All I can say is Ford . Around here I see more Fords than Dodges.

 

You got another vote for Ford here.

 

The 45rfe is the 4 speed version and the 545RFE is the 5 speed version of the same tranny. Pump issues are new to me. The 545RFE is the only tranny behind the Hemi. When were you a Dodge Tech? The reason I ask this is the time frame in which the trannies have been released. The 45rfe came out in 1999 with the then new 4.7L in the jeep grand cherokee. IIRC, The 545RFE later in 2001 or so.

Now the older transmissions were problematic (42RE and 46RE trannies). That was because the bands needed to be manually adjusted every 30K miles whereas the competition were automatically done. With the lack of maintenance seen with most consumer vehicles, loose bands=more slippage=burnt tranny=bad tranny reputation.

To be honest, the most problematic tranny I had was a GM 1996 4L60E tranny. Tranny blew at 60K miles and was rebuilt 5 times before I hit 95K. I paid for 1 and the tranny shop paid for 4. They eventually replaced it with another used one and chaulked it up to a bad valve body on the first one and a bad original case for the other 3. They hated seeing me when I showed up with the tow truck, which was when they gave me another used, but rebuilt tranny. It was fine until I got rid of it at 120K+. FWIW it was always the 3rd and 4th bands letting go.

This is just my opinion and just that. I'm not trying to start some stupid ford vs dodge tranny debate. Besides, I still chose and would recommend the Ford for this member.

 

You would be better off buying the Ford. A buddy of mine has sworn by Dodge for years. He had a 4x4 2500 extended cab Dodge Ram and his drivetrain froze up on him. So I convinced him to start looking at a Ford. He found a F350 he liked but then decided to go with a new Dodge 1500 4x4. Two months after got that, the electrical system caught on fire totaling the vehicle. Since then he purchased a used 1999 F-150 5.4 V8 and has loved it ever since. He told me he should have listen to me the first time I told him to buy a Ford.

 

I right now work at a Ford-Dodge dealership.So I can tell you I have to work on both. My experience is the Ford trans stands up better than the Dodge! And yes, I have pump issues on the 45's they loose prime and won't move expecially in the morning after sitting.