That's dead on, nice job! Yeah its really not terribly hard once you see all that has to be done, and we think seeing the cavity after the trans is out is really useful too, but 6 hours is a good estimate. Thanks for commenting!
looking forward to using your videos to remove/rebuild and replace my 95 GC 42re. never done it before but im not paying $4200 for a shop to do it and not warranty it.
It's really not hard on the ZJ. We did our Ranger about the same time and that... sucked. But the ZJ is pretty straight forward. Check out the Part 2, we've got some good advice based on how the job went. Thanks for the comment!
Yes! We'll try to do a 2 Min Tutorial on that this weekend. In the meantime, 93-95 ZJ's with the 4.0 have a TCM (ZJs with the AW4 and the 42RE). All the rest have a PCM (powertrain control module) and we're not trying to be pedantic, just trying to be clear. This Jeep is a 97 with the 5.2, so the PCM is in engine compartment, right rear. If we recall correctly, earlier models had it under the driver's seat. We'll try to get that video up this weekend for you, thanks for the comment!
This video really helps only complaint is a little better location for the bolts on the bell housing I get where they are but looking under I can't find the last bolt on the passenger side also he doesn't mention it but remove ur oil filter to get that bolt
I have a question. I have 1998 and we had the transmission rebuilt. The starter looks like it is just hitting the edge of the flex plate and not making good contact. Is there a way to adjust the starter and move it closer? It is a 44re i think. Thanks
There’s no adjustment on the starter, at least not to go in further. You can shim it out but that won’t help you here. Possible causes in order of likelihood: 1) you don’t get the transmission fully seated against the engine, or, one of my favorite tricks, something is wedged between the engine and transmission like the dip stick mounting flange or a wire or something. The trans should be tight to the engine all the way around. 2) your starter is worn and not throwing the gear all the way out. You can test this but it’s a pain and a starter is cheap; I usually just throw a starter at it and if that doesn’t fix it, at least I now have a new starter. 3) your flex plate is warped. You didn’t happen to check it for true and measure it against the factory spec while the trans was out, did you? Nobody does, but I literally just got an F250 back together that had this exact problem, just warped out instead of in so mine was grenading transmissions. Fun! Good luck with it!
Hy. Do u have any idea what problem i might have. 1995 5.2l limited. Question: my Od doesnt work. It goes in the 3rd gear and stays there. If i shift manual it works rly smooth. 1,2, od(3) and R. But if i have a gear in (loudest on R) the transmission makes some noise. So. If its an electrical problem. Why the sound? If its a mechanical problem. Why does it work so smooth with manual? Kind regards and thank you for the good video
The 44RE locks out 4th anytime the computer senses a problem. It could be something like the computer is sensing a different speed on the torque converter than the output shaft and in OD they should be the same, so it will lock it out to protect the transmission. Anytime it has an issue, it will flash the OD light on the dash. Get a code reader and see what codes its thrown for the transmission. That will point you in the right direction and hopefully allow you to get it fixed without too much trouble. Unfortunately, noises from the transmission are almost always a bad thing, but start with the codes and go from there.
We did! It should be linked at the end of Part 1 but here you go so you don't have to search for it: th-cam.com/video/3hZ0AAdLnmg/w-d-xo.html Hope you find it helpful!
You know, that's a great question because that one stumped us quite a bit when we were going back together. We're 90% sure we did NOT remove the oil filter to get to that bolt but when we went to reinstall, we couldn't figure out how we'd done that. When we went back together, we pulled the oil filter, reinstalled the bolt and then reinstalled the oil filter. It was easy and worked fine but we're still pretty sure we did it without removing the filter the first time. Thanks for the question!
You can work that bolt out as you back the trans out, If its one of the last bolts you got in. Use a short open end wrench easier. I did it this way because I had just recently done an oil change and usually once you tighten a filter and drive with it and then take it back off it'll leak after that if you put it back on. Not always but usually. Easiest way to do it is remove the filter though
I did this and when it came to the cables I second guessed myself and got confused and I ended up on your first trans video on this jeep lol it really helped even though it wasn't like you did it in this video. How much did your transmission guy charge you to rebuild the 44re? I really want to know this so I either know I got really hosed or I can feel better about how I got hosed. ZJ's for life
Yeah we think we said it backwards in one of the videos. But we're thrilled you're here and hope it helped some! Our local guy charged us $2500 for the rebuild and to inspect our work (and make some minor adjustments to our cooler routing and shift position cable) after we were done. It would have been $1000 more if we'd let him do the R&R. Its been a good chunk of time on the transmission and its going strong, waaaaaaaaaaaay better than the Moveras transmission we bought for the Ranger before we knew our local guy. In fact, as we type this, the Ranger is in the local guy's shop so he can fix the Moveras transmission for the 3rd time, and it cost us $1800 from AutoZone. Never again.
