Town & Country Van 2WD V6-230 3.8L VIN L SMFI (1997)
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Item 2 L - R Inner and Outer Seals
Leaking L - R inner and outer seals cause DTC 36 with a 50 or 51 along with initial symptoms of stop bump for the vintage of vehicles listed in the table.
Typically, the vehicle will be brought in for the bump complaint. Stop bump will be the first symptom seen before experiencing delayed engagements.
When overhauling the transaxle, make certain to replace the L - R inner and outer seals along with the piston retainer.
Background: The original L - R inner and outer seals were made from an AEM (Vamac) material and were of a lip seal design. The AEM lip seals would
take a compression set due to high operating temperatures. The L - R seals were changed to an AEM D-ring design, but had the same characteristics as
the original seal. It was found that FKM (Viton) seals had better characteristics than AEM. The L - R inner and outer seals were changed to an FKM
D-seal. This L - R FKM D-seal was implemented in transaxles with a build date of XXXX-2529-XXXX and greater. FKM D-seals are currently being
used and are the seals of choice.
Item 3 UD Inner Lip Seal
Leaking lip seals cause DTC 36 with a 51. This delay will be seen from N to OD (forward range only). Additionally, this condition may cause launch
shudder. When overhauling the transaxle, make certain to replace the UD inner lip seal and replace the L - R inner and outer seals along with the piston
retainer.
Background: The original UD inner seal was made from AEM which had the same characteristics as the original L - R seals. The UD seal retained the lip
seal design but was changed to an FKM material. The FKM UD lip seal was implemented in transaxles with a build date of XXXX-1965-XXXX and
greater. FKM UD lip seals are currently being used and are the seals of choice.
NOTE:
THE L - R SEALS MUST BE CHANGED WITH THE UD SEAL. THE REASON IS THE L - R SEAL WILL BE AEM AND MUST BE
CHANGED TO FKM.
NOTE:
THE UD OUTER SEAL USED IN 1989 MODEL YEAR TRANSAXLES IS FATTER THAN THOSE USED IN 1990 MODELS AND LATER.
MAKE SURE THE PROPER SEAL IS SELECTED FROM THE KIT FOR THE VINTAGE OF TRANSAXLE BEING WORKED ON.
Item 4 General Seal Statement
The seals within the transaxle are critical to its performance. Seals that have taken a set are not able to seal properly. Inspect the lip of the lip seal to see
if it is bent over and taken a set. Inspect the D-ring's D-shape. It should be rounded and not flattened. After removing seals from their location, place
them back onto the component from which they were removed. Do they have slight interference or do they sit loosely on the mating part? If they fit
loosely, they have taken a set and will require replacement.
In addition, seals that have taken a set can be detected using a pressure check during a cold start. The L/R - U/D - and/or Rev pressures will be lazy once
during the cold start. To duplicate the test, the vehicle must sit until cold.
Always use the latest MOPAR seal kits to assure the latest seal technology. Depending on the year of transaxle being worked on, replacing all seals to
assure the latest seal composition is installed throughout the transaxle is advisable. It is recommended to replace all clutch seals whenever a transaxle
recondition procedure is performed.
NOTE:
MANY AFTERMARKET SEAL KITS USE AEM SEAL RINGS. DO NOT USE AFTERMARKET SEAL KITS SINCE THEY DO NOT
INCLUDE FKM SEALS. USE MOPAR ORIGINAL EQUIPMENT SEAL KITS WHENEVER REBUILDING A TRANSAXLE TO ENSURE
THE LATEST SEAL MATERIAL COMPOSITION.
Item 5 Measuring # 1 Check Ball Clearance
If the check ball does not have the appropriate amount of clearance, it may stick in the pocket when the transaxle is hot.
NOTE:
THIS ONLY APPLIES TO EARLY MODEL YEAR (89-95) TRANSAXLES.