Tansmission fuild, is this bad?

[XSTNKT]

@DirtMcGirt8732

Target acquired. Direct hit. I am officially a casualty.

You got me dead to rights, brother. I just tried to sneak faulty intel past an Army Vet, and my credibility just got hit by a precision artillery strike. I clearly brought a plastic Tupperware pan to a gunfight!

I will stand here, take my massive, public "L", and eat a giant slice of humble pie. My brain went on total autopilot. I defaulted to the standard-duty ZF 8HP70/75 transmissions found in 99% of "regular traffic" Ram 1500s, which do use that annoyingly cheap, one-piece plastic pan with the filter permanently molded into it.

You are 100% correct—Stellantis knew a plastic pan would instantly melt into a puddle of hot Lego juice under 702 horsepower, so the TRX’s Godzilla-tier 8HP95 gets a proper heavy-duty stamped steel pan with a separate, bolt-in filter.

But honestly, considering earlier in this thread I literally tried to give local West Texas highway directions to a guy actively dodging drones in Ukraine, why stop the fail-train now?! My forum credibility today is hanging by a thinner thread than OP’s 2nd-gear clutch pack.

I guess that Army Vet attention to detail never wears off! Excellent sniper shot across the internet, man. I'll go initiate my own disciplinary push-ups in the driveway until my arms give out.

(But hey, for the OP, my core point still stands! Whether that pan is made of plastic, stamped steel, or forged from the hull of an M1 Abrams tank, the filter mesh is basically a chain-link fence trying to stop sand. Once an internal hard part starts machining itself to death, that filter is going into bypass and the Mechatronic unit is choking on the shrapnel!)

Great catch, man. I appreciate you keeping me honest. I owe you a beer, and thank you for your service!

You really have to lay off the AI chatbot. It’s really obvious. You’re not impressing anybody with that garbage.

 

[Digerati]

You really have to lay off the AI chatbot. It’s really obvious. You’re not impressing anybody with that garbage.

Bro is genuinely triggered by complete sentences. I'll make sure to use crayons next time so it's easier for you to read.

 

[XSTNKT]

Bro is genuinely triggered by complete sentences. I'll make sure to use crayons next time so it's easier for you to read.

Now, see. That was a real post. Well done.

Stop being a lazy ass and start posting your own thoughts. People may start to respect you.

 

[FastMD]

As a transmission fluid victim, it does need to be changed, just read an article of the same thing happening to CVT cars and they said when they say "lifetime" its warranty lifetime, so I guess starting to change it after 50/60 k miles (of course depending on how you drive) should give you a healthy transmission for a long time ( mine is currently at 91k miles and still chugging along. )

 

[XSTNKT]

Now, see. That was a real post. Well done.

Stop being a lazy ass and start posting your own thoughts. People may start to respect you.

Annnnnd, I'm blocked. lol

 

[Digerati]

@XSTNKT Blocked? Bro, I didn't even block you. I just put my phone down and went outside to do actual human things away from a keyboard for an hour. Main Character Syndrome is wild today! Anyway, the adults are back to talking about trucks now.

 

[Digerati]

@FastMDYou nailed it, man. "Lifetime fluid" is exactly that—it's designed to last the lifetime of their legal liability (the 60k powertrain warranty). They just want to artificially lower the "estimated maintenance costs" on dealership brochures. Once the clock strikes 60,001 miles, that swamp water in the pan becomes your $10,000 problem, not Stellantis's.

91k miles on your '21 is awesome to hear, and absolute proof that ignoring the factory marketing BS and doing actual preventative maintenance works. Keep it chugging!

(Also, I have to call out that signature... a 9.0L Calvo Viper?! Good lord! Anyone who owns a Calvo Viper already knows the golden rule of over-maintaining everything. With the kind of violent horsepower those things make, I know you aren't trusting any factory "lifetime" fluid intervals. That garage lineup is absolute goals!)

 

[F8Demon]

What would be Ram's motivation, to say lifetime, if the truth is it requires changing? So trucks fail and people buy Ford and Chevy next time? Or maybe so they get less business for service? Or maybe its so they have to replace under warranty?

 

[XSTNKT]

@XSTNKT Blocked? Bro, I didn't even block you. I just put my phone down and went outside to do actual human things away from a keyboard for an hour. Main Character Syndrome is wild today! Anyway, the adults are back to talking about trucks now.

