PPE Pan on a 2016 5.7 Hemi - 8HP70?

[Pull Ya]

For anyone that has installed the PPE pan--how many qts of fluid did the refill take? Also where did you purchase the pan and the price if you don't mind. Did you use the old gasket and bolts or replace them with new?
Jay

 

[Wild one]

For anyone that has installed the PPE pan--how many qts of fluid did the refill take? Also where did you purchase the pan and the price if you don't mind. Did you use the old gasket and bolts or replace them with new?
Jay

I usually buy roughly 8 quarts Jay.Re-use the stock gasket if it's in good shape.

PPE ZF 8HP70 Heavy-Duty Aluminum Transmission Pan (xtremediesel.com)

 

[Daniel Ortiz]

I just installed one of these PPE pans this last weekend. I wanted to get it done around the 50,000 mile mark on my 2017 Express. It took a few months to ship (they are very behind on orders), and I paid $303 including shipping and tax. I bought it from XtremeDiesel.com, but they are simply distributors for the PPE guys, who also sell it directly from their store. They just couldn't make enough of these things to fill all orders in a timely basis.

I bought a new gasket from CobraTransmission.com for $40, although once my PPE pan arrived, the instructions say you can re-use the one from the original pan if you pull it out without damaging it. Same with the pan bolts, PPE instructions say to re-use the 13 pan bolts, which I did. I can't seem to find anyone who sells those separately, although I'd like to because the original ones had a slight amount of corrosion where the threads meet the head, and I don't want anything snapping off due to the extra weight of the pan bouncing around. I'll see if I can get a hold of some for my next service interval.

I bought the 7 liters ZF Lifegard 8 fluid off Amazon for $160. I also rigged up one of those 2 gallon pressure pump/tanks from Home Depot with a ball valve and clear tubing to pump all 7 liters into the transmission. I have to say, based on all the YouTube videos I saw of others doing this service, the fluid pump works totally awesome, and I'd recommend it to anyone who wanted to do this service, especially if they want to do it multiple times down the line.

Turns out most people were saying it took 5 liters do this service, I figured they had a little left over, and since the PPE pan holds an additional 2 liters over the OE pan, 7 liters would do me well. Turns out 7 liters was EXACTLY the amount the transmission needed all in all, including the overfilling step (0.5 liters) for the transmission fluid cooler (see ZFs aftermarket instructions for the procedure and this step in particular). Although, know that I made my own procedure to follow based on ZF's guidance and this YouTube video. I have some thoughts on how I'd do it differently next time, but that's getting really into the weeds. Message me if you want to discuss that more.

I plan to do one more level check following their procedure (see page 4), and in case I need to top it off, I ended up buying one more quart from my local Mopar dealership. But there's a good chance I won't need to add anymore. I'll let you know once I do this last check.

The PPE pan fits completely fine in the installed position. The only clearance issue I found was installing the pan, and getting its rear end over the exhaust pipe, and under the exposed solenoid assemblies at the rear of the transmission (the orange/white things). They're made of plastic, so I tried to be as gentle as I could, but it did require a little force to get the pan past them and finally into its seated position. Pictures below.

So far, my transmission temperatures slowly get up to 180-190 F, but I'm not sure if this is lower than before, because I never really paid attention to my transmission temperatures before. It also seems to get up to that temperature slowly, but again, I can't be sure that's any different than before.

Still, I'm pleased I can now change out the filter without buying a whole new pan, and the relocated drain plug will be nice.

 

[Wild one]

I just installed one of these PPE pans this last weekend. I wanted to get it done around the 50,000 mile mark on my 2017 Express. It took a few months to ship (they are very behind on orders), and I paid $303 including shipping and tax. I bought it from XtremeDiesel.com, but they are simply distributors for the PPE guys, who also sell it directly from their store. They just couldn't make enough of these things to fill all orders in a timely basis.

I bought a new gasket from CobraTransmission.com for $40, although once my PPE pan arrived, the instructions say you can re-use the one from the original pan if you pull it out without damaging it. Same with the pan bolts, PPE instructions say to re-use the 13 pan bolts, which I did. I can't seem to find anyone who sells those separately, although I'd like to because the original ones had a slight amount of corrosion where the threads meet the head, and I don't want anything snapping off due to the extra weight of the pan bouncing around. I'll see if I can get a hold of some for my next service interval.

