Which ATF for 2001 Dodge Dakota?

[SecondMonkey]

My dad needs some transmission fluid for his 2001 Dodge Dakota with the 4.7L V8. I have no idea what transmission it has. The guy at Napa told him he needs Dexron/Mercon III...but I thought Chrysler transmissions use special fluid?

What is the specified fluid for this truck?

 

[-Clayton-]

It needs ATF+4.

 

[SecondMonkey]

That sounds more like it. It's at the dealer right now and they want $9/quart.

(and it's taken them 3 days to change an O2 sensor)

Would anyone happen to know if this thing has a drain plug on the transmission pan or not?

 

[-Clayton-]

9 bucks a quart is a complete ripoff IMO. And I don't think it has a drainplug on the pan.

 

[The Critic]

I heard the O2 sensors are tough on those.

It needs an approved ATF+4 product. Chrysler has had a licensing program for ATF+4 for more than two years now. Valvoline, Castrol and SuperTech all have licensed ATF+4 products. I've seen the Valvoline and Castrol ones for under $5/qt at most part stores.

 

[HTSS_TR]

WM has Chrysler/Mopar ATF+4 for $4.xx/qt, I bought 1 quart about 1-2 months ago.

 

[99]

Originally Posted By: SecondMonkey
My dad needs some transmission fluid for his 2001 Dodge Dakota with the 4.7L V8. I have no idea what transmission it has. The guy at Napa told him he needs Dexron/Mercon III...but I thought Chrysler transmissions use special fluid?

What is the specified fluid for this truck?
As already mentioned, ATF+4 is what this truck needs. The guy at NAPA is wrong. I personally use Valvoline "synthetic" ATF+4 in my Chrysler automatic transmissions and 4WD transfer cases.

 

[SecondMonkey]

Ugh. Apparently the guy at the dealer put 2 quarts in the transmission even though he was told not to. Since he wasn't supposed to, my dad dumped 2 quarts in after he picked it up. (he was told it was 2 quarts low)

In other words, now it's 2 quarts high.

How do I get just a couple quarts of excess fluid out of this thing...or for that matter, do I even need to?

The moral of the story: Dealers suck.

 

[AzFireGuy79]

You can buy the genuine MOPAR ATF+4 at walmart for around $ 4.00 a quart. I just did a cooler line flush for my neighbor on his 2003 JEEP TJ. It shifts great now. That ATF is very good stuff. It is said to contain Group IV base stocks?? Beats the [censored] out of Amsoil or Redline for the price and availability! Granted both of these are in my opinion superior to Mopars offering its still a [censored] good fluid. Check out your local wally world!

 

[artificialist]

Don't bother getting ATF+4 at the dealership. NAPA sells Valvoline synthetic ATF+4 for around $4 per quart, sometimes even less.

 

[NHHEMI]

ATF+4 or any of the universal synthetics that claim ATF+4 compatibility.

 

[Dick in Falls Church]

Originally Posted By: SecondMonkey
Ugh. Apparently the guy at the dealer put 2 quarts in the transmission even though he was told not to. Since he wasn't supposed to, my dad dumped 2 quarts in after he picked it up. (he was told it was 2 quarts low)

In other words, now it's 2 quarts high.

How do I get just a couple quarts of excess fluid out of this thing...or for that matter, do I even need to?

The moral of the story: Dealers suck.


You can suck it up out of the filler tube with a relatively thin piece of tubing. I have a pump which will do this. It is a good idea to get the extra out. In town, probably not a problem, but if you get rolling and the oil starts to get bubbly, bad news. Air doesn't lubricate well, nor does it provide good hydraulics.

 

[Gary Allan]

Crack the cooler line and tap off the 2 quart excess if you don't have a pump like **** suggests. Just use a clean container in case you take out too much. If you're lucky, you have the production clips at the trans (the rear most line is the return-typically) and you can just pinch them (they're wedges -sorta)and pull the metal line out. It was that way on my son's 2000 Cherokee.

 

[jeremiah2360]

Check the power steering pressure switch(near the PS resovoir with wires coming out),they are known to leak and bleed PS fluid through the wires to the O2 sensor and foul them prematurely. If you have the three Cat set up open the hood and look down at the O2 sensor on drivers side(Cat comes off exhaust manifold),if switch is leaking the O2 sensor will look wet(stained with oil). Seen this first hand on a co-workers 2000 4.7 Dakota. His oil pressure sending switch was also sending oil to one of the plugs for his computer. He has 260,000 miles on his truck FWIW.