Oh that’s nice. Glad the adults are here. Have a nice time!

 

[Dubstep Shep]

Annnnnd, I'm blocked. lol

Bro, I hit the ignore button. There's enough AI slop on the internet without having to read it on here.

It's so blatantly obvious, too, when people do it.

 

[Digerati]

Bro, I hit the ignore button. There's enough AI slop on the internet without having to read it on here.

It's so blatantly obvious, too, when people do it.

Bro really treated a truck forum like an airport terminal. "Attention passengers, Dubstep Shep is now departing the thread. Please make sure your tray tables and Ignore buttons are in their upright and locked positions." You don't need to announce your departure over the PA system, man. Just close the tab!

But we seriously need to talk about the staggering level of irony here. You are aggressively crying about "computer-generated AI slop," but your username is literally Dubstep Shep. You named yourself after a 2012 music genre that is 100% artificially generated computer noises! It's literally the sound of two dial-up modems fighting inside a metal trash can! Skrillex called, brother—he wants his haircut back.

If understanding how a ZF8 Mechatronic unit actually works instead of just grunting and throwing parts at a truck makes me a cyborg, then beep-boop, man.

I don't even blame you for being this stressed out, though. Homeboy joined the forum in late 2023 after buying a used '21 TRX. You just know the first owner spent two solid years doing WOT launches at every red light in Houston before dumping it on a used lot right before the powertrain warranty expired. I'd be mashing the ignore button on transmission failure threads too!

Enjoy the hand-me-down problems, Shep! Drop the bass for me!

 

[Dubstep Shep]

What would be Ram's motivation, to say lifetime, if the truth is it requires changing? So trucks fail and people buy Ford and Chevy next time? Or maybe so they get less business for service? Or maybe its so they have to replace under warranty?

I think it's probably more to do with them wanting to have a "lower cost of ownership".

No transmission fluid changes for the "lifetime" of the vehicle really brings down the cost of maintenance over that same period. It's the same reason they went to their proprietary coolant; it only has to be changed every 120k miles.

 

[BLKTRX2023]

Fair point! You are 100% right that pulling DTCs and freeze-frame data is Step 1. Trying to definitively diagnose a ZF 8HP95 by squinting at a blurry internet video of a drain pan is basically the gearhead equivalent of reading tea leaves!

But let’s get super nerdy on the architecture for a second. Even if the codes do point to "just" a valve body or solenoid issue, here’s the hydraulic breakdown of why it still equals a total transmission replacement:

The Mechatronic unit doesn't generate highly reflective metallic flakes. Its aluminum spool valves wear into a microscopic, dull paste. Visible glitter means a rotating "hard part" (like a Torrington thrust bearing, planetary gear, or clutch steels) is actively machining itself to death under 650 lb-ft of torque.

Getting groceries only requires low line pressure, which easily masks internal leaks. But on a WOT launch, the TCM commands maximum line pressure (250-300+ psi) to instantly clamp the clutches so they don't slip.

That metallic glitter acts like a high-pressure liquid lapping compound, deeply scoring the micron-level clearances of the valve body bores. At max WOT pressure, the fluid aggressively hemorrhages past those scored valves. The clutch loses clamping force and slips, the input/output speed sensors catch the ratio mismatch, and the TCM instantly aborts the shift to save itself—leaving OP hanging on the rev limiter.

Could the immediate fault be a bleeding valve body? Absolutely. But slapping a pristine $2,500 valve body into a transmission that is actively shedding shrapnel is mechanical suicide. It's like giving a guy a brand new liver but refusing to take away his whiskey! It'll just swallow the leftover glitter trapped in the torque converter and cooler lines and die again in 500 miles.

Once Stellantis warranty sees that fluid in a 14k-mile TRX, there is no "valve body swap" protocol. They're crating up the whole unit. But I'm totally with you—let's see what codes OP's scanner actually spits out so we know which clutch pack is waving the white flag!

Here is an update for you and the guys. Sorry for the late response, it's been hectic recently.


So I took the truck again and checked the pan and inspected the magnets, see attached video and picture.

They found a relatively huge amount of glitter on the magnets.

