'01.5 ram, 6 speed auto tranny?

I've heard of T-1000 Allison's being retro-fitted to Dodges from Chevrolets as well as heavy duty Allisons from medium duty trucks being used. If you're serious, and bucks up I think the Chevy retro-fit is the way to go especailly since yours is 4x4. I know there was a VERY long thread on

about it. Quad 4x4 up your way may know about it as well.

is this easier than retro-fitting a current production dodge 6 speed?

also i have the banks exhaust brake and controller. will the controller work with a tranny different from the 47RE? thanks,

Nathan In Montana

Personally, I'd ask Banks. I'm sure their knowledge is better WRT this. (an example, some engines/transmissions the exhaust brake controller also locks the torque converter, and you'd have to ensure that is either unnecessary or supported.)

What I read was the Dodge six speed tranny, good as it is, was too much software hassles to overcome for a retrofit. I know on my Ramcharger ('07

5.7 Hemi retrofit) I can't enable the MDS because I don't have a body control computer, go figure. The 545 RFE tranny shifts fine though...hmm...

I doubt your Banks stuff will work at all with another transmission but ask Banks to be certain.

Z2dnUVZ snipped-for-privacy@bresnan.com...

You should post some pics of your Ramcharger (or provide a link if you already have); sounds sweet!

I've uploaded all the photos I have here:

link with some of the story here:

My "todo" list is getting pretty short now.

1. Add cruise control
2. Fix vacuum leak, I can hear it, can't find it.
3. Fix speedometer, it reads about 60% now. The Dakoata Digital wasn't set right to begin with, it was reading about 93%.. Either it's not working correctly or something else has gone wrong.
4. Recharge A/C with R-12, despite telling them to use the original R-12 I FURNISHED R-12 for them and they didn't use it so it has R-134A right now. That won't work in the Texas summer, pretty inadequate.

Other gripes, the original computer is completely unhooked but remaains in place behind the battery while the new computer hangs out on the inner fenderwell. Why they didn't pull the original and replace it with the new, I don't know. The OBD II connector is in the freaking MIDDLE of the firewall facing UPWARDS to draining rain water. Sloppy and stupid, IMHO. I doubt I'll be moving either of these, the harness is too expensive (and short) to be fooling with. I need a protective cover for the OBD II connector. The Ramcharger hangs out in the garage when rain is expected, like today.

Speaking of stupid, and there's multiple culprits here, the transmission failed completely a couple of months ago. In the original installation they hooked up only the radiator cooler, bypassed the factory auxiliary cooler. Their new cooler lines weren't well done, one of the fittings failed blocking cooler flow compltetely. This manifested itself as a stalling problem when coming to a stop. Eventually, and it didn't take long you couldn't get it into drive without it stalling. I had a transmiision shop "fix" the problem but it still didn't shift correctly but they said it shifts fine, no codes so I drove it. One day it just failed altogether going down the highway, wouldn't move, couldn't drop it in gear at all without stalling. Couldn't force it or bully it into gear, just stalled like you turned it off.

I called a friend of mine whose full time business is transmissions and he rebuilt it up right and replumbed the cooler lines correctly, bypassed all the factory coolers and installed a 30,000 GVW cooler. The trans works flawlessly now. He said the converter clutch failed, converter clutch material plugged the filter and fried the trans. I guess it could have been failing for a while and fouling the solenoid pack?

After that I fixed the shift quadrant to read correctly. Drive was just a bit left of indicated neutral and shift effort was very high. It was hard to select a gear, they were so close together and applying enough pressure to the shifter to get it to move you'd overshoot the gear you wanted. It's difficult to push (or pull) hard for only a quarter of an inch and stop. Now it reads correctly and shift effort is higher than stock but quite normal feeling now. The original installer told me it was this way because we replaced a three speed transmission with a five speed, please...both transmissions have only three detents. They're just positioned differently. I fabricated a longer arm for the shift linkage to move the pivot point and took care of it easily. That's what the original installer should have done.

Anyway, had I known all the problems I was going to run into I'd never had done this. Now that I'm near the end of the road it almost seems worth it. It's a VERY nice truck, the pictures aren't good enough.

thanks everybody. i was hoping someone would tell me there is a 6 speed bolt-up. any opinions on the best 47RE out there?

Nathan In Montana

I don't know about "best" by any means but I've driven Bill Kondolay's (sp?) truck with his DTT trans and converter. It was VERY nice, perfect shifts and the converter was ideally matched to his engine's (high) power level. Had I not run out of patience with the auto in my old truck this is the wasy I would've gone.

I had one of Bill's transmissions and converter in a 2002 4X4. Scott at Mass Diesel did the install and set up. The whole deal was fantastic from the first phone call, to the finish, first class all the way.