L&M Transmission Install

ShortBed said:

From what Mike tells me the Sharadon trans is different than his. He still retains springs in his valve body, where Sharadon removes the springs and uses pipe so that there is no give for shift changes. Very harsh. Also he retains the automatic feature for normal driving. I believe that Sharadon is a manual valve body. I am not 100% sure though.

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Most of this statement above is false
There is only so much one can change with a 545RFE
You either machine the case to allow for more clutches or you machine other parts to allow for more clutches.

Hemi_Express2013 said:

When I was at Arrington, Justin was telling me of a guy that did just that on his '12. The diesel transmission was the only tranny that would hold up to the TQ. After going through 2 rebuilds, he got it figured out. I will find out the details while I'm there if any can be given. There would seem to be something very technical with the intergraded TCM/PCM though. It could save me a lot of money. I'm sure for all of us.

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This was from another thread. It would be a pretty awesome option(putting a diesel transmission in there)

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A machined 66 with extra and better clutches would seem to be an easier swap and be just as strong

The down side is the 66 has different gear ratios compared to the 545 and programming that into the PCM is apparently very difficult/impossible if you talk to some of the CMR guys.

fasthemiram12 said:

Most of this statement above is false
There is only so much one can change with a 545RFE
You either machine the case to allow for more clutches or you machine other parts to allow for more clutches.

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Just for the heck of it, what part of what I said is wrong, or was all of it wrong. I am only going by what I was told. Didn't mean to put up any information that isn't correct, that's why I said I wasn't 100% sure. So the Stage three Sharadon trans does use springs? and it is an automatic valve body? I talked to Don at Sharadon and he told me that when he is done it was set up as a manual valve body. I guess you could have him build it different from the standard Stage 3. Sorry to misinform anyone.

How do I get ahold of mike at L&M transmissions? Does he have a website?

How is your trans holding up?

Jerseymike said:

How is your trans holding up?

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Hey, what happened with your tranny? Did you get it checked out???

charonblk07 said:

The down side is the 66 has different gear ratios compared to the 545 and programming that into the PCM is apparently very difficult/impossible if you talk to some of the CMR guys.

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Correct, you cannot use CMR. Dave Kasper has his Chrysler tools. He's probably the only aftermarket capable.

DavidRam said:

Hey, what happened with your tranny? Did you get it checked out???

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I got the dreaded 'Incorrect Ratio 4th gear' code. I think some clutches are burned up. I talked to Mike @ L & M. He advised to drive it for a while to see if the trans just needs to relearn after having the battery cable off for an amp install. But it seems to be slipping from 4th to 5th(no overdrive), so Im thinking its shot. Im going to go to the dealer this week and see what they think. From what I gather they can hook up to the pcm and see if the clutches are out of tolerance to confirm my diagnosis. I have had the truck less than a year so Im pretty bummed. They reason I got a new truck was because my 14 year old jeep was breaking down to much. So Im kinda at a loss right now as to what I am going to do.

Edge 2600 tc

ShortBed said:

Just wanted to see if anyone else has gone with one of Mikes custom Transmissions. Right now my 2nd to 3rd gear change is harsh to say the least. The more I drive it, it seems to be getting a little less. Truck feels way stronger with the new friction discs installed. I need to baby it for about three hundred miles, then I will be able to get my foot into it. Turns out the stock trans with the Edge 2600 converter ate thru the stock friction discs. Also the second gear discs were cone shaped and heat marks all over them. Fourth and overdrive were just bare metal. Now with the rebuild and having more friction discs, the trans has to relearn shift patterns ect. I will have to post some pics of the discs that came out. Let me know if anyone else has the same issues. Thanks.

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Hey shortbed, glad ur enjoying ur new tranny. Thanks for sharing. Are still using tht edge tc? This post made me a little concered though. I have a edge 2600 stall tc in my stock tranny. Is the edge tc a issue in stock transmissions? Thanks

Man....I better get on the tranny bandwagon soon.

