A heads up to anyone looking to buy a TJ with a 32RH transmission

[Caveman44]

The wimpy 32RH Transmission has made me regret ever having an auto jeep. It has been nothing but trouble. Getting home with it is an uncertainty. There are no new 32RH transmissions currently made to my knowledge, and rebuild shops don't properly repair them. The seals dont last and fluid leaks which leads to low fluid levels and slippage.

Chrysler has always built poor quality automatic transmissions and continues to do so to this day. They do not circulate fluid to the cooler in park and run at searing hot temperatures. This is why you have to check the fluid in neutral, not park like in a Ford. Add low fluid levels caused by leaks which leads to slippage and combine that with an already hot running transmission; now you have a recipe for disaster.

Just thought I'd give a heads up to anyone looking to buy a tj with the 32RH transmission. Get a manual. The 32RH wont hold up to heavy off road or farm use.

 

[Jerry Bransford]

The general experience here and most everywhere I've frequented has quite the opposite opinion of the 32RH. I actually converted my previous TJ to the 32RH which proved to be a great decision. It's one of the very best and most reliable automatic transmissions to have ever come out of Detroit. It is so well thought of that Ford even tried buy the manufacturing rights to the 32RH but Chrysler wanted too much $$$. I'd trade my current 42RLE automatic for a 32RH in a heartbeat. And that it doesn't pump ATF while in Park is a non-issue. If you want the ATF to circulate while you're stopped shift to Neutral.

The 32RH is highly favored for things like extreme level rock crawling and very tough trails in general where it's known for its outstanding reliability.

You're literally the only person in my nearly 25 years of running Wranglers I've seen complain so vociferously about the 32RH.

It couldn't have been too bad, the basic design was in use in various Dodge, Chrysler, Jeep, and a few other brands for just over 55 years.

 

[JMT]

The wimpy 32RH Transmission has made me regret ever having an auto jeep. It has been nothing but trouble. Getting home with it is an uncertainty. There are no new 32RH transmissions currently made to my knowledge, and rebuild shops don't properly repair them. The seals dont last and fluid leaks which leads to low fluid levels and slippage.

Chrysler has always built poor quality automatic transmissions and continues to do so to this day. They do not circulate fluid to the cooler in park and run at searing hot temperatures. This is why you have to check the fluid in neutral, not park like in a Ford. Add low fluid levels caused by leaks which leads to slippage and combine that with an already hot running transmission; now you have a recipe for disaster.

Just thought I'd give a heads up to anyone looking to buy a tj with the 32RH transmission. Get a manual. The 32RH wont hold up to heavy off road or farm use.

That’s your first post on the forum? All I can say is, “WOW!”

 

[Caveman44]

The general experience here and most everywhere I've frequented has quite the opposite opinion of the 32RH. I actually converted my previous TJ to the 32RH which proved to be a great decision. It's one of the very best and most reliable automatic transmissions to have ever come out of Detroit. It is so well thought of that Ford even tried buy the manufacturing rights to the 32RH but Chrysler wanted too much $$$. I'd trade my current 42RLE automatic for a 32RH in a heartbeat. And that it doesn't pump ATF while in Park is a non-issue. It's highly favored for things like extreme rock crawling and very tough trails in general where it's known for its outstanding reliability.

You're literally the only person in my nearly 25 years of running Wranglers I've seen complain so vociferously about the 32RH.

Im glad Ford didn't get the rights to produce the 32rh. I'd hate to see what a 5.4l or a powerstroke diesel could do to one. I've got 4 Ford trucks with Ford AOD family transmissions and they take all kinds of abuse and just keep working like new; I only have to add fluid when I change it. I haul trailers of peanuts, often grossing over 10 tons, with my f150, sometimes 2 of them hooked together. Of course im usually only going 25-30 mph as the wagons are not really designed to go faster than that. Still that puts incredible stress on a truck. I never use my jeep to do anything like that, yet its transmission is the one that stays broke. The 32rh is nothing up beside the Ford AOD/AOD-E (E40D, 4R70W, 4R75W).

 

[Jerry Bransford]

Im glad Ford didn't get the rights to produce the 32rh. I'd hate to see what a 5.4l or a powerstroke diesel could do to one. I've got 4 Ford trucks with Ford AOD family transmissions and they take all kinds of abuse and just keep working like new; I only have to add fluid when I change it. I haul trailers of peanuts, often grossing over 10 tons, with my f150, sometimes 2 of them hooked together. Of course im usually only going 25-30 mph as the wagons are not really designed to go faster than that. Still that puts incredible stress on a truck. I never use my jeep to do anything like that, yet its transmission is the one that stays broke. The 32rh is nothing up beside the Ford AOD/AOD-E (E40D, 4R70W, 4R75W).

