meledward23 said:
Thanks all. Looking at your links.
The truck is an automatic. It is one nice hauling machine. I really enjoy it despite that it is a dodge. And I believe it will keep running for quite some time just needs a little fixing to with a hammer.
Don't be too quick to replace or rebuild that transmission. I had mine rebuilt at 160k miles and added a new torque converter. The thing was slipping so bad when cold that I could not climb my driveway's gentle hill . It worked well after the rebuild so I thought nothing more about it.
At 300k, it started to do the same thing again, so I took it into the same shop that rebuilt it the first time. They said it needed another rebuild, but the shop had changed owners and I didn't trust the guy.
The truck acted like a nightmare. It would not shift or not go into overdrive and slip like crazy. I thought a couple of times it was going to fall out of the truck because it shook and shuddered so bad.
After checking all the websites, the only things I found were the TPS and a special electrical shielding that would keep noise out of the thottle position sensor (TPS) circuit. So I replaced the TPS and cleaned the battery terminals. That didn't help much.
Then I started reading about the Power Control Module (PCM) and how it was the computer that controlled the shifting. I read that many of the later models of truck (not '96s like ours) had a reflash and cured the transmission problem.
Hmm...the PCM is really a computer...Hmm...The lights started to come on in my head. I decided to do what I'd do to my PC if it started to really act up. I needed a cold reboot. To perform this, I completely disconnected both battery terminals so there is no power (like turning off a PC). Only with the PCM, you need to do it for several hours (like overnight) because it retains the program for short time disconnects.
The next morning, I got up and reconnected the terminals to the battery and my transmission suddenly started working like a new one. It shifts perfectly and has continued to work for 50k miles. What I needed was a PCM "reboot."
This might not be your problem, but it is sure cheap and easy to check. Make sure you take the opportunity to clean your cables really well while they are disconnected. Take off all the accessory and ground connections and clean them too so you have perfect electrical connections when you reconnect after letting it sit overnight.
If this doesn't fix it, then continue looking for a transmission shop or a new transmission. My guess is that you might be pleasantly surprised.
