Auxiliary Transmission Oil Cooler

[jiannichan]

Okey, a thanks to everyone who has helped me thus far with my issues. Now I have my car back and it is running superb, especially with 223,xxx miles on there. Well, I'll soon be buying a house (hopefully as long as they seller accepts our offer on it) I plan on towing with it, after my hitch comes in. I would like to purchase a small boat for fishing and skiing (Like a Bayliner Capri). The home I am buying is about 5 minutes from the lake.

I was thinking of adding this:
http://www.amazon.com/70268-SuperCooler ... B000CIGE9G

Will this be enough to use for towing? Also, will I run it in line with the one on the radiator? Anyone have any videos or how-to on installing it? I assume it is a straight forward install? If I do install it to use with the current radiator cooler, would it go to the return?

Also, what in-line filter would someone recommend? Where would I install it?

Thanks in advance!

Jianni Chan

[atraudes]

That's the generally recommended cooler to use for us, so you should be fine with it. Hopefully some folks with experience towing with it will pipe in.

You'll want to mount it in front of the A/C condenser, and run two longer hoses to it from the existing return line. You want to keep the existing cooler in the mix since the warmth from the radiator helps warm up the fluid on cold starts. It's a pretty straightforward install; I got it done in an hour or two with some fiddling. I used one of the included brackets and attached it to the hood release running down the middle, and used some silicone to basically glue the bottom of it to the radiator core support beam. The hoses mounted on the top of it, and ran to the top of radiator and down the side. Take your time and explore your options; figure out what works for you.

As far as the filter, it also should be installed on the return line unless your radiator is brand new. I installed my Magnefine filter on the new hose between the two coolers, near the radiator. On that note, the 3/8" filter was too big; the 5/16" fit perfectly.

[jiannichan]

Awesome thanks. Ordered the stuff. I'll probably wait to move before installing it. Also, is it recommended or will it be a good thing to flush the transmission oil after doing this or topping it off should be enough? I actually flushed the fluid already once after I purchased the car back in April. I lost a decent amount when I changed the radiators so all I did was just top it off.

Just noticed your location...how far are ya from Costco headquarters? I worked with them a lot at my previously employer. They were one of our biggest clients.

[atraudes]

You don't need to flush the fluid, especially if you did it recently already. What I did was tried be quick about swapping the hoses, and plugging open holes with my fingers or Sharpie markers or pens or the like. In doing so I only ended up losing a half cup or so of fluid. Just check the level again when you're done.

The Costco headquarters are just down the hill from me, maybe 5 or 10 minutes. I'd love to work there, but they only seem to hire developers with Websphere experience, which I don't have (yet). Who was your previous employer?

[rgk]

Towed my storage trailer with my 13k BTU cooler across the country. No problems whatsoever, easy to install, but I notice my freshly-changed coolant is dark again. Maybe should have installed a filter?

[atraudes]

Engine oil gets dark mostly as a result of the carbon of all of the explosions happening nearby, which filters try to remove as much of as possible. Transmissions, however, don't have these carbon sources, so the darker fluid is either a result of age or heat. Heat isn't necessarily a problem unless it's excessive and your darker fluid isn't a huge surprise since towing generates more heat. The cooler's purpose is to lower overall temperatures so you can run it harder, longer. This diagram is my favorite way of thinking about transmission heat and it's effect:



In either case, the transmission filter won't help since it can't filter out the causes of the dark fluid. The filter's purpose is to pull things like fine metal shavings and other solids which are the result of normal wear and tear of a transmission. Pulling these bits out of circulation will prevent them from being run through the gears and acting as an abrasive.

All that to say it'd probably be prudent to change the oil soon and install a transmission fluid temperature gauge if you plan on towing again. A temperature gauge is always a good idea when towing so you can keep an eye on the temps and make sure things aren't getting too out of hand. If you don't tow often and/or don't have a good place for the gauge, maybe set it up so it can be disconnected quickly and maybe just velcro it to the dash.

Sorry, probably way more of a response than you were looking for I just learned all of this recently, so it's fresh in my mind!

[rgk]

No, I appreciate the info greatly. The fluid wasn't dark at all after my cross-country trip. I changed it immediately after. However, it has been a few months since the trip (a few months is in my mind freshly-changed trans fluid), and I noticed that it is now a deep, dark red, almost brown. It doesn't smell burnt, but it surely won't hurt to change it.

[jiannichan]

You don't need to flush the fluid, especially if you did it recently already. What I did was tried be quick about swapping the hoses, and plugging open holes with my fingers or Sharpie markers or pens or the like. In doing so I only ended up losing a half cup or so of fluid. Just check the level again when you're done.

The Costco headquarters are just down the hill from me, maybe 5 or 10 minutes. I'd love to work there, but they only seem to hire developers with Websphere experience, which I don't have (yet). Who was your previous employer?

Used to work for a software company called Retalix as a QA analyst, then they were acquired by NCR (National Cash Register). We provided Costco the software for running their pumps. Before I was laid off, I was on the team focused on Costco Canada helping them implement EMV with their membership cards.

[jiannichan]

Okey. More problems...getting tired of this. So, the radiator has been replaced because of a hairline crack on top on the original one. Then I noticed a slight leak from the driver side transmission oil line going in. I replaced the hose a couple days ago and it appeared to have fixed it, or so I thought, but now it is leaking again. I bought the radiator from Oreilly and wondering if it could be the fitting? I had a mechanic look at it and he told me to replace the hose and it should fix it, so I did. He also said that if the leak continues, then it could be the fitting is faulty, or I could have damaged it when I put in the radiator. I don't think damaged it as I was pretty careful putting it in, but the only thing I kept banging around putting back in was the guard for the fan. I do actually have to refill the fluid as it gets low. I was thinking of temporarily fixing the issue by trying the Blue Devil sealer, but I don't like wasting money of temporary fixes.

I have included a photo of the leak...I would hate to have to replace the radiator again...so hoping this is an easy fix.
Photo is upside down, so this is the hose that's on the driver side.

[atraudes]

Weird, I don't recognize the fitting they're using. Specifically, I don't understand why there's two six-point pieces to wrench on. Usually it's just a single threaded nipple like so:



It does seem ridiculous to have to replace the entire radiator just to fix this problem if the rest of it's working as expected. Make sure they'll honor an exchange if you end up swapping for a new one before you pull it out

I would unscrew the nipple, throw some oil-safe plumber's tape on it, and reinstall. Maybe install a plain threaded nipple like the one above to minimize the number of points that it can leak at. Places like Home Depot should have what you need. Just bring the existing fittings with you so you can match up the thread type and hose size.

[jiannichan]

atraudes,

First I'd like to say thank you for all you have helped with and your quick responses to anything I have asked. I tried to take that nozzle off and I barely even turned the wrench and the whole thing just snapped right off. Judging from the looks of it, it looked to be a bad part. It didn't appear to be banged around but just a straight up brittle piece that was formed incorrectly. I put in the new radiator the same way I did the first one, hooked everything up and ran the car for about 10 minutes and NO LEAKS!! I didn't get to drive the car around or anything but you can see it leaking without having to do that. Thanks for your responses and advice!

[atraudes]

Glad to help I'm glad you got it sorted out. Bummer you had to swap in a whole new unit! Did you at least get the replacement at no cost?

[jiannichan]

Pretty much. When I went to get a new one, I told them the issue and they just said to bring it back in and they'd give me a refund. So I went home, took the old one out, put the new one in, ran the car for a bit just to verify everything was working and no leaks were present and then drove it to the store to return the bad radiator.