rented a 2019 BigHorn Ram 1500

[bbaCJ8]

Originally Posted by champ

Xeleventybillion on the ZF programming logic for FCA 8spd vehicles. I've been driving the GF's JL with the 8spd and... and... I can't believe I'm saying this, but if I were to buy a JL tomorrow - it would be an automatic. That thing is always in the gear I expect it to be and drives just flawlessly.

On the other hand, my GM designed and programmed 8spd behind the 6.2 is godawful. It's like they didn't even try.

Ram would be the first truck I test drive if I were in the market for new.

I love the 8 speed with a Hemi, they just rip and feel good. The 8 speed JL on 35s isn't great, but isn't awful. On 37s it's a fair bit worse, no surprise there.

What's bad about the GM 8 speed? Just early shifts and lots of torque management like all their other crap? The combo you have is my primary focus for my next truck, so I'd love to hear if there's something awful to watch out for.

Originally Posted by 6DoF

this ... the 6spd in my '08 gas truck is up there with the worst of all time. the first thing i did after getting the truck was to add a superchips for trans shifting. i almost sold the truck, but it's my only complaint.

the BEST thing however is to just put it in Manual-6 and 'trailer mode'. it's basically sport mode and works really well, except for really slow in parking lots. trailer mode by itself is good, but putting it in manual-6 gets rid of the compression braking downshifts.

Yeah same for the 6L80E in my wife's Tahoe. If you're not heavy into the throttle it upshifts painfully early and always feels like a turd.

[champ]

Originally Posted by bbaCJ8

I love the 8 speed with a Hemi, they just rip and feel good. The 8 speed JL on 35s isn't great, but isn't awful. On 37s it's a fair bit worse, no surprise there.

What's bad about the GM 8 speed? Just early shifts and lots of torque management like all their other crap? The combo you have is my primary focus for my next truck, so I'd love to hear if there's something awful to watch out for.

Well, her JL is a bone-stock Sahara so that might explain why I haven't been disappointed by the transmission calibration yet.

As far as my truck's 8spd? The overall clunky feeling is horrible at low speeds. The 1-2 shift is probably the worst and the downshift logic is as 6DoF explains: apply gas *nothing*, repeat, repeat, annnnd oh here we go at 5000rpm. The really strange part is that some days, it's totally tolerable, and other days you shake your head in disgust. The TM, honesty, doesn't feel too bad. The only common horror stories seem to revolve around the torque converter ****ting itself in the 15-16's.

One thing I can't quite put my finger on is the 1-2 shift. The best way I can explain this (and I'm drawing from heavy equipment powershift transmission logic) GM messed up on the cold oil apply schedule for 1-2. When I back out of my driveway in the morning, then shift to D, I get a nasty hesitation on the 1-2; the same feeling you get like you just hit the rev limiter but instead its spinning 2k. Then it'll bang into 2nd and continue on its merry way like nothing ever happened for the rest of the day.

If I didn't value the warranty, I would already have a local guy calibrate the ECU and TCU.