My mechanic offered a full drain and oil replacement. I agreed and then I drove for almost 10 days. Symptoms disappeared, I was hitting the gas all I way and didn't encounter a single slip.
Just yesterday I noticed when it shifts down during a stop (when I am slightly breaking) then it jerks a bit when it moves from 2nd to 1st gear.


1- What are your thoughts and how much oil should’ve been added there to begin with?

2- Isn't this the same exact transmission on some Audis and BMWs?

3- My mechanic says we can try another flush once more as the transmission cleared some of the old residue from before. What would you suggest?


4- Whats the price for the transmission just to get myself ready for the worst case scenario
No codes were appearing during during the inspections by the way.

 

[Digerati]

Here is an update for you and the guys. Sorry for the late response, it's been hectic recently.


So I took the truck again and checked the pan and inspected the magnets, see attached video and picture.

They found a relatively huge amount of glitter on the magnets.

My mechanic offered a full drain and oil replacement. I agreed and then I drove for almost 10 days. Symptoms disappeared, I was hitting the gas all I way and didn't encounter a single slip.
Just yesterday I noticed when it shifts down during a stop (when I am slightly breaking) then it jerks a bit when it moves from 2nd to 1st gear.


1- What are your thoughts and how much oil should’ve been added there to begin with?

2- Isn't this the same exact transmission on some Audis and BMWs?

3- My mechanic says we can try another flush once more as the transmission cleared some of the old residue from before. What would you suggest?


4- Whats the price for the transmission just to get myself ready for the worst case scenario
No codes were appearing during during the inspections by the way.

looking at those magnets... yeah, that is a massive amount of thick metallic sludge for a transmission with only 14k miles. A light dusting of fine paste is normal break-in, but yours looks like a metallic Chia Pet. Combined with the suspended glitter from your first post, it confirms your internal hard parts are actively chewing themselves up.

Since a US factory warranty is useless to you right now and you're on your own out there, here is the raw truth on what's going on and the answers to your questions:

The reason it shifted great for 10 days is because brand new ZF Lifeguard 8 fluid is thick and packed with fresh friction modifiers. It temporarily restored enough hydraulic line pressure to clamp the clutches on a WOT launch, acting like a Band-Aid.

As for that new harsh 2-to-1 downshift clunk as you roll to a stop? That is the infamous "ZF Lurch," and your independent mechanic almost certainly underfilled it. A standard pan-drop takes about 5.5 to 6 liters. But the ZF fill procedure is brutally strict: the truck must be perfectly level, the engine must be running, and the fluid temperature must be exactly between 30°C and 50°C (86°F - 122°F) when checking the fill plug. If your indie mechanic isn't used to these and just pumped fluid in while it was cold or the engine was off, your transmission is starved for fluid. Being even half a quart low will make a ZF8 violently jerk on downshifts. Have him re-check the level using the exact temperature procedure immediately.

Isn't this the exact same transmission on some Audis and BMWs? Yes and no. It belongs to the same legendary transmission family: the ZF 8-Speed (8HP). You will find ZF 8-speeds in almost every modern BMW, Audi, and Porsche.

However, standard European cars use lighter-duty versions (like the 8HP50 or 8HP75). Your TRX uses the 8HP95. It is the absolute Godzilla variant of the lineup, heavily reinforced with extra clutch packs and massive planetary gears to survive 702 horsepower. The only other vehicles that use this specific beast are the Rolls-Royce Cullinan, Bentley Bentayga, Aston Martin DBS, Audi RS Q8, Jeep Trackhawk, and Dodge Demon. It shares the same "brain" as the BMWs, but yours is built like a tank.

Mechanic says try another flush. What would you suggest? Absolutely NOT. If he means hooking it up to a pressurized "flush" machine, that will instantly brick the transmission by forcing trapped metal shavings backwards into the delicate microscopic valves of the Mechatronic unit. If he just means another gravity "drain and fill," you are just setting money on fire. You cannot fix physically damaged clutches or scored valves with $30/liter fluid.

What is the price for a replacement (Worst Case Scenario)? Brace yourself, especially having to import parts into Ukraine right now. Because the 8HP95 is essentially a supercar transmission, it is brutally expensive. A brand new OEM crate transmission from Mopar is roughly $6,500 to $8,500 USD just for the part. Add in a new torque converter, 10 liters of ZF fluid, and labor... you are easily staring down a $10,000 to $13,000+ USD repair bill, and that's before whatever crazy shipping and customs fees it takes to get a 300lb crate to Odesa.

