Gen 2 Ram Cummins Allison 1000 Swap

Hey everyone I have been working on a standalone wire harness this last month for a customer BKFABWORKS out of TN. The goal is to take a 2013 LML Allison 1000 4x4 transmission and mount it behind the 5.9L 12V Cummins. The customer supplied me with a TCM / ECM / and various wire harnesses removed from a 2004.5 LLY Duramax & LB7 Duramax trucks. I started off tearing down the harnesses and getting a base to build off. At first I took just the TCM side of the harness and made it standalone using a core Allison I have on a stand. With this setup I tested all the sensors and inputs with a bench valve body & range sensor I have set up to make sure I had control. After I finished testing I said why not take it one step farther and I started to incorporate more systems. I then took the LLY ECU and linked it in-line with my standalone TCM setup now I have more inputs for sensors and live data I can add to the 5.9L engine for use with a Edge CTS or comparable devices via OBD2, something the stock communications system has no access to due to the trucks year being a 1995 model. After I had throttle input & all the associated data to run the Allison 1000 properly I wanted to incorporate the T/H function and braking inputs for increased transmission performance on grades and towing. This was my last accomplishment with my standalone harness setup now the customer can install a 1998 up ram column shifter with O/D off button to control the Allison T/H logic. Here is a final test log of the systems prior to shipping. This way the customer can install the harness & from there any other changes will be made on truck. My standalone kit is based on either a 01-04 LB7 OR 4.5-05 LLY platform I can also do 06-up but I have the ability to make the transmission 6 gears using the older TCM so why bother with the A40 UP TCM. I will give you guys a update on the build once we get the harness ran. The transmission is already on the truck customer used a ATS adapter plate but you can also use the SAE #3 bellhousing instead to mate a 5.9L which will work with both 1000 & 2000 series Allison transmissions. One PID I would like EFI LIVE to add is the Allison MD TPS signal, voltage, and % for logging using Allison's stock TPS sensor I could not find a PID in the scanner for this.


Note: I still have to calibrate the ECM side to suite the 5.9L 12V so sensor data is off due to not having the sensors scaled yet. The inputs I will be retaining on the ECM side is Engine coolant temp, IAT, fuel temp, Fuel pressure, MAP, barometric pressure, boost pressure, oil pressure as well as all the Allison data. Again this data can be viewed via a scan tool or live data tuning device such as a EDGE CTS or Bully Dog GT.

Here are some photos of the Allison stand alone harness build to go along with the log. If anyone is interested in a similar build you can reach out and I will help you with your options.

This is very interesting, do you have any experience with the 2000 MD applications?

The 2000 series is very similar to the 1000 and could theoretically be controlled with a 1000 strategy due to them both using the same valve body. You would have to obviously make changes in the 1000 strategy for the differences in the 2000 depending which version it is. Also the 1000/2000 can share parts from each other especially bellhousings if you wanted to put a 2000 on a 2500/3500 Duramax or a 1000 on a ram Cummins application.

Also will have a update on this post here shortly the harness is with it new owner and he is getting it all installed to operate the 2013 Allison behind his 95 ram 5.9L Cummins.

Cool. A friend of mine has a 2012 with 6.7 he is gonna send me to do the wiring and tuning for a a 2008 allison swap. He says he has an interface box but I'm not sure what exactly, I'll have to se when it gets here.
Right now I'm trying to deal with a factory setup 2003 Alison 2000 in a freightliner Cabover behind a 5.9 that has been converted to a P-pump. I rebuilt the trans for slipping 4th and 5th. It shifts fine at lower throttle/speed, but if you give it higher throttle the shift becomes very soft and mushy. It seems like the trans expects defueling and isn't getting it. I don't have efilive yet but am planning on ordering it shortly. Do you know if efi works good tuning these?

So EFI Live only supports specific MD ECM's I don't think the older 03 Cummins ECM's are fully supported yet. The TCM on the other hand should read if its a AL5 you can adjust the shift points & trans torque management which can help. The ECM is most likely sending a can message to the TCM to limit torque (fueling) which can cause the trans to adjust the shift and make it to soft of a shift which is a problem. To soft a shift means it is slipping the clutches to much and causing excessive wear and heat. I have been using EFI Live more and more and I like the system, I also use HPT annd like their system as well.

Okay, so sounds like I should just order EFI Live, probably my best bet at getting this sorted out, I've been wanting to get it anyway so now I have a good enough reason. I use HPT as well for the new diesels and such, but they dont support standalone tcm tuning for the Allison, which is cool that EFI does.

Do you know which tuning option I would need for this application? Anything I could find about Allison standalone pointed to GM tuning option, but since this is a Cummins in a bigger truck using J1939 I would think i need the Cummins HD option.

Hey Yak, I love to see what you're doin here.
I'm in process of putting an 06 Allison behind a 99 24v. I was curious (I know your setup is quite different since you're running the TCM, BCM for the allison).
I was curious what OS you're running the TCM and how you are getting throttle inputs to the tcm?

In my setup I'm using an A40 tcm with a duramax OS on it, and forums online mention using a slave TPS that outputs PWM to be able to give the TCM input. Again I know the tcm is different from what you currently have setup.