2014 Ram 1500 Transmission temp question

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Christopher W

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I have a 2014 Ram 1500 with the 8 speed automatic transmission. I brought it used with 32000 miles and drove it for 9 months running it up over 40000 miles. I brought it to the dealer because of harsh shifting and lagging in the transmission. I also had 3 occasions that the tranny temp spiked at 275 degrees and ran in normal driving at 230 degrees, which I assumed was due to the mechanical problems it had.
The dealer ran a diagnostic and decided that the clutches were all maxed out and could repair the hard shifting so they changed the entire transmission and cooler under the "certified pre-owned" warranty.
Problem is with the brand new transmission, it shifts beautiful and runs great , but under normal every day driving, it also runs at 220-230 degrees under daily driving. In all my research it seems that this is high and while it won't literally breakdown because of this I am probably dramatically shortening the life of what is a brand new tranny. My service advisor informed me via email, "I just spoke with my head technician, we checked in the Jeep (sic: he meant Dodge) database, there is no published operating temperature for this transmission. However, there is a transmission over temperature warning that will set a check engine light if the temperature gets too high. Basically if there is no light, its ok." But I see almost all research and posts by other owners indicate the transmission should run at around 190 degrees.
Any insight anyone has on this would be greatly appreciated. Maybe a part they can look at, a spec from a mannual I can refer them to, or even if you all agree, this is nothing for me to worry about. Thanks in advance for any knowledge you guys can share.
 

huntergreen

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Mine runs at the 190 mark.
 
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Christopher W

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Mine runs at the 190 mark.
Thanks. 190 seems to be the most common temp. I just wish I could find some definitive info or spec sheet to refer the dealer to so he would address it as opposed to saying that 220 to 230 is acceptable just because there's no printed specs. Thanks
 

DaddyGouge

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I'm in Texas. Dead of summer the highest I seen it go was 17 . Cruising is about 145 with the 6 SPD. I don't know if I should worry that it's that low compared to everyone else lol
 

James OBrien

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Did they replace the combo A/C and Transmission cooler when they did your swap? Sure sounds like you've got some sort of problem/blockage there. I don't know if bits of clutchpacks/metal can get through the filter and clog the cooler but it sounds like you're not cooling effectively.
 

QwikKota

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I'm in Texas. Dead of summer the highest I seen it go was 17 . Cruising is about 145 with the 6 SPD. I don't know if I should worry that it's that low compared to everyone else lol

6 speed doesn't run as hot. I don't think you want to see over 175 whereas the 8 speed runs hotter but I would avoid over 200 if possible.
 

grizzstang

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These transmissions have a thermal bypass to insure the trans heats up quickly and runs at warmer temps. These transmissions don't like the cold and it improves fuel economy.

Yours is running too hot by far and I suspect they reused your faulty thermal bypass when they switched out your trans. There is a thread or two on here about it and how to change it out. The good news is it is not overly expensive, the bad news is the dealer will tell you your temps are normal and hope your trans dies out of warranty.
 
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Plexiglass

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For further reference, 2014 5.7 4x4, Towing boat (5000 lb total) for about an hour this past weekend on 81 in CNY and showing 186 F on Transmission, 203 F on coolant and 230 F on engine oil.
 

crash68

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Check to find out if the transmission Thermal Management Unit was replaced with the transmission, I'm guessing it was not. Granted it was with your old trans, but that spike in temperature to 275° is a tale-tell sign it's the thermal bypass valve in the TMU. Unfortunately that bypass valve is not available separately.
Even working these transmissions hard you really shouldn't see a trans temp over the engine coolant temp. Towing 8K lbs in 85-90°F heat mine got to 200°F, even with the coolant approaching 220°F
 
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