Side note on the lack of codes: That is totally normal right now. The transmission computer constantly "adapts" its hydraulic pressure to compensate for wear. It usually won't throw a code until the mechanical damage mathematically exceeds its ability to compensate.

Since you don't have a warranty safety net, your best move right now is to have your mechanic fix the fluid level to smooth out that 2-1 jerk, and then honestly... just baby the truck. Stop doing WOT launches from a dig to preserve whatever life is left in those clutch packs, and start saving up for the replacement crate! Stay safe out there man!

 

[BLKTRX2023]

looking at those magnets... yeah, that is a massive amount of thick metallic sludge for a transmission with only 14k miles. A light dusting of fine paste is normal break-in, but yours looks like a metallic Chia Pet. Combined with the suspended glitter from your first post, it confirms your internal hard parts are actively chewing themselves up.

Since a US factory warranty is useless to you right now and you're on your own out there, here is the raw truth on what's going on and the answers to your questions:

The reason it shifted great for 10 days is because brand new ZF Lifeguard 8 fluid is thick and packed with fresh friction modifiers. It temporarily restored enough hydraulic line pressure to clamp the clutches on a WOT launch, acting like a Band-Aid.

As for that new harsh 2-to-1 downshift clunk as you roll to a stop? That is the infamous "ZF Lurch," and your independent mechanic almost certainly underfilled it. A standard pan-drop takes about 5.5 to 6 liters. But the ZF fill procedure is brutally strict: the truck must be perfectly level, the engine must be running, and the fluid temperature must be exactly between 30°C and 50°C (86°F - 122°F) when checking the fill plug. If your indie mechanic isn't used to these and just pumped fluid in while it was cold or the engine was off, your transmission is starved for fluid. Being even half a quart low will make a ZF8 violently jerk on downshifts. Have him re-check the level using the exact temperature procedure immediately.

Isn't this the exact same transmission on some Audis and BMWs? Yes and no. It belongs to the same legendary transmission family: the ZF 8-Speed (8HP). You will find ZF 8-speeds in almost every modern BMW, Audi, and Porsche.

However, standard European cars use lighter-duty versions (like the 8HP50 or 8HP75). Your TRX uses the 8HP95. It is the absolute Godzilla variant of the lineup, heavily reinforced with extra clutch packs and massive planetary gears to survive 702 horsepower. The only other vehicles that use this specific beast are the Rolls-Royce Cullinan, Bentley Bentayga, Aston Martin DBS, Audi RS Q8, Jeep Trackhawk, and Dodge Demon. It shares the same "brain" as the BMWs, but yours is built like a tank.

Mechanic says try another flush. What would you suggest? Absolutely NOT. If he means hooking it up to a pressurized "flush" machine, that will instantly brick the transmission by forcing trapped metal shavings backwards into the delicate microscopic valves of the Mechatronic unit. If he just means another gravity "drain and fill," you are just setting money on fire. You cannot fix physically damaged clutches or scored valves with $30/liter fluid.

What is the price for a replacement (Worst Case Scenario)? Brace yourself, especially having to import parts into Ukraine right now. Because the 8HP95 is essentially a supercar transmission, it is brutally expensive. A brand new OEM crate transmission from Mopar is roughly $6,500 to $8,500 USD just for the part. Add in a new torque converter, 10 liters of ZF fluid, and labor... you are easily staring down a $10,000 to $13,000+ USD repair bill, and that's before whatever crazy shipping and customs fees it takes to get a 300lb crate to Odesa.

Side note on the lack of codes: That is totally normal right now. The transmission computer constantly "adapts" its hydraulic pressure to compensate for wear. It usually won't throw a code until the mechanical damage mathematically exceeds its ability to compensate.

Since you don't have a warranty safety net, your best move right now is to have your mechanic fix the fluid level to smooth out that 2-1 jerk, and then honestly... just baby the truck. Stop doing WOT launches from a dig to preserve whatever life is left in those clutch packs, and start saving up for the replacement crate! Stay safe out there man!

Woah man, I really appreciate the thorough answer.

When I mention a 'full flush' it's just letting the old oil fully drain out by letting gravity do its work. No pressurizing machine used.

