48RE Performance Transmission Rebuild

BIG BLUE, if you ever come to Texas, I'm not gonna buy you A beer. I'm buying you a whole dame case!!! Thanks for these threads, I can't imagine how many people this will help in the next few years. How much difference is this compared to a 47re?

Big Blue24 said:

Ive had trouble with the Borg Solenoid on my high 180+psi line pressure transmissions. Decided to try something new. Time will tell if the 4L60E solenoid is better.

Click to expand...

The DNJ solenoid is night and day better than the cheap Borg Warner "upgrade" if you wanna call it that. The DNJ in my trans has been in for almost 4 years and has never given me a lick of problems. And my trans is at the 200psi mark or above. Been awhile since I put a guage on it though.

good stuff!

Awesome write up.

Big Blue24 said:

Ive had trouble with the Borg Solenoid on my high 180+psi line pressure transmissions. Decided to try something new. Time will tell if the 4L60E solenoid is better.

Click to expand...

Interesting. I'm curious to see the outcome as well..

I installed the 2nd gear super hold servo kit and accumulator piston kit from Sonnax when I rebuilt mine. (the red anodized ones) I already had the DNJ in the trans from previous issues prior to rebuild. Well with all 3 combined line pressure spiked when 2nd gear hit and snapped my new (cheaper) band. I installed factory gov press. solenoid along with new brog warner band and it drives fine.

After reading post 22, I now understand why this happened.
Thank you. I owe you a :Cheer:

JakeDiesel said:

Awesome write up.

Click to expand...

As always! Not that it's needed on this build, but here's a link to a good, cheap{you do like cheap??} fix for the Valve Body Linkage Pivot Wear that many of our valve bodies need. http://www.sonnax.com/articles/202-Chrysler-RWD-Valve-Body-Linkage-Pivot-Wear

48re Overdrive Housing Rebuild:

Replace the output seal:








Use old seal as a seal driver if you don't have the correct size seal driver:





Replace output speed sensor:






Remove snap rings to break down rear annulus gear/hub to replace the stock output shaft with the upgraded billet output shaft:



Billet on left, stocker on the right, notice the slight size difference where the splines meet the fatter portion of the shaft.









Gently heat the hub to expand it so the output shaft will easily slip into place:








Install snap ring:



Install outer shell/hub and snap rings, this was torn down to facilitate cleaning, not required to disassemble on a clean transmission simple rebuild:

For the next steps, you'll need a cake pan full of ATF to soak clutches, bearings, etc.



New overdrive bearing presoak in ATF:


I like this assembly grease/lube for hot Vegas weather when assembling trans parts, Vasoline or Petroleum Jelly will work fine in colder climates:




New Overdrive Sprag:



Lubed:


Ready to install with new bearing in-place, fresh out of the ATF bath:




Installed, it's easiest to lower the assembly into the case using large snap ring pliers expanded into the center splined portion.



Next the stock (6) pinion overdrive planet drop down with a little pre-lube on the spur gears, 47rh & re transmissions came stock with a (5) pinion overdrive planet.




Next replace the bearing and race on the overdrive sun gear assembly:


The bearing kit came with both a new bearing and a race:


Remove (1) snap ring to remove and replace the race, otherwise just replace the bearing if the race is going to be reused. All pre-lubed and ready to install:




Install the large overdrive direct spring on the bearing race:




Install the lower reaction plate over the splined hub and start installing the pre-soaked overdrive/direct clutches and steels, (10) clutches in this pack:







Stock upper reaction plate, notice snap ring groove faces upward.



The splines need to be aligned before the big spring is compressed, there is a special tool available, or many shops use a cut-off intermediate shaft. I simply use a full length intermediate shaft since it doesn't interfere with my make-shift spring compressor.





Pre-lube the lower half of the shaft with ATF to ease assembly and removal:

Compress the 820# spring and install (2) snap rings: 1 round and 1 flat:











After the spring is compressed, the main output shaft bearing can be installed:






Now the assembly is ready to be installed in the main overdrive housing, there is a large snap ring, externally accessed the must be spread to slip over the rear bearing and land in the bearing race's receiver groove.





Prop up the output shaft assembly on something at least 2" tall, this pickle jar works excellent! The lower the housing over the output shaft assembly and spread the snap ring over the bearing:







Next install the overdrive brake clutches, stock 47re has (5), stock 48re has (6), this one had been converted back to (5) when the Dodge dealer rebuilt it several years ago.





