[World14]

Why do you consider Hyundai and Aisin units to be just okay vs ZF to be a slam dunk? I get the success of the HP8 but the HP 9 has been reliving the ultradrive all over again. I wish they would have used Aisin for the FWD models as far as I am concerned they have all been successful. ZF has 1 of 3 (remember the unit in the Premier had trouble as well and it was a ZF as well).

Compared to ZF, Hyundai/Aisin units aren't the standard for multiple vehicles throughout the line up. While the 6F24 was in the Compass, Patriot, and the Dart, most other transmissions for our market have left an Aisin in both the Compass, and the Aisin AL-6 manual for the Wrangler/JT. With the ZF 8 speed being the transmission currently behind upwards of 10 different products, having been used as such since 2012 or so, there's a lot of good will, even if the 9 speed falters a bit.
I'd be surprised if most people even remember that 4 speed.

I wish they would have used Aisin for the FWD models as far as I am concerned they have all been successful.

Honestly, the 6 speed and the Compass 8 speed should've been the standard for any non 6-cylinder Chrysler product. 9 speeds are a bit much when you make less then 200hp. Personally though, I would've preferred they just made the 62TE a 7 speed anyways. It "technically" is with its 2nd "prime" gear, but that's only for passing.

 

[jdm7]

The key thing with the 41TE (which came from the A604 3 speed, just added overdrive) was they didn't have an over running clutch. To work around it, downshifts from 2 to 1 were delayed as long as possible to minimize the clunkiness, but could cause poor responsiveness on tip in since it would need to downshift. The 62TE took that same 41te, dropped the overdrive and added a compounder to give 3x2=6 gears, with some intermediate combos that were officially a unique gear but too close to another to warrant calling it another gear. When beefing it up to get the torque rating up (the 1 v 2 designation) other updates were made, but my memory is getting vague and I can't recall if the over-running clutch was added. I have a 19 GC with the 62te and it's nothing like the 41te from my days working on the JR cars. It was fun to tell the trans calibrators we fixed the 2-1 downshift and show them the manual trans car we had.

 

[valiant67]

The key thing with the 41TE (which came from the A604 3 speed, just added overdrive) was they didn't have an over running clutch. To work around it, downshifts from 2 to 1 were delayed as long as possible to minimize the clunkiness, but could cause poor responsiveness on tip in since it would need to downshift. The 62TE took that same 41te, dropped the overdrive and added a compounder to give 3x2=6 gears, with some intermediate combos that were officially a unique gear but too close to another to warrant calling it another gear. When beefing it up to get the torque rating up (the 1 v 2 designation) other updates were made, but my memory is getting vague and I can't recall if the over-running clutch was added. I have a 19 GC with the 62te and it's nothing like the 41te from my days working on the JR cars. It was fun to tell the trans calibrators we fixed the 2-1 downshift and show them the manual trans car we had.

The 41TE was just a renamed a604. Both were 4 speed transmissions with an overdrive 4th gear.

 

[LouJC]

My son's friend has a '19 Compass with the 9 speed, it shifts well, so I think by then the problems seemed to have been worked out, vs the eariler years.
On the other hand, I have tried out 5 different Hemi powered vehicles with the 8 speed and contrary to the general consensus, they all seemed to feel odd to me, vs my old '07 Hemi with the Chrysler 545 RFE.

 

[Adventurer55]

My son's friend has a '19 Compass with the 9 speed, it shifts well, so I think by then the problems seemed to have been worked out, vs the eariler years.
On the other hand, I have tried out 5 different Hemi powered vehicles with the 8 speed and contrary to the general consensus, they all seemed to feel odd to me, vs my old '07 Hemi with the Chrysler 545 RFE.

Well as an owner of a 545 IMHO, there's no comparison. My GC with the 8sp has crisp shifting and throttle reactions. The 545 in my Commander, while reliable, shifts into high too soon on inclines and tends to bog down some unless I use autostick and downshift myself. My GC never does that. One person on here told me there's a TSB to address this, but I haven't contacted the dealer yet to see what it's going to cost me.

 

[jdm7]

The 41TE was just a renamed a604. Both were 4 speed transmissions with an overdrive 4th gear.

You are correct it was A404 that started things (https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_Chrysler_transmissions)

 

[13 200 3.6]

Compared to ZF, Hyundai/Aisin units aren't the standard for multiple vehicles throughout the line up. While the 6F24 was in the Compass, Patriot, and the Dart, most other transmissions for our market have left an Aisin in both the Compass, and the Aisin AL-6 manual for the Wrangler/JT. With the ZF 8 speed being the transmission currently behind upwards of 10 different products, having been used as such since 2012 or so, there's a lot of good will, even if the 9 speed falters a bit.
I'd be surprised if most people even remember that 4 speed.