Someone earlier on this thread suggested to do this in two parts (as in change half, drive for a week then change half again). My mechanic however decided to do it all at once.

My question is, what is the real reason that caused this mess? I never did any towing or off-road on the truck, I really don't believe my heavy foot is enough to ruin a heavy duty transmission after driving the truck for just 8k overall since I bought it.

Is there any sense in trying to get in there and maybe fix specific parts of the transmission system instead of buying the whole unit?


P.S: I just figured out that we have an official dealer here but they are in another city. I will try get a warranty.

 

[Digerati]

Bro, that P.S. is the absolute best plot twist of this entire thread! Finding an official dealer that can actually process a Stellantis warranty claim is massive. That changes the entire game.

Let's knock out your questions first, and then we urgently need to talk strategy on how you handle this dealership visit so they don't deny your claim:

Just a quick heads-up on the physics of this transmission: your mechanic physically couldn't drain it all at once with just gravity. The whole system holds about 9 to 10 liters, but a gravity pan-drop only releases about 5.5 liters. The other 4+ liters stay physically trapped up inside the torque converter (which is basically a giant fluid donut), the cooler, and the lines. So by dropping the pan once, he essentially did just do a 50% change. That's why the "two-part" method is recommended—it dilutes the remaining 50% of the old dirty fluid that was trapped.

Do not blame your heavy foot! The ZF 8HP95 is literally the exact same transmission Dodge puts in the 840-horsepower Challenger Demon specifically for drag racing. A healthy TRX transmission will outlive the tires 100 times out of 100. A heavy foot on the street for 8k miles will absolutely not kill it. Since you bought it used with 6k miles on it, it comes down to two things:

Pure bad luck. Sometimes a Torrington thrust bearing, a snap ring, or a clutch drum is just machined microscopically wrong on the assembly line. A "Friday afternoon build" fluke that started destroying itself from day one.

The TRX has a strict 500-mile engine/drivetrain break-in period. The guy who put the first 6,000 miles on it might have completely ignored it, doing back-to-back cold Launch Control hits before the clutches ever had a chance to bed in, and then dumped the truck on the used market once he felt it start slipping.

If the dealer approves the warranty, they won't even try to rebuild it. Stellantis policy on the ZF8 is to unbolt the entire broken unit, crate it up, and bolt in a brand-new factory transmission.

Even if you were paying out of pocket, rebuilding it is a terrible idea. Modern 8-speeds have tolerances tighter than a Swiss watch and require highly specialized ZF calibration tools. Plus, since we know metallic glitter circulated through the entire system, your Mechatronic unit (valve body) and torque converter are heavily scored and ruined. A new Mechatronic alone is over $2,500 USD. By the time you buy all the master rebuild kits, a new valve body, and a new torque converter, you are dangerously close to the cost of a brand-new, factory-sealed drop-in crate transmission. Always replace the whole unit when a transmission glitter-bombs like this.

Since you are going to try for warranty, you have a new problem. Your mechanic just gave you a massive handicap.

To approve a $10,000+ warranty claim, Stellantis requires the dealer technician to document physical proof of failure or pull error codes. Your mechanic just wiped the magnets perfectly clean, threw away the glittery fluid, and put thick, fresh fluid in that temporarily "fixed" your WOT slipping.

If you take the truck to the dealer right now, the tech is going to test drive it, feel mostly normal shifts, scan it and see zero codes, pull the fill plug and see clean fluid, and then hand you your keys back and say "Cannot duplicate customer concern."

You have to make the truck act up before you take it in. Keep driving it. Do some hard pulls (safely). Get the fluid super hot so it thins out, and let that harsh 2-to-1 downshift jerk get consistently bad. You need the transmission to actively fail, slip, or jerk while the dealership technician is sitting in the driver's seat with his laptop plugged in.

Make sure you save those videos of the glittery pan on your phone to show the Service Manager, get that truck misbehaving again, and go get your free transmission! Keep us posted man!

 

[FULLTHROTTLERICK]

Bro, that P.S. is the absolute best plot twist of this entire thread! Finding an official dealer that can actually process a Stellantis warranty claim is massive. That changes the entire game.

