The overdrive Dodge transmissions used in the Caravan is called a Torque Flight or (TF) 604 or 41TE, which is the manufacturers technical name. There are 4 different types of these transmission variations. The differences between the types are the bell housing bolt pattern and valve body assemblies. The first type was used for the 2.5 L engine, second type for the 6G72 V6, third type for the 3.3 L and 3.8 L V6s and the fourth type for the 2.0 L and 2.4 L engines.
The A604 was the start of a new generation of automatic overdrive transmissions for Chrysler Corporation. It was the first electronically shifted hydraulic automatic transmission that used “self-learning” logic to mimic the driver’s habits and to learn to adapt its shifting pattern to match the expected driver “request” (the computer is programmed to vary the harshness and speed of the shifts to adapt to the driver, instead of the driver learning to adapt to the transmission shift points).
No other manufacturer had ever attempted to replace the shift shuttle valves and servos in their transmissions with electric solenoids under computer control – designing the transmission so that a limp home mode was still intact if the solenoids failed.
The transmissions do not have a valve body, technically, since the solenoids control the flow of automatic transmission fluid directly and not shift shuttle valves in the valve body, or brain of the transmission.
Chrysler put on over 3 million miles of testing for reliability on the A604 before it was released to the public. This was when the lubrication issues with Dexron ll were first realized and the ATF+3 , and then ATF+4 was developed. Care was taken to mention this in the owners manuals to show that proper oil must be used to prevent breakdowns. Most folks don’t read the manual or go to a lube shop that changes the fluid with the wrong type, causing early failures.
This was a new oil to the public at the time, it was not available at the corner oil change place. The public thought that ATF was all the same. Even some dealers were ignorant of this issue of oil type and propagated this myth that started the ball rolling on the poor public perception of the A604.
It turns out to be a good unit if it is properly serviced with the correct fluid at the proper intervals. At GotTransmissions.com we have put extra effort into locating the cream of the crop in used and rebuilt transmissions. All have been checked to make sure the mileage is less than 50,000, and we make sure it has always had the proper ATF in it, or we reject it. For a trusty reliable used Caravan TF 604 transmission Call us now @ 866-320-1182.
