Thread: Thinking about a Tranny Cooler, what do you guys have...

What brands are you running? Got pics? Curious how you guys are mounting soem of these. I'm really not interested in using those zip tie things through the radiator honestly. Also, are you guys running through the radiator too or directly to the cooler?

Hows the GMPP cooler? Anyone know?

Thanks

Ive been running the GMPP cooler forever. But I know TurboKent runs a cooler similar to if not one from Trannyman and likes it very much. Ive used the zip tie kind before, however, with great success, they work just as well maybe better than the GMPP kit because you can get them in larger sizes.

Hayden Transmission Cooler #1405 for $30 you can't beat it..
Hayden Transmission Cooler

I have some pictures of the install somewhere if you want to see them.

I wonder how the Hayden and the GMPP compare performance wise?

How did you mount your Hayden Kent? Are you useing the radiator cooler too or JUST the tranny cooler? I''d like to see those pics if there handy. Where did you get yours? Link no worky.

How about you Scotty on your GMPP? Are you using the radiator too?

Thanks guys, I want to do something very soon. I plan on dropping my pan here shortly to inspect my filter/magnet and that would be the time to do it for sure.

I dont think you can compare the Hayden and the GMPP coolers to one another as they are different beasts. The GMPP is a stacked plate cooler and the Hayden is a tube and fin cooler (I forgot the technical name). The stacked plate coolers by design will not cut of fluid flow if part of the cooler became blocked for some reason. Though I do not know how they compare in cooling ability, if memory serves me the stacked plates were more efficient but I'll leave room there to recant just in case Im incorrect about that.

I am using the radiator still or was, I dont plan on doing so once the rebuild is complete, and I plan on changing my cooler set up and going to a set up similar to what Farnsworth is using. I DO NOT recommend putting a cooler on and not going in series with the radiator cooler and putting it after the radiator cooler. You more or less defeat the purpose if you leave the radiator cooler functional and dont put the extra cooler after the radiator.

If you disable the radiator cooler thats another story, you just need to make sure you use a cooler sufficient enough to keep things in the proper temp range, which for tranny fluid is going to be in the 170* area.

My tranny fluid temps on the hottest of days here in OK (days when the temps were up over 100) my fluid temps were over 200. Usually around 205 maybe 210 depneding on how hard I was pushing it. It took me maybe an hour to hour and a half to install the GMPP cooler. I went out before I installed it and drove a certain route that took me on city streets and a stretch of highway.

When I installed the GMPP unit I went back out on the same path to get the fluid temp reading from that. The highest I saw on the pre-test was 205* and it would hit upper 190's to 200 on the highway. When I installed the GMPP cooler my temps had dropped down to mid 180s to mid 190's, with the 190's obviously coming with the city driving and having to stop at the stop lights.

So I got around a 10 - 15* drop in fluid temps, and given the size of the GMPP cooler, I was happy with that. Tranny fluid over 200* (conventional fluid anyway) starts to break down rather rapidly. So keeping it under that mark was a goal for me but Im going to do more to give myself more of a cushion when the car goes back together.

I have a GMPP cooler. For my daily driver, it works fine. If I had a car that was more built, and I raced more, I would get a different setup. But for me, the stock appearance, ease of installation, and simplicity of the GMPP cooler works well for me.

Originally Posted by Zef_66

I have a GMPP cooler. For my daily driver, it works fine. If I had a car that was more built, and I raced more, I would get a different setup. But for me, the stock appearance, ease of installation, and simplicity of the GMPP cooler works well for me.

Thats pretty much my reasoning. Now, with me building the motor and tranny and wanting to spend more time on the track, I'll be focusing more on something purpose built to keep temps down.

here you go. Scott helped me get this put in one evening. Had to totally remove the front bumper, even the main one across the front of the car that is actually shown back on the car in the pics. I bypassed the radiator cooler and just using this one. If you can see where the lines run through two holes to the right of the radiator. Originally the hood release cable ran through one of the holes. So i disconnected it and ran it through a hole just below those.

Definitely bypass the radiator. The coolant in the radiator is only going to heat your fluid.

I have yet to see a transmission that would not benefit from the addition of additional cooling ability, whether it was used in towing or not.

Having a higher stall converter is also a good reason to get a tranny cooler.

I have the GMPP cooler.

Yep, thats the set up I have.

So with the GMPP Cooler did you bypass the stock cooler?
If so does this lower your Water Temp as well since the Radiator does not have to cool the Trans fluid as well?

I didnt, I put it in series with the stock cooler, but after it. So the fluid goes from the radiator to the stock cooler then to the GMPP cooler. It helped the tranny fluid temps obviously but I cant comment on whether or not bypassing the stock cooler would lower coolant temps. My logic would say yes it should since that is less heat being dissipated into the coolant but I have no evidence that suggests this. You would also have to contend with the computer in that if it saw a reduction in coolant temp it may take corrective action with the engine.

good point with useing stock and aftermarket cooler what are your Trans temp s now

Well I havent run it in a long time with my car out of commission doing the tranny rebuild and engine mods but when I tested the set up after installing it I saw temp drops around 15-20* overall. Obviously the bigger the surface area of the cooler, the more the drop will be. The GMPP is not a large cooler and I was more after keeping my temps from touching on the 200* mark as thats where the fluid really begins to suffer.

Can your transmission fluid be too cold? I'm looking at doing a rebuild and installing a cooler at the same time, but not sure if I want it before or after the radiator. Temps last winter while driving to work were -20F to -25F a few times, so putting the cooler before the radiator so that it heats up some might be a good idea depending on the ideal temperature range.

Personally I would not want it down below 160*. Condesation/Moisture is not as big of a problem in the tranny as it is in the engine and you dont get fuel dilution in the tranny, but Id still want it between 160 - 180* just so that any moisture in there would evaporate fairly easily instead of attacking the fluid.

Dont quote me on this and Trannyman would better be able to clear this up than I, but I was under the impression that if the tranny fluid was too cold the computer would lock out overdrive. Again, Ive heard of this and I dont know this to be fact. Im not the tranny expert here so it may all be junk too.

Originally Posted by SyntheticShield

Personally I would not want it down below 160*. Condesation/Moisture is not as big of a problem in the tranny as it is in the engine and you dont get fuel dilution in the tranny, but Id still want it between 160 - 180* just so that any moisture in there would evaporate fairly easily instead of attacking the fluid.

Dont quote me on this and Trannyman would better be able to clear this up than I, but I was under the impression that if the tranny fluid was too cold the computer would lock out overdrive. Again, Ive heard of this and I dont know this to be fact. Im not the tranny expert here so it may all be junk too.

I think it just disables TCC lockup, I've noticed that in the winter when getting on the highway. I think putting it before the radiator would be the safer option.