Yeah so? Apples and oranges. The 32RH wasn't designed for that marketplace any more than your Ford transmissions were designed for 18 wheeler Peterbilts.

The bottom line is, to get back on topic, the 32RH has a sterling reputation in the Wrangler among those who have more than a passing experience with it.

 

[Oklahomacheapjeep]

So you’re telling me I cant run my transmission without any fluid? Must be a pos

 

[MountaineerTom]

I would hope you wouldn't try to pull your 10+ ton peanut trailers with any Wrangler. I'm not really up on my F-150 info, but I'd think you should be doing it with those either.

 

[Caveman44]

Yeah so? Apples and oranges. The 32RH wasn't designed for that marketplace any more than your Ford transmissions were designed for 18 wheeler Peterbilts.

The bottom line is, to get back on topic, the 32RH has a sterling reputation in the Wrangler among those who have more than a passing experience with it.

Well at least the Ford transmission would got the 18 wheeler a few miles down the road before it failed. If they're so apples to oranges, then what would Ford have put a "32RH" transmission in other than a half ton pickup truck?

 

[Caveman44]

I would hope you wouldn't try to pull your 10+ ton peanut trailers with any Wrangler. I'm not really up on my F-150 info, but I'd think you should be doing it with those either.

Its pretty common practice to do it in areas where peanuts are grown. We dont haul them long distances, just a few miles to a buying point. I definitely wouldnt try it with a jeep. Most people pull one at a time with a half ton pickup and 2 at a time with a diesel truck or a farm tractor. Again we only go 25-30 mph with them. These are farm trailers, not highway trailers. They only get used on rural roads and in fields.

 

[Caveman44]

So you’re telling me I cant run my transmission without any fluid? Must be a pos

I know it requires fluid to operate, the fluid is used to transmit power. Removing it is like removing any other driveline part. I don't expect a transmission to use/ leak the fluid. Especially after it has been fully rebuilt.

 

[Jerry Bransford]

Well at least the Ford transmission would got the 18 wheeler a few miles down the road before it failed. If they're so apples to oranges, then what would Ford have put a "32RH" transmission in other than a half ton pickup truck?

If you're here to simply troll any more than you already have it's time for you to move on elsewhere. Contribute to this Jeep focused forum in a positive manner or move on.

 

[Cedar128]

I know it requires fluid to operate, the fluid is used to transmit power. Removing it is like removing any other driveline part. I don't expect a transmission to use/ leak the fluid. Especially after it has been fully rebuilt.

Find a new trans shop, I've had zero problems with my 32RH.

 

[Caveman44]

If you're here to simply troll any more than you already have it's time for you to move on elsewhere. Contribute to this Jeep focused forum in a positive manner or move on.

Im not here to troll. Im just reporting of my unpleasant experience with the 32rh transmission. The rest of my jeep is very well made. I just havent been impressed with the 32rh. Ohh and you didn't answer my question.

 

[B34C0N]

220k miles on my 32rh without so much as a leak.

Do you happen to have the wrong output seal mating to your transfer case?

 

[Jerry Bransford]

... Ohh and you didn't answer my question.

Don't push your luck here or with me.

 

[Oklahomacheapjeep]

I know it requires fluid to operate, the fluid is used to transmit power. Removing it is like removing any other driveline part. I don't expect a transmission to use/ leak the fluid. Especially after it has been fully rebuilt.

Sounds like your complaint should be with either with your own maintenance or the shop who rebuilt your transmission.

 

[MountaineerTom]

what would Ford have put a "32RH" transmission in other than a half ton pickup truck?

Rangers.

 

[Caveman44]

220k miles on my 32rh without so much as a leak.

Do you happen to have the wrong output seal mating to your transfer case?

The output seal is surprisingly an area that ive not had it to leak at. I have replaced the input seal and the pan seal when ive worked on it myself. That put a stop to the leaking but not the erratic shifting. I checked the passing gear cable and it seemed to be in correct adjustment. The transmission began slipping several months later. I took it to a transmission shop that many people around here speak highly of. They rebuilt it and the transmission has once again became a leaky mess. It shifted very hard to start with and has got softer and softer and has started to slip. The input seal leaks, the pan seal leaks, the output seal may even leak. Its so greasy I cant tell.

 

[B34C0N]

Sounds like a warrenty claim to me. A good shop should stand by their work

 

[Caveman44]

Im not here to troll. Im just reporting of my unpleasant experience with the 32rh transmission. The rest of my jeep is very well made. I just havent been impressed with the 32rh. Ohh and you didn't answer my question.

I use my jeep for work. I need it to be reliable and the 32RH has let me down in the peak of harvest season. It's not a show off mall crawler Jeep.