Forum Discussion
boogie_4wheel
Aug 14, 2013Explorer
The 4 speeds (47RH/47RE/48RE) are good for lighter loads. As you get heavier, that large 3-4 jump hurts on the hills (and makes me wish I would have searched for a 6 spd manual).
The torque convertors are sloppy (to help with turbo spooling from low speeds).
The generate a ridiculously large amount of heat in fluid coupling (because of the sloppy torque convertor, and most fluid is dumped back to the pan in fluid coupling. Most fluid is sent to the cooler during lockup).
They (the 48RE) were placed behind the highest power output at the time of 325HP. The internals are pretty much rated for 330HP.
You have to manually adjust the bands (one requires dropping the pan, but they aren't very hard to do. If you do it wrong you can destroy it before you get to the end of the street.
They have a check ball in the cooling system that likes to gunk up and reduce flow, and stick open to allow drain back so when you first start the truck it wont build line pressure till it refills the cooling system.
Along with that check ball, they have a thermostat in a cooling bypass valve that can stick and cause warm trans temperatures.
There are tons of forum posts on 1-2 shuttle shifts. There are many posts on 2-3 shuttle shifts.
They last anywhere between 10k and 500k miles.
An aftermarket torque convertor and valve body is a substantial upgrade to a stock unit.
They can be built to handle stupid amounts of power.
They have a taller overdrive ratio than the manual (G56).
I like mine. It is easy to work on and the wife can drive it; she has a hard enough time because she is short. It would be even worse for her to try to floorboard the clutch pedal all the time.
The torque convertors are sloppy (to help with turbo spooling from low speeds).
The generate a ridiculously large amount of heat in fluid coupling (because of the sloppy torque convertor, and most fluid is dumped back to the pan in fluid coupling. Most fluid is sent to the cooler during lockup).
They (the 48RE) were placed behind the highest power output at the time of 325HP. The internals are pretty much rated for 330HP.
You have to manually adjust the bands (one requires dropping the pan, but they aren't very hard to do. If you do it wrong you can destroy it before you get to the end of the street.
They have a check ball in the cooling system that likes to gunk up and reduce flow, and stick open to allow drain back so when you first start the truck it wont build line pressure till it refills the cooling system.
Along with that check ball, they have a thermostat in a cooling bypass valve that can stick and cause warm trans temperatures.
There are tons of forum posts on 1-2 shuttle shifts. There are many posts on 2-3 shuttle shifts.
They last anywhere between 10k and 500k miles.
An aftermarket torque convertor and valve body is a substantial upgrade to a stock unit.
They can be built to handle stupid amounts of power.
They have a taller overdrive ratio than the manual (G56).
I like mine. It is easy to work on and the wife can drive it; she has a hard enough time because she is short. It would be even worse for her to try to floorboard the clutch pedal all the time.
About RV Tips & Tricks
Looking for advice before your next adventure? Look no further.25,131 PostsLatest Activity: May 12, 2025