Honestly, the 6 speed and the Compass 8 speed should've been the standard for any non 6-cylinder Chrysler product. 9 speeds are a bit much when you make less then 200hp. Personally though, I would've preferred they just made the 62TE a 7 speed anyways. It "technically" is with its 2nd "prime" gear, but that's only for passing.

You're entitled to your opinion, but I think the Hyundai and Aisin units deserve to be listed in a similar category as the ZF8 vs, the ZF9 belongs with the A604, Jatco CVTs, and the ZF 4 speed. I don't see what it matters If it's the base level transmission or not. The fact is ZF HP9 had a lot of problems that weren't exclusive to Chrysler. There was a car magazine review on I think of Honda pilot or Odyssey with it that during the long-term test the transmission failed within 21,000 miles. That does not happen very often in these long-term tests. They might have fixed it now, but I stress might. I'm not convinced yet. Another thing to note is look through car complaints on various Chrysler vehicles using the ZFHP8 versus the years that didn't have it and you'll notice there's a lot of complaints as well just not as extensively bad as the ZFHP 9. I'm not going to argue that the HP 8 is bad, just it's not as perfect as some people on here want to portray it as. I think there's a general bias that exists in the automotive world concerning German suppliers that portrays them is better as they actually are.

The Aisin units used by Chrysler would also include the AW4 used in the XJ Cherokee and briefly in the Grand Cherokee. And the heavy duty ASC68/69 which have from my understanding been successful.

I was also confused why they didn't use the 62 TE in the applications where they have used the Hyundai and smaller Aisin transmissions, but I don't disagree with their decision. The ultra drive should have been discontinued in the early '90s and replaced by a bulletproof unit from a third party company. That series has contributed more than anything else to Chrysler's bad reputation. I appreciate the insight that others have provided on to why the 6 speed version shifts so poorly.

 

[valiant67]

You are correct it was A404 that started things (https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_Chrysler_transmissions)

The A404 has more in common with the RWD Torqueflites than the A604.
The 3 speed FWD transmissions used bands and hydraulic pressure like the old RWD transmissions.
The A604 (UltraDrive, 41TE, etc) used solenoids making the shifts electronically driven and adaptable to the driver's behavior.

 

[Adventurer55]

You are correct it was A404 that started things (https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_Chrysler_transmissions)

Wasn't the A604 aka Ultradrive a new from the ground up unit, launched in 89?

 

[LouJC]

I think it was, rushed onto the market

 

[Doug D]

Wasn't the A604 aka Ultradrive a new from the ground up unit, launched in 89?

Correct as far as I know.

And as Lou posted, it was rushed to market to quickly.

 

[13 200 3.6]

Good grief it took nearly 10 years to get it sorted with having the customer as the guinea pig. How long would it have taken to get it to the market with everything sorted?

 

[Doug D]

My guess is at least 5 years, but we'll never know.

 

[valiant67]

The only transmissions which were basically the old three speed with an overdrive bolted on were the RWD A500 (based on the A904) and A518 (based on the A727). Eventually the A500 and A518 became 42RH and 46RH under the new name convention.

 

[13 200 3.6]

Makes me wonder why they didn't do the same thing with the A413 and A670 to begin with. Why create a clean sheet design, using more gears than before, with electronic solenoids and a which they hadn't used before. Walk before you run.

 

[Adventurer55]

Correct as far as I know.

And as Lou posted, it was rushed to market to quickly.

I'm aware. I met an employee of Kokomo transmission plant at a Plymouth club meet in 1988. He told me that this transmission was going to be problematic because of sealing issues and the electronics. He was right. I was lucky, I bought a new Dodge GC in 89 but I never had any issues with it.

 

[Adventurer55]

The only transmissions which were basically the old three speed with an overdrive bolted on were the RWD A500 (based on the A904) and A518 (based on the A727). Eventually the A500 and A518 became 42RH and 46RH under the new name convention.

And then the 42, 46, 47 and 48 RE

 

[saltydog]

We have a fleet 2020 Voyager 3.6/9sp and we have several drivers and it really surprises me how well it shifts.

The only thing I ever noted was a slight harsh 1-2 shift when cold, but not enough to complain about.

 

[68RT]

I now have a 21 Pacifica and the 9-speed does have a bump shift at no throttle from 2 to 1. Not that bad but my 8-speed RAM was/is extremely smooth.

 

[unverferth]

No problems to report on 3.6/9 speed 2017 pacifica. They seem better hooked up to the 3.6/3.2 is my hunch.

Two of my daughters each have a Pacifica. Every once in a while they experience a very noticeable clunk in the transmission while driving. Dealer says it's "normal". No failures yet but really. Normal ?