Let's knock out your questions first, and then we urgently need to talk strategy on how you handle this dealership visit so they don't deny your claim:

Just a quick heads-up on the physics of this transmission: your mechanic physically couldn't drain it all at once with just gravity. The whole system holds about 9 to 10 liters, but a gravity pan-drop only releases about 5.5 liters. The other 4+ liters stay physically trapped up inside the torque converter (which is basically a giant fluid donut), the cooler, and the lines. So by dropping the pan once, he essentially did just do a 50% change. That's why the "two-part" method is recommended—it dilutes the remaining 50% of the old dirty fluid that was trapped.

Do not blame your heavy foot! The ZF 8HP95 is literally the exact same transmission Dodge puts in the 840-horsepower Challenger Demon specifically for drag racing. A healthy TRX transmission will outlive the tires 100 times out of 100. A heavy foot on the street for 8k miles will absolutely not kill it. Since you bought it used with 6k miles on it, it comes down to two things:

Pure bad luck. Sometimes a Torrington thrust bearing, a snap ring, or a clutch drum is just machined microscopically wrong on the assembly line. A "Friday afternoon build" fluke that started destroying itself from day one.

The TRX has a strict 500-mile engine/drivetrain break-in period. The guy who put the first 6,000 miles on it might have completely ignored it, doing back-to-back cold Launch Control hits before the clutches ever had a chance to bed in, and then dumped the truck on the used market once he felt it start slipping.

If the dealer approves the warranty, they won't even try to rebuild it. Stellantis policy on the ZF8 is to unbolt the entire broken unit, crate it up, and bolt in a brand-new factory transmission.

Even if you were paying out of pocket, rebuilding it is a terrible idea. Modern 8-speeds have tolerances tighter than a Swiss watch and require highly specialized ZF calibration tools. Plus, since we know metallic glitter circulated through the entire system, your Mechatronic unit (valve body) and torque converter are heavily scored and ruined. A new Mechatronic alone is over $2,500 USD. By the time you buy all the master rebuild kits, a new valve body, and a new torque converter, you are dangerously close to the cost of a brand-new, factory-sealed drop-in crate transmission. Always replace the whole unit when a transmission glitter-bombs like this.

Since you are going to try for warranty, you have a new problem. Your mechanic just gave you a massive handicap.

To approve a $10,000+ warranty claim, Stellantis requires the dealer technician to document physical proof of failure or pull error codes. Your mechanic just wiped the magnets perfectly clean, threw away the glittery fluid, and put thick, fresh fluid in that temporarily "fixed" your WOT slipping.

If you take the truck to the dealer right now, the tech is going to test drive it, feel mostly normal shifts, scan it and see zero codes, pull the fill plug and see clean fluid, and then hand you your keys back and say "Cannot duplicate customer concern."

You have to make the truck act up before you take it in. Keep driving it. Do some hard pulls (safely). Get the fluid super hot so it thins out, and let that harsh 2-to-1 downshift jerk get consistently bad. You need the transmission to actively fail, slip, or jerk while the dealership technician is sitting in the driver's seat with his laptop plugged in.

Make sure you save those videos of the glittery pan on your phone to show the Service Manager, get that truck misbehaving again, and go get your free transmission! Keep us posted man!

Having just had my tranny replaced under warranty, this is 100% accurate. I authorized them to go WOT a few times to get the code to reappear b/c conveniently every time i brought it in, the CEL just magically disappaered from the dash

 

[BLKTRX2023]

Bro, that P.S. is the absolute best plot twist of this entire thread! Finding an official dealer that can actually process a Stellantis warranty claim is massive. That changes the entire game.

Let's knock out your questions first, and then we urgently need to talk strategy on how you handle this dealership visit so they don't deny your claim:

Just a quick heads-up on the physics of this transmission: your mechanic physically couldn't drain it all at once with just gravity. The whole system holds about 9 to 10 liters, but a gravity pan-drop only releases about 5.5 liters. The other 4+ liters stay physically trapped up inside the torque converter (which is basically a giant fluid donut), the cooler, and the lines. So by dropping the pan once, he essentially did just do a 50% change. That's why the "two-part" method is recommended—it dilutes the remaining 50% of the old dirty fluid that was trapped.

