Transmission Temp Light came on

olypopper · **Posted:** Sun Jan 08, 2017 5:14 pm

Sergio del Castillo wrote:

Geordi, I have this 05CRD for almost 12 years, next February will be the 12th anniversary, and never before the light have come on, I have towed a 2500 pound trailer from St. Luis Mo to Rockville Md over the Appalachian mountains in the summer without a glitch for four years in a row, when my daughter was in the university, thus this is my first encounter with transmission issues. I do agree that transmission temperature gauges, as an oil pressure gauge, should be standard is a truck like this, but my worries are more as to why the fluid is being overheated now and affecting the shifting pattern. Could it be that the transmission cooler is obstructed? I check the outside and there are no visible debris blocking the air flow. I have added about 6 oz of Lucas Transmission Fix, and now the dipstick reads just above the full mark, the fluid is not discolor and I see no sings of foaming.My last few trips have been short and with teh air temperature in the 10 to 15 F I have not experience any issues. I have a trip schedule for July to the golf coast in FL. and I want to be ready for it.

Fact of the matter is that we are all guessing as to what your problem really is. Is the transmission fluid burned? If it's burned, then clutches and or torque converter are failing. If the fluid is not burned, the temperature thermistor in the solenoid pack could be falsely reporting an overheat (my crd was doing this prior to installation of a new solenoid pack).

My recommendation is to take it to a transmission shop that you trust and have it diagnosed.

papaindigo · **Posted:** Sun Jan 08, 2017 5:20 pm

Normally I hate to throw parts at a problem without being reasonably sure what's causing the problem but thoughts:
1. if you can figure out or someone knows which tranny cooler line is the return it should be possible to unhook that line; crank up in neutral BRIEFLY and see if fluid flow out of that line. Alternatively and perhaps better unhook both lines at the tranny and lightly blow some air thru the lines; that will let you know if the "path" is clear. Of course it will empty the cooler of tranny fluid but that's easy to solve; just add a qt or so of ATF+4 to replace what's lost.
2. if somehow the cooler is clogged then cutting it out of the circuit and replacing it with an aftermarket cooler is a DIY project with under $100 in cost.

Just a reminder that the 545RFE is a very common DCJ transmission and if you can find a good local tranny shop they should be able to help in diagnosis.

WWDiesel · **Posted:** Sun Jan 08, 2017 11:11 pm

There is no reason why any transmission cooler line or cooler should become clogged under normal conditions, it is just unheard of!!! The filters in the pan should capture any material long before it can possibly get to the oil pump, cooler lines, or oil cooler...
I strongly suspect there is some other issue going on with your transmission and you need to get it to a good qualified transmission repair shop for a complete diagnosis of the problem... :wink:

Sergio del Castillo · **Posted:** Sat Jan 14, 2017 12:08 pm

Thank you all for your comments and advise. The transmission went in the limping mode and the CEL came on. I could not read, with my code reader, the code number. Result the KJ is now in the shop. I managed to get to them without any glitch except at the next to last traffic light when it jerked when downshifting. I am now waiting for their report.

jagster936 · **Joined:** Sun Aug 04, 2019 3:06 pm **Posts:** 210

What was result of this? I am having a long shifting problem in mine, from 2-3 it drags out to 3k RPM. No codes or lights that I know of but I will soon have it diagnosed by someone who can view temp, pressure, etc with a scantool

Sergio del Castillo · **Posted:** Mon Aug 21, 2023 9:35 am

That was a long time ago. The end result was a new/rebuilt transmission from Mopar with a new update version of the cooler.=, with three years 100K miles warranty. Now with 266K miles no mayor issues except for some erratic shifting wen cool at about 45-50 mph in city traffic.

jagster936 · **Joined:** Sun Aug 04, 2019 3:06 pm **Posts:** 210

266k wow nice! I just don’t wanna throw parts at mine. I think clutched ok. Haven’t touched sensors. And has new TC and new rebuilt oil pump. But haven’t touched valve body either. It’s something control related I think because of consistent behavior related to heat. I’ll have to see if keeps doing it when things cool down in the fall.

Edit: transgo in valve body. Didn’t notice much difference. But still have original solenoid pack

WWDiesel · **Posted:** Mon Aug 21, 2023 5:37 pm

jagster936 wrote:

266k wow nice! I just don’t wanna throw parts at mine. I think clutched ok. Haven’t touched sensors. And has new TC and new rebuilt oil pump. But haven’t touched valve body either. It’s something control related I think because of consistent behavior related to heat. I’ll have to see if keeps doing it when things cool down in the fall.

Edit: transgo in valve body. Didn’t notice much difference. But still have original solenoid pack

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Transmission Temp Light came on

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