rockhound

new to the board hey to everyone here

i realize there is another thred that deals with this but i can't stand it at the moment

i picked up my new 05, 3500, dually crew cab, 4x4 last week.

love the truck hate the tow haul mode in this thing.

what am i doing wrong? dealer says it is functioning properly. can i defeat this thing with a new program?

i have a 12k lb load that i pull on a regular basis. i live in the colorado mountains and commute to denver every day. so i pull grades everyday either loaded or unloaded

the thing will not stay out of overdrive. if i hit the t/h mode button it will shift in to third if i hit the gas at any time it will shift back into overdrive whether i have a load on or not, whether i am on a grade or not. i can't control the load.

if i let the thing brake down to about 50 mph it automatically shifts into second, way to fast in my opinion for second gear. in the winter this little feature will get me killed.

the only way i can get the thing back into third from overdrive is to force the truck into passing gear which of course hurtles me down the grade at an even more fun rate of speed or to disengage and reingage the t/h mode. which works until i hit the gas for any reason.

it seems this thing can't find the right gear if i handed it to it on a silver platter

i have been hauling heavy loads with different truck for nearly 12 years. this is the worst tranny setup i have seen yet.

can i defeat this system? has anyone else been so disappointed in their truck for this reason?

is there a programming change i can make?

bluepp

Join the croud, The 2006 fixed the problem by adding a 4th gear lockout. I see no reason why the 2005 cant be reflashed to add the 4th lockout also. Its going to take some major by the 2005 owners

natstayl

I thought you could pull the shifter down one click, it keeps the tranny from overdrive...??? Have you tried it?
Nat

bluepp

That would lock it into 2nd . No way can you hold it in 3rd.

rockhound

so im not the only one.

my dealer is calling dodge to find out what he can do for me today ill let you know what happens

if i don't get anywhere today ill go to the regional rep

grandblanc

If I hit the T/H button on mine it will lock out of 4th and stay in 3rd. I understand the 2005's are different and work they way you are explaining. I wish the Trans would down shift like the Allison's do when slowing down, that would be great.

theextricator

My 03 had the od lockout which I hated. My 05 has the tow haul and I like it. All it does is keep the converter locked longer. I like the way the truck tows in tow/haul but I haven't had anything else other than my Hemi to compare to.

rockhound

the 05 does down shift like the allison's. mine seems to do it at the wrong time.

drops into 2nd at 50 mph+



theextricator. do you pull 6% grades up and down for over ten miles at a whack out there in jersey. My guess is no. in colorado this thing is a problem.

theextricator

Rockhound. I do pull my 6500lb trailer to Maine once a year and there are two 5% grades for about 6 miles each. My 05 stays in od in tow/haul mode and does great. I have never had it shift down to second. I have had it shift into 3rd while passing other cars then it would go back into 4th. Now that same trip towing with my old 03 Hemi is a different story! My 03 used to downshift on flat roads so this CTD is a dream compared to the Hemi I used to own. I have only had this truck since 4th of July weekend and have only towed three times with it. I am sure that the more I tow I will see the need for the lockout feature but as of right now I love it the way it is.

Lee S

As long as you're goin faster than 50 mph (or so--there's some variation), you can shift to 2nd and the transmission will only go out of OD into direct 3rd gear. It will hold in 3rd until you're under 50 mph or so. It does that to keep the engine from over-revving.

I don't know if that's useful information or not. I haven't tried it while towing but I can confirm it's the way my truck responds when empty.

rockhound

lee,

mine seems to go into 2nd above 50 mph

seems high to meif i shift into 2nd on the selector i don't like the shift point at 50mph+ too many rpms and way to harsh a slow down on ice ill slide there is no doubt

dealer scoped the truck a says it is calibrated properly

Aloha

Some people love it... some people don't care... and then there are people like me... I HATE THE DARN TOW/HAUL MODE!!! Living in the mountains I can say that this "feature" is virtually useless. I called a few trans shops in my area... looks to cost about $2500 to get the parts and labor to replace the torque converter, new 300M input shaft, and some valvebody work. I've tried talking to the dealership who tried talkting to STAR.... that went nowhere about as fast as my truck hurtles down the local grades.

bluepp

Lee S
Does the toque converter clutch lockup in 3rd when you do this???

Dan_K

I have complained about this feature a few times on my 05. If its so great, why didn't it come on the 06? I don't have complaints about going downhill, but going uphill the truck will eventually shift into OD. Give it a little throttle and it will drop back down. Steady the speed, and its back into OD. (same situation while driving slow through town) The truck does downshift like the Allison while slowing down, but it is in no way close to as controlled or accurate as the Allison, in fact it shouldn't even be compared.
I love my truck, but the way this feature was explained to me at the dealership, and the short test drive I had was not enough to realize the bad characterisics of this tow/haul mode. I found out the minute I hooked up a trailer, and its bad enough that I probably would have moved on to another brand.
DK

bluepp

Dan K.
The 4th lockout IS back for 2006 . Read the threads on this . I personally have drove the 2006 and its in there along with the tow haul mode. I have complained to the dealers and salespeople all year about the fact they droped the 4th lockout for 2005 . Mostly they dont know what your talking about ,and the rest try to convince you the 2005 is so smart that its in the right gear all the time !!!. Bottom line the 2005 48re is a lousy setup. Now the 2006 Has been corrected but the dealers dont know it because they just dont understand the problem to start with. Even the salespeople I at all year, dont realise the fix and I'v had to take them right to there own trucks on there own lots and show them. And then they just dont get the message.