I bought the 7 liters ZF Lifegard 8 fluid off Amazon for $160. I also rigged up one of those 2 gallon pressure pump/tanks from Home Depot with a ball valve and clear tubing to pump all 7 liters into the transmission. I have to say, based on all the YouTube videos I saw of others doing this service, the fluid pump works totally awesome, and I'd recommend it to anyone who wanted to do this service, especially if they want to do it multiple times down the line.

Turns out most people were saying it took 5 liters do this service, I figured they has a little left over, and since the PPE pan holds an additional 2 liters over the OE pan, 7 liters would do me well. Turns out 7 liters was EXACTLY the amount the transmission needed all in all, including the overfilling step (0.5 liters) for the transmission fluid cooler (see ZFs aftermarket instructions for the procedure and this step in particular). Although, know that I made my own procedure to follow based on ZF's guidance and this YouTube video. I have some thoughts on how I'd do it differently next time, but that's getting really into the weeds. Message me if you wan to discuss that more.

I plan to do one more level check following their procedure (see page 4), and in case I need to top it off, I ended up buying one more quart from my local Mopar dealership. But there's a good chance I won't need to add anymore. I'll let you know once I do this last check.

The PPE pan fits completely fine in the installed position. The only clearance issue I found was installing the pan, and getting its rear end over the exhaust pipe, and under the exposed solenoid assemblies at the rear of the transmission (the orange/white things). They're made of plastic, so I tried to be as gentle as I could, but it did require a little force to get the pan past them and finally into its seated position. Pictures below.

So far, my transmission temperatures slowly get up to 180-190 F, but I'm not sure if this is lower than before, because I never really paid attention to my transmission temperatures before. It also seems to get up to that temperature slowly, but again, I can't be sure that's any different than before.

Still, I'm pleased I can now change out the filter without buying a whole new pan, and the relocated drain plug will be nice. View attachment 236233 View attachment 236180 View attachment 236181

Have you gave any thought to wrapping the cross over pipe with header wrap,where it passes under the pan.It helps keep a little more heat off the pan,if you're stuck in slow moving rush hour traffic on a hot day,and there's not much airflow under the truck.Good post,and the best thing you can do is use a modded garden sprayer or something similiar to fill the tranny back up. Are you jacking the rear tires off the ground high enough to level the pan rail,as it's pretty important to have the tranny level.
These are the instructions that come with a new 8speed from Ma Mopar,and they're very specific about leveling the pan rail

 

[Daniel Ortiz]

Have you gave any thought to wrapping the cross over pipe with header wrap,where it passes under the pan.It helps keep a little more heat off the pan,if you're stuck in slow moving rush hour traffic on a hot day,and there's not much airflow under the truck.Good post,and the best thing you can do is use a modded garden sprayer or something similiar to fill the tranny back up. Are you jacking the rear tires off the ground high enough to level the pan rail,as it's pretty important to have the tranny level.
These are the instructions that come with a new 8speed from Ma Mopar,and they're very specific about leveling the pan rail

I thought about wrapping it from your prior posts, and although it's a good idea, it would further reduce the clearance between the exhaust pipe and the transmission valve body, which is already just barely enough to get it in and out. I'd have to unwrap it every time I wanted to remove the pan for a filter change. Since my transmission temperatures seemed to be in normal range from what I've read, I'm not too worried about leaving it bare.

The modified garden sprayer, specifically a 2-gallon one, was a life saver!

I did jack the entire frame up to get it level, but I didn't check the transmission pan mounting surface at the time. I suspect that the OE pan has its fluid intake much higher than the PPE pan, and so fluid level is very critical to get right in the OE pan, whereas the PPE pan intake seems to be on the bottom of the filter, well below the fluid surface, making the fluid level not as critical to get just right.

Nevertheless, I'll try to get the transmission level for my final level check tonight, just to be super proper.

 

[Wild one]

I thought about wrapping it from your prior posts, and although it's a good idea, it would further reduce the clearance between the exhaust pipe and the transmission valve body, which is already just barely enough to get it in and out. I'd have to unwrap it every time I wanted to remove the pan for a filter change. Since my transmission temperatures seemed to be in normal range from what I've read, I'm not too worried about leaving it bare.

The modified garden sprayer, specifically a 2-gallon one, was a life saver!View attachment 236292

I did jack the entire frame up to get it level, but I didn't check the transmission pan mounting surface at the time. I suspect that the PPE pan has its fluid intake much lower than the OE pan, and so fluid level is very critical to get right in the OE pan, whereas the PPE pan intake seems to be on the bottom of the filter, well below the fluid surface, making the fluid level not as critical to get just right.

