45RFE Sun Shell, remanufactured and ready to install. Fits the 45RFE. Ships fast from the USA.
This page carries the catalog name sun shell, but what you receive is a remanufactured 45RFE/545RFE valve body of the seven-checkball design, rebuilt with OEM parts for 1999-2009 Dodge, Jeep and Chrysler applications. It is the part to look at when a Ram 1500, Dakota, Durango, Grand Cherokee, Liberty or Commander loses reverse, stalls when it drops into gear, sets P0871 or another pressure switch code that comes back after a new solenoid pack, or keeps burning the overdrive clutch. It is sold as the valve body only, exactly as pictured, with no solenoid pack attached.
The 45RFE has no shift valves in the old sense. The solenoid pack bolts to the valve body and the computer switches its solenoids, while the valve body turns those commands into oil routed to six clutches. Three valves cause most of the trouble. The solenoid switch valve chooses whether low/reverse oil feeds the low/reverse clutch or the converter clutch, and its end plugs also steer oil toward the 2C and overdrive clutches. The pressure regulator valve holds line pressure, and the TC limit valve controls converter release pressure. Those valves ride in aluminum bores that wear oval, which lets oil leak into the wrong circuit. Sonnax lists bind-up, engine stall, failsafe mode, no lockup and the P0841, P0868, P0871, P0988, P1775 and P1776 codes as typical results of switch valve bore wear on this family.
Pressure switch codes point at the solenoid pack, yet on this transmission the pack is often only the messenger. Run the key-on engine-running test in Reverse first to clear wiring, then vacuum test the switch valve, regulator and TC limit bores on the bench. Our 45RFE and 545RFE valve body testing guide walks through that order step by step, and the shift solenoid symptoms guide shows how to rule the pack in or out with resistance checks.
The listing covers 45RFE and 545RFE transmissions from 1999 through 2009. Sonnax documents seven checkballs in the 2006-2010 RFE valve bodies and only five in the 2011-up bodies, after Chrysler dropped a solenoid and two checkballs and switched the solenoid pack connector from white to gray in 2010. A gray-connector pack cannot back-service these earlier six-solenoid bodies, so this unit pairs with the white-connector pack used from 2000 to 2009 (the 1999 black-connector pack was short-lived). Before ordering, compare the casting and checkball layout of your original body with the photo, or send us your year and VIN and we will confirm the match. Other years are on the 45RFE and 545RFE parts page.
| Fits | 45RFE |
| Part type | Sun Shell |
| Condition | Remanufactured |
| Brand | OEM |
| Ships | From the USA |
| Warranty | 1-year |
Doing this repair right usually means replacing these at the same time. Same transmission, ships together.
No. The catalog name is wrong. It is a remanufactured 45RFE/545RFE seven-checkball valve body for 1999-2009, sold without a solenoid pack, exactly as shown in the photo.
No. 2011-up RFE valve bodies use five checkballs and the gray-connector five-solenoid pack. This seven-ball body is for 1999-2009 units with the six-solenoid pack.
No. It is the valve body only. Reuse a pack that tests good, or buy a new white-connector pack to go with it.
Worn valve body bores and switch valve plugs are the most common cause of P0871 on these units, so a rebuilt body often cures it. Confirm the wiring and pack first with the Reverse KOER test.
Refill with ATF+4, clear codes and run the Quick Learn with a scan tool so the controller relearns clutch fill times.
