a gear is selected. Bought a new relay, also swapped with horn relay; no change, same issue. Several codes, too (don't have them handy at the moment.) Pull relay back out, place jumper, clear codes, and they stay gone.. Re-install relay and they come back with Limp mode.
Made a TPS pot (5k linear), and tried that, in place of the TPS. Worked awesome-.. for a little while. 40mi into a 50 mile trip, it just decided to drop out of OD @ 65mph.. Pulled over, checked connections, all seemed good. Started truck, and the OD was working again.
Return trip home, it worked great. Then, about 40-45minutes into the trip, it dropped out again. After 3rd time, I unplugged the pot, and reconnected the TPS and went back to manual shifting the rest of the way home.
Towing even as little as 3-5000lb, the trans really seems to labor with anything above about 2% grade. Even slow, pulling my 20ft trailer up a 4% grade driveway, 1st gear, it really seems to struggle, transmission-wise.. Temps will climb from about 150F to 190-200F in under a minute..
I don't have a DRB3, nor access to one. I'd really just love to take this truck back to a 5speed, but that's not financially feasible. I can't keep wasting time on trying to figure out what's wrong, either, but I have to..
Any input is greatly appreciated.
:bow:
