can anyone tell me what the edit is going on with my tranny?? it's at the dealer now ... it went in 2 days ago because it got stuck in high gear?? i installed a BD short shifter 8 months ago never had a problem. now the dealer says they test drove it yesturday and got it to move 1234 no 5th or 6th??? so can anyone help with this problem?? thanks

 

I would toss the stock shifter back on and see if it is a linkage or tranny issue, I 'll keep fingers crossed that this is all the problem is... sure it may have worked for a while but now isn't making the tranny do what ya tell it to.

 

thanks for the info.. i was wondering if the dealer would try that first?? my concerns are they will say NO WARRANTY on problem, your freaking shifter caused the problem?? either way i thought there might be a quick solution to why no 5th6th gear?? whats strange is just driving home after a "new" head unit was installed, i was ready to up shift to 6th and nobody home?? then coasted to stop and tried to start out in 1st or 2nd nothing just stayed in high gear?? so slipped the clutch to get me moving and crawled home1/8 mile..coasted down hill to house. so in 2 days sitting at dealer they start it up and BOOM right into gear?????????? someone explain that?? i think i will call my truck CHRISTINE 2.... thanks for the info dude

 

If you have a warranty, and the dealer does not know about the shift kit, they will just swap transmission assemblies with a rebuilt from Dodge.

Most likely your problem is that the third gear which is pressed on the shaft has worked back and caused your forks to missalign and bind the gate in which the the shift lever slides. That will lock the transmission in 5th or 6th, and then after the transmission gets cold and the case contracts, the shifter will drop back in the neutral slot and then will not find 5 or 6 because the gate now locks out the 5th and overdrive slider.

This is a problem that happens mostly on 4X4's on which people have either installed an overdrive, or on a rig that is regularly used to pull heavy loads. If you have an overdrive installed, also take the time to inspect your transfer case for a longitudinal crack across the bottom.

 

let me start by saying thanks for the reply to my post...

i have built some motors in my time and lifted some trucks but never worked on tranny's???

your expert opinion has open my eyes to some possiable answers to getting this truck fixed. the 3rd gear thats "pressed" on sounds interesting? and after the tranny cooled down they were able to get it to move through the gears?? interesting. a little back ground on my truck.. installed a banks 6 gun with speed loader about 1yr/1/2 ago. also a 4" exhaust from turbo back with a big head wastegate accu unit. after installing the banks "computer" about 3 months later my "clutch" would slip under fast acceleration.. it started with switch in 6 posistion and slowly advanced down to 4... so i know then in the future i would need to "beef" up the clutch!! i was told by banks and many other folks that did this up grade that my nv5600 would and can hold the added horses. so didn't think anything of it till later on when clutch started slipping etc..

so here i'am 1000 miles away from home, trying to get back to work before i'm broke... and this happends.

to answer the overdrive unit and shift kit thing........ i installed a BD SHORT SHIFTER... from bd power.. it took like 15min to install very easy. never a problem with the shifting travel or shifting points..installed around 8 months ago i think???

i never installed a "overdrive" unit to my truck. i wish i had a few extra gears tho?? so the "crack" you talked about shouldn't be there right?? i use this truck for work. i build houses and install custom tile. i have never towed any heavy loads except for one time. i think the weight of "marble" on the trailer was somewhere around 14,0000lbs? so for that one trip thats it. this "short shifter" is a modifided version of the stock one.. i would of NEVER INSTALLED this product if it had any real problems in the past? it's been on the market now for 4yrs i think? i have done alot of reaserch with owners and shops that have installed them before... not one time that i'm aware or even BD is concerned that this shifter has caused my problem.

takes me to this... i'm sure by adding more horse and bigger tires lift kits and such, you change some things that can and maybe cause failure. so you do your homework and go for it with confidence that things should hold up and be ok.. so at this point after calling BD and a company out in nevada i think, that "re build's" nv5600 and sells them and after talking to both parties they say at this point going to RULE out that the "shifter" has NOT caused the problem??? i'm so sick over this whole thing right now...

monday morning the dealer will look inside my case and let me know whats going on?? i'm so stressed out at this point, because i can't fix it. any more info or feedback from RCW or anyone would be appreciated..thanks RCW for the help..

 

My response is going to raise all sorts of ire, but is based on my experience with high horsepower trucks and what happens with that transmission.

The NV5600 will handle just about anything you throw at it, so long as you do not try to speed shift the transmission, drag race the thing, squirrel the truck, run over 350 horses on an extended hard pull with a heavy load, or pull a very heavy load in 6th. Use it for what it was intended, and it will last a very long time as long as there was not a manufacturing defect.

There are some very real issues with the transmission, and likely the main reason it was discontinued. Those include the extraordinary length of the main and input shaft coupled with a very thin case casting which allows the main shaft assembly to torque under load and whip such that there are huge amounts of internal deflection when the transmission is worked near or over its rated limit; and, the assembly line production methods used on the 6 speed are not as precise as what would be done by a skilled transmission tech setting one up to live, so the OEM assembly clearances are generally left to the excessive side of the equation and this leads to loading and unloading (nailing the throttle and then backing off) driving the gears and shafts forward and backward just like a slide hammer which will eventually drive third gear down the shaft, and beats out the case clearances.

If you up the power and then use it judiciously, the transmission will handle it fairly well, but ten minutes of hot rodding can ruin one very quickly. I have no idea how you used the thing, but this is my experience.

I have installed a number of the BD short shift units, mostly for kids (folks under 30), and they have all performed very well as long as the transmission is not banged around. So, I doubt that is your problem as long as it is properly installed and nothing has worked loose, and you have not attempted to speed shift the transmission.

It is highly unlikely you will have a crack on the transfer case housing without the overdrive installed. What the overdrive does is work like a long prybar and causes the transfer case to deflect and crack when you put a lot of torque to the rear differential. The driveline pushes sideways and up on the overdrive unit, and that twists the transfer case with that extra length present.

Unless you have been out dragging and speed shifting, I would expect the problem is excessive third gear setback from a factory installation problem that simply cropped up. Do a bit of nosing around the TSB's on the truck and you will likely find a third gear and shaft replacement warranty offered by the dealers for customers that experienced this particular problem.

Some dealers do not service enough of the diesels to be up on the TSB's, so sometimes it is up to the customer to help them out a bit. There are transmission TSB's from 2001 that also apply to the 2004 trucks, so you have to check a few model years.

 

i can explain with more "excact" detail with my trans problem over the phone?? if your game i would appreciate if we could do this?? all this help has been appreciated !!!!! i would like to call you asap. you can leave your number "if you feel ok" at my e mail addy... clarke29579@yahoo.com let me know either way??? again thanks for the info. i wait for your reply.