I don't drive hard, but I like getting on it every now and then. Anybody know of a shop in EDMONTON that build good 545rfe's?? Id hate to yank the tranny and ship it across north america

Jerseymike said:

I got the dreaded 'Incorrect Ratio 4th gear' code. I think some clutches are burned up. I talked to Mike @ L & M. He advised to drive it for a while to see if the trans just needs to relearn after having the battery cable off for an amp install. But it seems to be slipping from 4th to 5th(no overdrive), so Im thinking its shot. Im going to go to the dealer this week and see what they think. From what I gather they can hook up to the pcm and see if the clutches are out of tolerance to confirm my diagnosis. I have had the truck less than a year so Im pretty bummed. They reason I got a new truck was because my 14 year old jeep was breaking down to much. So Im kinda at a loss right now as to what I am going to do.

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Damn, real sorry to hear that... I think our trannys are crap and with the little extra power we add combined with some fun driving they can't hang.

I have accepted that my tranny will go quick, and then I will put an awesome one in it. I feel better and worry less since accepting that.

Please let us know what the dealer says, especially in regards to your mods, the warranty and all that... I am guessing your just returning your DS to stock, are you doing anything else before you go to the dealer??

I took my truck in to the dealer this week. The trans was getting worse and wouldnt even go into overdrive anymore. I talked with Mike at L & M and he suggested I just take it in to the dealer and see what they say. I couldnt really go back to the stock tune because I removed the cats. So I was just straight up honest with all my mods. I think I got lucky with a nice service writer who went to bat for me with the manager. So it looks like they are going to fix it under warranty. He said they have had several trucks in with blown transmissions so they will fix it this time but if it blows again Im on my own.

They actually took it in the next day and opened it up. They found a broken snap ring and metal in the valve body. They have to order a new valve body and do a complete overhaul. So its going to take 3 weeks. Yikes!! I am literally stranded at home. I live in the country so I cant even walk anywhere. The dealer will not provide a loaner since I didnt buy an extended warranty from them. Oh well just glad to be getting it fixed.

Now I am trying to decide on how to de-tune so the trans last longer than 1 year. I kinda need the tuner to tune out the cats or I could pick up a set of cats from someone on here and go back to stock tune. I liked the BD tuner and in hindsight wish I would have stayed at that level of mods and called it a day. The other option is to get MGH to write a 'safe' trans tune for me. Maybe he can add torque management back in and/or dial down line pressure and/or lower shift points. I dont really know the answer, I just know I dont want my new truck to break again. Im way to old to be trapped at home for 3 weeks.

If you're replacing the valve body why not go with a Stage II or Stage III VB and add a level of protection to the trans rather than just stick a stock VB back in and detune?

The dealer said they have to rebuild it to factory spec or I have to pay for the rebuild. I already asked and I didnt want to push the issue since they could just not do it under warranty. Mike said I could install a shift kit and he would write a tune and that would get me stronger than stock and should be good for my mods. Im just gonna chill with the truck. Im looking to move down to Florida soon( before winter) so that will be my focus for a while.

Fair enough, I've been there before and just had to let everything be for the time being. Glad to hear you're getting it fixed though, and being upfront about the mods probably made it better for you rather than trying to hide things.

Yeah. I just miss my truck. Whenever I get stressed I would go for a drive. Logged 16,000 miles the first year(mostly 0-60 @ WOT). It was a tough year.

Lee Brice - I Drive Your Truck (Official Music Video) - YouTube

They used a Ford for the video but the real truck is a Ram.

I'm sending my L&M trans back to Mike for a re-build this week.

I don't trust anyone else to do the work that will get me back on the road,
even if it means shipping it across the country for a $500 FedEx bill.

Riding the Motorcycle until its done, rain or shine.

Yeah. He has been super helpful. And I didnt even get anything from him yet. I was looking at bikes today on-line. Already going a little stir crazy.