Nevertheless, I'll try to get the transmission level for my final level check tonight, just to be super proper.

Whoever invented the Garden Sprayer,needs a big ole pat on the back in my opinion,lol. You're right if you're going to drop the pan again,wrapping the cross over wouldn't be a good idea. I wouldn't wrap it till i knew i wasn't going to drop the pan again for another year or 2.
If down the road you do decide to wrap it,old school trick to making wrap nicer to handle is soak it in water prior to using it,it'll lay nicer,plus helps keep the stuff from being so damn itchy to handle.

 

[Daniel Ortiz]

Well I performed the final fluid level check. @Wild one , you were right, those rear tires have to be up a bit to get the pan level, especially since I have the front end lifted a little. I got pretty close to level.

When the transmission hit 86 F, I revved it at 2000 rpm for 30 seconds, shifted to D, N, P for 10 seconds each, but for the life of me, I could not get it to go to 2nd gear by accelerating, at least not before the limited ESC would still kick in, causing the brakes to engage, slowing the wheel spin, and causing the whole truck to lurch a bit on those rear jack stands. After a couple times of that happening, I basically got scared and gave up.


I hopped underneath, cracked open the drain plug, and fluid poured out. I got it to a slow drizzle before I gingerly screwed the plug back in (forgot to wrap the exhaust in wet rags this time! Ouch!). Mission complete. My transmission service is finished.


Oh, and @Wild one , check this out!

 

[Wild one]

Well I performed the final fluid level check. @Wild one , you were right, those rear tires have to be up a bit to get the pan level, especially since I have the front end lifted a little. I got pretty close to level.

When the transmission hit 86 F, I revved it at 2000 rpm for 30 seconds, shifted to D, N, P for 10 seconds each, but for the life of me, I could not get it to go to 2nd gear by accelerating, at least not before the limited ESC would still kick in, causing the brakes to engage, slowing the wheel spin, and causing the whole truck to lurch a bit on those rear jack stands. After a couple times of that happening, I basically got scared and gave up.


I hopped underneath, cracked open the drain plug, and fluid poured out. I got it to a slow drizzle before I gingerly screwed the plug back in (forgot to wrap the exhaust in wet rags this time! Ouch!). Mission complete. My transmission service is finished.


Oh, and @Wild one , check this out!

Those are actually very worth while Daniel,we use something very similiar on piping that's in the vinicity of high heat. Plus the fact they're easy to remove if you do have to pull them off for servicing.If you're budget allows it,i'd spring for one long enough to cover the cross over pipe.Awright glad you got your's all buttoned up again.I usually push the traction control on mine when i do the gear change,and it seems to work,but i've heard other guys say they've had the same issue as you have,and have had to pull the abs fuse to keep the truck from lurching when it shifts into 2nd.

 

[tfeni52355]

Thanks for all the information sharing on the PPE pan install. Got mine installed yesterday and changed the fluid from Reline D6 to Valvoline Maxlife. Much nicer shifting now.

 

[Gero]

Easy to install? I plan to do this next spring at the 50,000mile mark. Ppe + maxlife.

 

[MRFREEZE57]

Thanks for all the information sharing on the PPE pan install. Got mine installed yesterday and changed the fluid from Reline D6 to Valvoline Maxlife. Much nicer shifting now.

View attachment 463755View attachment 463756

although I went with the Redline D6 drain and fill 3 times, I think next time around will go with the Max life. I see no reason to spend a fortune on the OEM Mopar fluid as there are many lower cost fluids that will work just as good.

 

[tfeni52355]

Easy to install? I plan to do this next spring at the 50,000mile mark. Ppe + maxlife.

Very easy install. Take your time and remove the silver bolt guides/sleeves from the plastic (OEM) pan. Then take a round fine tooth file to hollow out the holes on the PPE pan so the bolt sleeves fit snugly. This will take 20-30 minutes of "fitting" to get them in. Then once the sleeves are in place they will hold the new gasket in place (Gasket NOT supplied by PPE) so when you tighten up the bolts and torque them ($25 1/4" torque wrench on Amazon) in the pattern required you'll have a PPE pan install that won't leak.

See my Thread which has more detail: - PPE Pan Install and D6 Changeout
https://www.ramforum.com/threads/zf8-ppe-pan-install-and-d6-changeout-to-maxlife.178917/unread

I have about 1500 miles on the Maxlife fluid and I really like it. PPE pan keeps temps a little lower (2-5 degress) than OEM pan.