Stepped reaction plate, this is stock on 48re's but purchased in the aftermarket for this build to revert back to (6) clutch overdrive setup:






Palm sander to roughen up the face of the plates for more bite, everything wears smooth after a few thousand miles but those first thousand miles feel nice and aggressive to give the customer confidence in their new tranny!!!





New clutches and steels, ready to be pre-soaked in ATF


Install lower snap ring and waved snap ring if you want a little softer overdrive engagement, otherwise remove the waved snap ring and just use (1) regular.
Install stepped reaction plate and add clutches and steels:




Top it off with the wire snap ring/retainer in the groove above the last steel:

There is a selectable spacer for the lower splines of the intermediate shaft. This spacer adjusts how far the intermediate shaft protrudes into the main transmission case (endplay adjustment). There is a special tool that slips down onto the step in the splines to help measure for a selectable spacer. I use my calipers to measure the distance from the hub down to the step, then from the housing face to the hub.

Selectable spacer is shown on intermediate shaft at top of splined portion:


The machined step where the spacer rides is shown in-focus. The two upper rings are the sun shell copper bushings and large enough in bore diameter to not interfere with the measurement.


Using my compound measurement/math method, I came up with 0.780" which calls for a .211" selectable spacer.



Next we need to select the proper thickness of overdrive piston spacer to correctly time the release of the hub for overdrive direct and application of the overdrive brake clutches. The manual calls for averaging (4) measurements between the hub and the face of the transmission housing using a special tool which is a 1/2" straightedge with a machined slot. I use a 1" thick straightedge and deduct 1/2" from my measurement.



I came up with an average of roughly 2.352", after deducting 1/2" for my 1" tall straightedge in lieu of the 1/2" specialty tool:





The chart calls for a 0.200" spacer shim:




New bearing to replace old one:


New bearing installed where it will eventually end up, for now it's kept there for safe keeping until the rest of the transmission is ready for final assembly.

This is really bad ass. Thanks for making this thread, and I can't wait to hear how that 48re performs!

Also, just to let you know, you said up there that you were going to use a .211" spacer, but I think you mistyped and meant a .193-.194".
Keep up the awesome work man!!

We use alot of the same parts you listed, as do most other builders. I agree that the DNJ Gov Pressue solenoid is the way to go.

CorneliusRox said:

This is really bad ass. Thanks for making this thread, and I can't wait to hear how that 48re performs!

Also, just to let you know, you said up there that you were going to use a .211" spacer, but I think you mistyped and meant a .193-.194".
Keep up the awesome work man!!

Click to expand...

Yeah, I had a typo but on the measurement, it was supposed to be .788", not .780". And thus the .211" intermediate shaft spacer.

Big Blue24 said:

Yeah, I had a typo but on the measurement, it was supposed to be .788", not .780". And thus the .211" intermediate shaft spacer.

Click to expand...

Good deal. Just wanted to let you know in case it wasn't.

Made this thread a 'sticky'

Awesome thread, Will, you are truly talented. Thanks for the great write-up.

This is what a billet output shaft should look like.

Big Blue, I'm going to post some other pics also of some parts comparisons that we have learned along the way. This is by no means anything against what your doing here, just some things we can discuss and learn for all that are watching.

Lavon

^woot

LAmiller said:

Big Blue, I'm going to post some other pics also of some parts comparisons that we have learned along the way. This is by no means anything against what your doing here, just some things we can discuss and learn for all that are watching.

Lavon

Click to expand...

Feel free to post and share ideas and lessons learned, etc.

LAmiller said:

This is what a billet output shaft should look like.

Click to expand...

I confirmed with the transmission owner and the output shaft he supplied is a "hardened shaft" from Kenny's Pulling Parts, so it's probably just a cryo treated stock shaft. I didn't buy it or supply it so if it lets loose.... :doh: I guess he can step up to a better shaft with the much beefier fillets like the shaft you posted.

We've tried a lot of different band setups and have found the Borg Warner solid flex band to hold up to locked 2-3 shifts better then any of the OEM style bands with only 8 rivets. The Borg Warner band has 10 rivets holding the anchor to the band vs 8 on the OEM style band. We have seen 3 of the OEM style bands (friction material irrelevant) break in half along the top row of rivets, we have yet to see the BW with 10 rivets fail.
The Rigid bands tend to burn the front or back of the band off from getting into a bind and not being able to flex and apply the whole width of the drum. Most of these problems were only found on 900+HP trucks.