Well, I know some of you all saw my post about the needing a new transmission, and I was definitely right.

My symptoms were occasional long shifts in first and second gears, and consistent shuttering as the Tourque converter engaged. There was a bunch of other stuff I was not aware of, like the rattle of the tc, and the up pipes leaking, the flex plate cracked etc.

Here is the fluid that came out of the trans... lots of crap in it:



Second gear was burnt up from all the low range I have been doing, and this washer wouldn't have made it through next summer:


The snap ring that often comes loose and floats around in the transmission was floating in mine, and just wating to catch something and destroy the whole thing:



Here is the magnet, also a ton of crap



The crack in my flex plate is around all of the bolts



and the old up pipes:



So John did his custom thing on my transmission and the difference is unbelievable. Shifts are nice and firm, the tc engangement is fantastic, and it just feels right.

I also added a DP tuner and holy crap!!! I think its faster now towing our boat than it was stock. The only thing that bothers me a little is the tunes shift pretty hard, especially on light acceleration and it rattles the truck pretty good. John assured me it wouldn't damage his stuff, but still worries me some for the rest of the drive train.

I got the opportunity to tow after getting all this work done and it makes our 5000 lb boat a joke.



So overall,
The truck is much quieter, has much better throttle response, the shifts are nice and firm and the way that tuner gets you through the gears is pretty darn amazing. I think i have seen a 2 to 3 mpg increase in most cases (when i keep my foot out of it, which is very difficult).

If anybody is looking at a trans, I would hands down recommend getting a JW trans installed. I have the entire thing documented with picturesm but icouldn't explain most of them now. The trip was worth every bit.

Wednesday i did 1200 miles from Boulder to Holtville
Thursday the truck was in the shop from 7 am to 6 pm, then i did the 300 to flagstaff
Friday was 200 to page, and 700 through Colorado Springs and back to Boulder
Then I put another 600 on it this weekend skiing and the usual stuff.

Tuner aside, my final conclusion is that transmission inspires confidence that the truck can really put whatever power i throw at it to the ground, and will be able to withstand anything i could ever do to the truck. I also would say i got the value of about twice what I paid for. I am extremely happy.

Edit: oh yea, and now that I posted this thread, I am going to go drive my truck some more, I just can't resist

 

Did you get the tow master? Thats what I got and the f5 dptuner. Also put in 6.0 trans cooler. I had him tune down the shifts so it feels better then stock but not hard shifts your talking about. Its great, he's a great guy if you want yours changed talk to him tell him about chet's and you can send your DP tuner chip to him and he will change it. Tell him I recommended him if you would! If you have the f6 he can send you the new tunes/shifts and you can do it at home. Good luck its a great trans, Chet

 

I did get the tow master.

I forgot about the 6.0 cooler. I haven't gotten over 130 degrees since i had it in. even towing. The other cooler could hardly hold under 190 in most driving.

I just have an F5. He was working with Jody to ge the new files but couldn't before we both had to leave. I let him know when I talk to him tomorrow.

Thanks!

 

Great explaination and pics leading up to your new trans and tunes, congrats.

 

Good job buddy. It looks like you caught it in time. You may need that 6.0 tranny cooler though especially if you do some wheeling or towing up those "little" hills to the west of town.

 

no i mean i forgot to mention that i got one installed. the size diffference is just comedy.

old



new

 

Sweet, My JW Trans is almost here. It made it to Atlanta last night and is scheduled to be here tomorrow. I am going out of town for the weekend, but I can hardly stand the wait until I get back to see how the truck drives! Thanks for posting!

 

Your old tranny cooler is aftermarket. Nevertheless, with your old tranny blowing chunks, it was wise to swap out to a 6.0. Nice job!

 

Congrats and thanks for the great write up. I didn't think JW would let you out of his shop without a DP tuner. I was impressed with his tranny break-in. All the way from the shop door across the parking lot, over the side walk, then full throttle. All he says is: You aint gonna hurt it. You gotta admire a guy that is that confident about his product.