Two weeks ago I unexpectedly and without warning lost reverse in my 02 R/T Dakota 46RE transmission.
More details about the old tranny here: (http://www.dakotart.com/forum/showthread.php?t=32184)
All the forward gears and shift points worked fine. I scrutinized the fluid inside and found it to be burnt in color and smell. With 147,000 miles on the original tranny I realized that my daily driver needed more than just a part or two replaced in order to survive.
I was forced to drive the truck 400 miles more while researching all my options. During that time I stumbled across this deal from Mother Mopar. This choice is a cost effective solution and with some coordination it will have the fastest turn around time of all other options. I cant wait on a shop or a professional to rebuild the original tranny because the R/T has daily driver status. Obviously these are OEM trannys and would not be the best pick for high horsepower applications. There are 200 of these units(#5083387-AA) available from any local Dodge dealership for a $1000 ea, plus tax. They are said to fit 01,02,03 ONLY. Anyone buying one of these should verify fitment to their vehicle using the last 8 digits of the VIN and the actual Dodge part or engineering number on your current oem tranny. This new unit comes with some kind of warranty (unsure of), also comes with a new torque converter and bolts, there is NO core and it's utterly complete and ready to install. There should be no shipping if picking up in person at a local dealership. Even the crate is sturdy and reusable enough to send the old tranny out for a performance rebuild.
The only real down side to this is the fact that these units are new-old-stock and have been sitting around for ten or eleven years. Mine is dated 2003. They are sealed up very well and I would not expect any real issues due to age, other than changing the front seal. These trannys are plug and play for the intended applications.
For whatever reason these were to be installed in new unsold vehicles as stated in the paperwork. It basically says that any other vehicle would be required to order and use the remanufactured tranny (part# R2854068RL). So since the remans are no longer available at a whopping $3500, the new units are a bargain.
I suppose it's possible that other years are available too but I really don't have the time to research that with a tranny swap at hand. If someone else finds out I can add the info here.
Any suggestions or info pertaining is welcomed. Enjoy the pics and click on the thumbnails to supersize.
Also, I wil be adding photos and details to this thread as they develop. This is meant to share and to help others like me.
UPDATE: FRONT SEAL FAILED WHILE FILLING WITH FLUID. CHANGE FRONT SEAL BEFORE INSTALLING NEW TRANNY, YOU WILL THANK ME LATER! I believe that the white plastic input shaft guard has deformed the front seals over the years of storage. Plenty of quality time spent installing the 46re a second time. lmao. I recommend the use of a trans jack also and maybe even a friend, just in case.
Also, you might consider installing a new dipstick tube grommet. I had to reuse my old one and it's working fine, just wish I had a new one in hand.
Over 250 miles so far and trans is working great. Actually, I can't believe how much better or stronger the truck drives.
Also, it took 12 quarts of fluid to fill with new cooling lines installed.
SECOND UPDATE 2/7/15:
Noticed the truck getting kind of slow and non responsive with about 7500 miles on the new trans. Checked and found T.V. cable to be too loose. Adjusted per service manual and she screams again. So, somewhere around the 7000-7500 mile mark one should double check the T.V. cable adjustment.
After finding a second adjustment necessary, I climbed under the truck only to find that the T.V. linkage had come loose from the input shaft on the tranny. Corrective measures taken and all is well again.
THIRD UPDATE 5/19/15:
These transmissions can be retro fitted to earlier year apllications with some parts swapped out.
List of known new 46RE owners:
1.) Motorhead
2.) spence340
3.) Steve '02CC
4.) SynRG
5.) CNTHOOK
6.) rapidrus
7.) BLKDAK
8.) Cregger
9.) Racer99
10.) robmitc7
11.) SupaMan86
12.) wdh681
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