Do not blame your heavy foot! The ZF 8HP95 is literally the exact same transmission Dodge puts in the 840-horsepower Challenger Demon specifically for drag racing. A healthy TRX transmission will outlive the tires 100 times out of 100. A heavy foot on the street for 8k miles will absolutely not kill it. Since you bought it used with 6k miles on it, it comes down to two things:

Pure bad luck. Sometimes a Torrington thrust bearing, a snap ring, or a clutch drum is just machined microscopically wrong on the assembly line. A "Friday afternoon build" fluke that started destroying itself from day one.

The TRX has a strict 500-mile engine/drivetrain break-in period. The guy who put the first 6,000 miles on it might have completely ignored it, doing back-to-back cold Launch Control hits before the clutches ever had a chance to bed in, and then dumped the truck on the used market once he felt it start slipping.

If the dealer approves the warranty, they won't even try to rebuild it. Stellantis policy on the ZF8 is to unbolt the entire broken unit, crate it up, and bolt in a brand-new factory transmission.

Even if you were paying out of pocket, rebuilding it is a terrible idea. Modern 8-speeds have tolerances tighter than a Swiss watch and require highly specialized ZF calibration tools. Plus, since we know metallic glitter circulated through the entire system, your Mechatronic unit (valve body) and torque converter are heavily scored and ruined. A new Mechatronic alone is over $2,500 USD. By the time you buy all the master rebuild kits, a new valve body, and a new torque converter, you are dangerously close to the cost of a brand-new, factory-sealed drop-in crate transmission. Always replace the whole unit when a transmission glitter-bombs like this.

Since you are going to try for warranty, you have a new problem. Your mechanic just gave you a massive handicap.

To approve a $10,000+ warranty claim, Stellantis requires the dealer technician to document physical proof of failure or pull error codes. Your mechanic just wiped the magnets perfectly clean, threw away the glittery fluid, and put thick, fresh fluid in that temporarily "fixed" your WOT slipping.

If you take the truck to the dealer right now, the tech is going to test drive it, feel mostly normal shifts, scan it and see zero codes, pull the fill plug and see clean fluid, and then hand you your keys back and say "Cannot duplicate customer concern."

You have to make the truck act up before you take it in. Keep driving it. Do some hard pulls (safely). Get the fluid super hot so it thins out, and let that harsh 2-to-1 downshift jerk get consistently bad. You need the transmission to actively fail, slip, or jerk while the dealership technician is sitting in the driver's seat with his laptop plugged in.

Make sure you save those videos of the glittery pan on your phone to show the Service Manager, get that truck misbehaving again, and go get your free transmission! Keep us posted man!

Very helpful yet again my friend. I got my truck from the US (San Diego). I will apply for warranty here then report the issue when symptoms appear again. Let's hope they agree since the car was bought in a different country and here.


Will keep you updated.

 

[BLKTRX2023]

Bro, that P.S. is the absolute best plot twist of this entire thread! Finding an official dealer that can actually process a Stellantis warranty claim is massive. That changes the entire game.

Let's knock out your questions first, and then we urgently need to talk strategy on how you handle this dealership visit so they don't deny your claim:

Just a quick heads-up on the physics of this transmission: your mechanic physically couldn't drain it all at once with just gravity. The whole system holds about 9 to 10 liters, but a gravity pan-drop only releases about 5.5 liters. The other 4+ liters stay physically trapped up inside the torque converter (which is basically a giant fluid donut), the cooler, and the lines. So by dropping the pan once, he essentially did just do a 50% change. That's why the "two-part" method is recommended—it dilutes the remaining 50% of the old dirty fluid that was trapped.

Do not blame your heavy foot! The ZF 8HP95 is literally the exact same transmission Dodge puts in the 840-horsepower Challenger Demon specifically for drag racing. A healthy TRX transmission will outlive the tires 100 times out of 100. A heavy foot on the street for 8k miles will absolutely not kill it. Since you bought it used with 6k miles on it, it comes down to two things:

Pure bad luck. Sometimes a Torrington thrust bearing, a snap ring, or a clutch drum is just machined microscopically wrong on the assembly line. A "Friday afternoon build" fluke that started destroying itself from day one.

The TRX has a strict 500-mile engine/drivetrain break-in period. The guy who put the first 6,000 miles on it might have completely ignored it, doing back-to-back cold Launch Control hits before the clutches ever had a chance to bed in, and then dumped the truck on the used market once he felt it start slipping.