It would be a bit of a challenge on a 2003, as Jeep never made a manual WJ like they did the ZJ. You could probably fab one using a Dodge Ram manual as a donor but it might be tough getting the computer to cooperate. It can be done but it would be a serious project. If you’re serious about doing it, check the WJ Jeep forums and see if any has done it. If not post your question in there, those guys are super capable. Thanks for the question!
You know, we're not sure why we skipped that. When we went to put it back in we had zero recollection of how we got it out. But then we figured it out and it was really easy. And so we thought oh that's obvious, no need to worry. Then we forgot what we did. So yeah, we should have recorded it. We'll try to figure it out and we'll post back here if we do. Thanks for commenting!
Which model? This covers specifically ZJs with the 5.2 V8, so 1993-1998 Jeep Grand Cherokees. However Jeeps that have the 4.0 inline six will be almost identical. And the procedure for the WJ (1999-2004) is going to be very similar. Thanks for the question!
Well you explained a lot very well. But didn't show a lot... kinda lost on the dust cover got it loss and it will not come out. Has a bolt stud in the housing.
IF I remember correctly: The dust cover fits over the locating pins, so if you don’t have the transmission separated it won’t come out. I don’t believe it’s like some transmissions where it unbolts and gives you useful access but I’ll check the ZJ when it rolls back into the garage in about an hour.
![Jeep Grand Cherokee ZJ Transmission Install How To [Part 2-Install]](http://i.ytimg.com/vi/3hZ0AAdLnmg/mqdefault.jpg)
![Jeep Grand Cherokee ZJ Transmission Install How To [Part 2-Install]](/img/tr.png)
I can't even say thank you enough for the time you've taken making these videos. Appreciate it so much.
96 limited owner.
Wow thanks for the great comment, really appreciate the feedback!
This looks like 6 hours worth of labor thank you for the upload
That's dead on, nice job! Yeah its really not terribly hard once you see all that has to be done, and we think seeing the cavity after the trans is out is really useful too, but 6 hours is a good estimate. Thanks for commenting!
I have a 93 limited 4wd and 97 two wd diving in the trans as I speak thanks!
looking forward to using your videos to remove/rebuild and replace my 95 GC 42re. never done it before but im not paying $4200 for a shop to do it and not warranty it.
It's really not hard on the ZJ. We did our Ranger about the same time and that... sucked. But the ZJ is pretty straight forward. Check out the Part 2, we've got some good advice based on how the job went. Thanks for the comment!
Any chance you can do a short video on where the tcm is?
Yes! We'll try to do a 2 Min Tutorial on that this weekend. In the meantime, 93-95 ZJ's with the 4.0 have a TCM (ZJs with the AW4 and the 42RE). All the rest have a PCM (powertrain control module) and we're not trying to be pedantic, just trying to be clear. This Jeep is a 97 with the 5.2, so the PCM is in engine compartment, right rear. If we recall correctly, earlier models had it under the driver's seat. We'll try to get that video up this weekend for you, thanks for the comment!
Great video. Bring it up north and deal with all the rust
Man always feel so bad for you guys in north. Thanks for the comment!
This video really helps only complaint is a little better location for the bolts on the bell housing I get where they are but looking under I can't find the last bolt on the passenger side also he doesn't mention it but remove ur oil filter to get that bolt
Do I have to remove the CPS sensor too?
I have a question. I have 1998 and we had the transmission rebuilt. The starter looks like it is just hitting the edge of the flex plate and not making good contact. Is there a way to adjust the starter and move it closer? It is a 44re i think. Thanks
There’s no adjustment on the starter, at least not to go in further. You can shim it out but that won’t help you here. Possible causes in order of likelihood: 1) you don’t get the transmission fully seated against the engine, or, one of my favorite tricks, something is wedged between the engine and transmission like the dip stick mounting flange or a wire or something. The trans should be tight to the engine all the way around. 2) your starter is worn and not throwing the gear all the way out. You can test this but it’s a pain and a starter is cheap; I usually just throw a starter at it and if that doesn’t fix it, at least I now have a new starter. 3) your flex plate is warped. You didn’t happen to check it for true and measure it against the factory spec while the trans was out, did you? Nobody does, but I literally just got an F250 back together that had this exact problem, just warped out instead of in so mine was grenading transmissions. Fun! Good luck with it!
Dorman makes a drain plug pan replacement. You can re-use good fluid. Just drain it into a clean container and cover it until ready to re-fill.
That's awesome! We were planning to make our own at some point but if Dorman has one that's way easier. Thanks for the info!
@@MotorsandMischief It doesn't come with the shavings magnet, so save yours.
