06 dodge,59 cummins tranny swap??

my sons truck is having trans trouble,its a automatic,due to a tuner.it lost second gear,completely.a very reputable shop that came highly recommended by half dozen garages,looked at it.shop said we got lucky cause the band came loose.common problem I guess??.fixed it f0r 180,worked good,even towing.now it acts up,only if you try and drive it at 15mph.the total rebuild was quoted as 2800-8000,depending on upgrades.the tuner has been removed too.the boy would really like a manual 6 speed,we have called several salvage yards and it looks like 5000 for everything needed,plus a clutch.my thought is couldn't a tranny from a bigger truck be used,like a manual out of a mid sized truck.im basing this on the 5.9s were used in everything and the trannys are priced way way cheaper,and id think they would stand up to a tuner a lot better.anyone ever done this before??.im sure the shifter would need altered in length,or bend also.i was thinking of something like a school bus size truck as a donor.the trans shop says the dodges just have trouble sometimes,he doesn't see why my idea wouldn't work,and that would be a sure fire fix.i think it wouldn't be a bad job,we have access to a good fab/machine shop at no charge if needed too.

Check suncoast transmissions. They build for trucks with mods. Doing a swap like your talking may be possible but I think you'd be spending more money. Suncoast sends you the trans you send the broke one to them for a core.

trade it

If it's a 2wd then you might be ok trying this.

If it's a 4wd, your issue will be mating the transfer case, unless you want a divorced set up.

Try a Dodge Cummins forum, I imagine someone else has already tried/down this.

If it has the tuner reinstalled, it will have problems with any trans if driven aggressively. The clutch will be the common weak link. If you put in a stronger trans, then the rear becomes a week link. The drivetrain in Dodges was plenty stout by '06 if kept stock and driven sensibly, but they are not semi's. Sounds like it is time to upgrade to a semi if it is really being worked this hard under a load and not just being used to pour black smoke/waste fuel. I agree with the Suncoast trans, or trade it for what you want.

The auto transmission has a lot of potential with the proper upgrades which you can or cannot do yourself. That all depends on how much attention to detail type of work you are accustomed to. When ripping apart auto transmissions, cleanliness is key. My 97 Dodge Cummins came with an automatic. I made several upgrades the automatic including a better low stall converter and valve body mods that enable the stock transmission to hold more power. At the end of the day, I went with a manual transmission. I went with the five speed nv4500. It is a pretty durable transmission if you don't slam gears and try to create tons of power. My truck is well above stock and pulls my 35' gooseneck leaps and bounds better than it did with the automatic, especially in back road mountain grade type of driving. One of the big incentives to go with the transmission I did was the fact that it was stock in Dodge Cummins pick ups. So it bolted right in. If you went with a road ranger or similar, there will be fabrication involved at least on the drive shaft and the crossmember along with cab modifications as most of those transmissions are huge in will not fit in a Dodge truck. The best option for a bulk up option to get you a six speed is the G56 found in newer Dodge trucks from 2006 in above I believe. All of the cab related stuff will be able to be found in a manual transmission dodge Cummins truck they will interchange you could take your automatic stuff out in the pedal assembly and everything will bolt right in.

If you're talking about going to a 6 speed manual... I think the stock 6 speed in those trucks is probably about as strong as you're going to get short of going to a heavy Road Ranger... Seriously, that 6 speed has more brute to it than most single axle offerings... Don't forget most single axles DON'T run the power through them that those Dodge's are running...
That said, I think the auto in that generation truck can be built up to be quite reliable too if you'd rather that. Personally I hate auto transmissions... and in the old days they wouldn't stand up... but the new ones should if built and maintained correctly.

Rod

(quoted from post at 00:11:49 11/18/14) If you're talking about going to a 6 speed manual... I think the stock 6 speed in those trucks is probably about as strong as you're going to get short of going to a heavy Road Ranger... Seriously, that 6 speed has more brute to it than most single axle offerings... Don't forget most single axles DON'T run the power through them that those Dodge's are running...
That said, I think the auto in that generation truck can be built up to be quite reliable too if you'd rather that. Personally I hate auto transmissions... and in the old days they wouldn't stand up... but the new ones should if built and maintained correctly.

Rod

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The new ones are stout right out of the get go. It took them a long time but they finally got auto's right, behind diesels.
6 speeds. Converter lockup in all forward gears. Double overdrive, and an optional PTO. That said, I still prefer a manual for towing.