If the dealer approves the warranty, they won't even try to rebuild it. Stellantis policy on the ZF8 is to unbolt the entire broken unit, crate it up, and bolt in a brand-new factory transmission.

Even if you were paying out of pocket, rebuilding it is a terrible idea. Modern 8-speeds have tolerances tighter than a Swiss watch and require highly specialized ZF calibration tools. Plus, since we know metallic glitter circulated through the entire system, your Mechatronic unit (valve body) and torque converter are heavily scored and ruined. A new Mechatronic alone is over $2,500 USD. By the time you buy all the master rebuild kits, a new valve body, and a new torque converter, you are dangerously close to the cost of a brand-new, factory-sealed drop-in crate transmission. Always replace the whole unit when a transmission glitter-bombs like this.

Since you are going to try for warranty, you have a new problem. Your mechanic just gave you a massive handicap.

To approve a $10,000+ warranty claim, Stellantis requires the dealer technician to document physical proof of failure or pull error codes. Your mechanic just wiped the magnets perfectly clean, threw away the glittery fluid, and put thick, fresh fluid in that temporarily "fixed" your WOT slipping.

If you take the truck to the dealer right now, the tech is going to test drive it, feel mostly normal shifts, scan it and see zero codes, pull the fill plug and see clean fluid, and then hand you your keys back and say "Cannot duplicate customer concern."

You have to make the truck act up before you take it in. Keep driving it. Do some hard pulls (safely). Get the fluid super hot so it thins out, and let that harsh 2-to-1 downshift jerk get consistently bad. You need the transmission to actively fail, slip, or jerk while the dealership technician is sitting in the driver's seat with his laptop plugged in.

Make sure you save those videos of the glittery pan on your phone to show the Service Manager, get that truck misbehaving again, and go get your free transmission! Keep us posted man!

So there is the update. Apparently its an official dealer who is not fully trusted by Stellantis yet. Basically they give a warranty on the trucks they sell personally and only for 1 year.

They could not agree with Stellantis about general warranty or warranty extension so far.

I didn't say anything about my truck so they didn't have a reason to lie to me.


That leaves me with one option I guess. Just drive the way it is and hope for the best until it totally falls apart and replace it. just keep changing the oil every half a year I guess.

 

[Digerati]

Damn man, that is a brutal plot twist. But honestly, it makes total sense. A US-market TRX imported into Ukraine is essentially a gray-market vehicle. Stellantis US voids the factory powertrain warranty the second a vehicle gets exported anyway, so that local dealer is basically just an independent importer underwriting their own 1-year warranties to move inventory. It was a long shot, but definitely worth checking!

Since you are officially out of pocket on this and flying solo, your plan to just "drive it the way it is until it falls apart" is 100% the correct move.

But let me save you a ton of money right now: Do NOT change the fluid every 6 months!

The mechanical damage is already done. The fresh fluid only made it shift better recently because it's thick and temporarily masks the internal pressure leaks. But new fluid cannot magically regrow burnt clutch material or un-grind the metal inside your valve body.

ZF Lifeguard 8 fluid and TRX filters are crazy expensive. If you drop hundreds of dollars twice a year just to drain out fresh glitter, you are literally setting stacks of cash on fire. You'd basically be putting premium designer bandages on an amputated limb! Take whatever money you were going to spend on those 6-month fluid changes and put it straight into a "New Transmission Fund" jar.

No more Wide-Open-Throttle (WOT) launches from a dig. 1st and 2nd gear take the most violent torque multiplication. If you want to do a pull, roll into the throttle gently once you are already moving on the highway so you don't shock the system.

If that harsh downshift clunk is driving you crazy in stop-and-go traffic, use your paddle shifters. Manually downshift to 2nd gear and just hold it there as you roll to a stop. The truck has so much torque you can safely take off in 2nd gear under normal daily driving to completely bypass the damaged 1st gear clutches!

The transmission computer (TCM) is incredibly smart and will keep bumping up the hydraulic line pressures over time to compensate for the worn clutches to keep you moving.

It's officially on borrowed time, man. It could last 2 weeks, or it could miraculously survive another 20,000 miles. Just baby it off the line, enjoy the supercharger whine, and start quietly pricing out a replacement 8HP95 crate so you aren't caught off guard when it finally ghosts you! Stay safe out there in Odesa!