Any Experiences With a Transmission Cooler?

[JAVMAN]

Curious if anyone has installed a trans cooler and what their thoughts are.

[Don Ridley]

From the service manual:

 

Engine coolant flows primarily from the engine to the radiator circuit and back to the coolant pump. Coolant is

sent from the coolant pump through the engine block and cylinder heads. A separate circuit from the engine also

feeds the heater core and turbocharger with coolant. The coolant pump, operated by engine rotation through the

accessory drive belt, circulates the coolant. The coolant thermostat is a control valve actuated by coolant

temperature. When the thermostat is closed, coolant flow bypasses the radiator circuit and returns to the coolant

pump. When the thermostat is opened, coolant flows through the radiator circuit to transfer engine-generated

heat to the outside air.

The transmission cooler - warmer is mounted on the transmission. On initial startup, the transmission fluid heater

coolant control valve opens and allows warm coolant from the engine to enter the transmission cooler - warmer

to warm the transmission fluid. As the engine and transmission warm, the transmission fluid heater coolant

control valve closes and the transmission fluid cooler coolant control valve opens, allowing cooler coolant from

the radiator to enter the transmission cooler - warmer to cool the transmission fluid.

[JAVMAN]

Well... That was mighty technical.  I'm looking for some comments from anyone who has actually added a trans cooler and if they felt it was worth the effort.  I live in Colorado and will be doing some towing from time to time, probably in the 1000 lbs range including the trailer.   Towing is a breeze until you are in the mountains with a large vehicle and a small motor.

[Eddy Kilowatt]

What's technical about "the transmission cooler/warmer"? 

 

TL/DR: there's already one there, it acts to warm the trans to operating temp more quickly (for fuel economy and probably shift smoothness), and it acts to cool the trans when it's working hard.

 

Sounds like a trans temp gauge would be the place to start, see how well the factory cooler is doing its job.

[G B L]

If  you get a good scanner  it  will have the transmission information including the fluid temp.  You can see what the trans is running for temp with out the trailer, and then see what the temp is with the trailer.  That  as Eddy Kilowatt indicated will give you a very good starting point .   I use mine for towing a lot Keeping the fluid fresh is one of the best things you can do.

[mrtn]

Eddy Kilowatt is a funny name. Awfully metric.

[PhotoAl]

Thanks Don for the description.  Didn’t realize transmission had a cooler - warmer.  Wonder if a malfunction of the control valve could cause issues.  Temps would be elevated by the amount of heat picked up in the engine. Not enough caffeine yet so not thinking clearly but might raise temps by 40 or 50 desgrees but again could be enough to cause fluid to be above breakdown temperatures.  Trying to figure why a warmer is needed, maybe for better shifts when cold.  Here 10 degrees F is very cold so probably not as much of an issue.

 

If if I was going to be regularly hauling think I’d be very seriously considering a cooler, good idea from G B L to monitor temperatures with a scanner.  Have the interface and software but haven’t gone beyond testing to see if it works.  On my VW’s have found it the be a handy tool particularly with a passenger monitoring.  

 

Edit: fixed what autocorrect fixed for me

Edited April 25, 2018 by PhotoAl