Hy. Do u have any idea what problem i might have. 1995 5.2l limited. Question: my Od doesnt work. It goes in the 3rd gear and stays there. If i shift manual it works rly smooth. 1,2, od(3) and R. But if i have a gear in (loudest on R) the transmission makes some noise.
So. If its an electrical problem. Why the sound?
If its a mechanical problem. Why does it work so smooth with manual?
Kind regards and thank you for the good video
The 44RE locks out 4th anytime the computer senses a problem. It could be something like the computer is sensing a different speed on the torque converter than the output shaft and in OD they should be the same, so it will lock it out to protect the transmission. Anytime it has an issue, it will flash the OD light on the dash. Get a code reader and see what codes its thrown for the transmission. That will point you in the right direction and hopefully allow you to get it fixed without too much trouble. Unfortunately, noises from the transmission are almost always a bad thing, but start with the codes and go from there.
did you put up a video for part 2? ji need help installing 1 44re, i didnt do the removel
We did! It should be linked at the end of Part 1 but here you go so you don't have to search for it: th-cam.com/video/3hZ0AAdLnmg/w-d-xo.html Hope you find it helpful!
I used two jacks and transmission jack to take it out abs install it back in.
Did you have to remove the oil filter to get the bell housing bolt out? Great video
You know, that's a great question because that one stumped us quite a bit when we were going back together. We're 90% sure we did NOT remove the oil filter to get to that bolt but when we went to reinstall, we couldn't figure out how we'd done that. When we went back together, we pulled the oil filter, reinstalled the bolt and then reinstalled the oil filter. It was easy and worked fine but we're still pretty sure we did it without removing the filter the first time. Thanks for the question!
You can work that bolt out as you back the trans out, If its one of the last bolts you got in. Use a short open end wrench easier. I did it this way because I had just recently done an oil change and usually once you tighten a filter and drive with it and then take it back off it'll leak after that if you put it back on. Not always but usually. Easiest way to do it is remove the filter though
Yes it's so much easier
I did this and when it came to the cables I second guessed myself and got confused and I ended up on your first trans video on this jeep lol it really helped even though it wasn't like you did it in this video. How much did your transmission guy charge you to rebuild the 44re? I really want to know this so I either know I got really hosed or I can feel better about how I got hosed. ZJ's for life
Yeah we think we said it backwards in one of the videos. But we're thrilled you're here and hope it helped some! Our local guy charged us $2500 for the rebuild and to inspect our work (and make some minor adjustments to our cooler routing and shift position cable) after we were done. It would have been $1000 more if we'd let him do the R&R. Its been a good chunk of time on the transmission and its going strong, waaaaaaaaaaaay better than the Moveras transmission we bought for the Ranger before we knew our local guy. In fact, as we type this, the Ranger is in the local guy's shop so he can fix the Moveras transmission for the 3rd time, and it cost us $1800 from AutoZone. Never again.
How do I convert a 2003 Jeep Cherokee automatic transmission into a manual transmission?
It would be a bit of a challenge on a 2003, as Jeep never made a manual WJ like they did the ZJ. You could probably fab one using a Dodge Ram manual as a donor but it might be tough getting the computer to cooperate. It can be done but it would be a serious project. If you’re serious about doing it, check the WJ Jeep forums and see if any has done it. If not post your question in there, those guys are super capable. Thanks for the question!
When you were taking the trans out, did you come across any funky bolts along the top? Like inverted torx or something?
We did not, all of ours were standard six sides bolts. Thanks for the question!
Boy i wish you'd shown how the hell you got that starter stud out, Chiltons is useless and I cant find that detail anywhere
You know, we're not sure why we skipped that. When we went to put it back in we had zero recollection of how we got it out. But then we figured it out and it was really easy. And so we thought oh that's obvious, no need to worry. Then we forgot what we did. So yeah, we should have recorded it. We'll try to figure it out and we'll post back here if we do. Thanks for commenting!
Niceee videoo!
Hey thanks for the awesome comment!!
Hos model the geep
Which model? This covers specifically ZJs with the 5.2 V8, so 1993-1998 Jeep Grand Cherokees. However Jeeps that have the 4.0 inline six will be almost identical. And the procedure for the WJ (1999-2004) is going to be very similar. Thanks for the question!
Until my cat jumps up on that board and smacks all the screws around
Your cat is doing his best to help!
Well you explained a lot very well. But didn't show a lot... kinda lost on the dust cover got it loss and it will not come out. Has a bolt stud in the housing.
IF I remember correctly: The dust cover fits over the locating pins, so if you don’t have the transmission separated it won’t come out. I don’t believe it’s like some transmissions where it unbolts and gives you useful access but I’ll check the ZJ when it rolls back into the garage in about an hour.