Transmission cooler inside radiator

[Trailblazzin]

Just in case anyone was curious what the built in transmission cooler looks like, i tore the end off my old radiator and this is it. After seeing this I’m fairly sure I’ll have an auxiliary cooler ordered by the end of the day.



Now to take the test to the scrap yard



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[Matthew Jeschke]

Just in case anyone was curious what the built in transmission cooler looks like, i tore the end off my old radiator and this is it. After seeing this I’m fairly sure I’ll have an auxiliary cooler ordered by the end of the day.



Now to take the test to the scrap yard



Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

Yeah was pretty sure there wasnt much to them. I just dont like the plastic housing. It breaks.

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[kbuskill]

Just in case anyone was curious what the built in transmission cooler looks like, i tore the end off my old radiator and this is it. After seeing this I’m fairly sure I’ll have an auxiliary cooler ordered by the end of the day.



Now to take the test to the scrap yard



Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

Yeah was pretty sure there wasnt much to them. I just dont like the plastic housing. It breaks.

Sent from my SM-G925V using Tapatalk

Not trying to be rude or pick a fight... but what were you expecting?

The transmission "cooler" inside the radiator acts more like a temperature regulator.

It helps the transmission fluid warm up in the mornings by transferring heat into the fluid from the engine coolant so it reaches operating temperature sooner. After it's up to temperature then it helps to maintain the fluid temperature by transferring heat from the fluid into the coolant.

If you need/want actual cooling then you need an external cooler.

Depending on where you live it may be wise to invest in a cooler with a thermostat built into the kit. I live in Florida so the temps never get super cold for very long. If I lived up north I would have opted to add a thermostatically controlled bypass.

 

[gpracer1]

Actually the water to oil coolers work well, much more efficient than air to oil for the same size.

Your coolant is about 195 coming out of the engine and cools across the radiator THEN hits the trans cooler heat exchanger. What that temp drop is I don’t know, but it does work for normal driving, not towing a 9000 lb trailer.

 

[kbuskill]

Actually the water to oil coolers work well, much more efficient than air to oil for the same size.

Your coolant is about 195 coming out of the engine and cools across the radiator THEN hits the trans cooler heat exchanger. What that temp drop is I don’t know, but it does work for normal driving, not towing a 9000 lb trailer.

Perhaps my post came across wrong.

I wasn't trying to say that the built in trans cooler was ineffective or not as efficient as air to oil but rather that it has limitations due to it being submerged in the engine coolant where as an air to oil cooler is limited by the outside air temperature.

In other words the engine is constantly "preheating" the coolant before the coolant has the opportunity to cool the transmission fluid.

 

[swathdiver]

Depending on where you live it may be wise to invest in a cooler with a thermostat built into the kit. I live in Florida so the temps never get super cold for very long. If I lived up north I would have opted to add a thermostatically controlled bypass.

GM did this with the K2s.

 

[Trailblazzin]

Not trying to be rude or pick a fight... but what were you expecting?

The transmission "cooler" inside the radiator acts more like a temperature regulator.

It helps the transmission fluid warm up in the mornings by transferring heat into the fluid from the engine coolant so it reaches operating temperature sooner. After it's up to temperature then it helps to maintain the fluid temperature by transferring heat from the fluid into the coolant.

If you need/want actual cooling then you need an external cooler.

Depending on where you live it may be wise to invest in a cooler with a thermostat built into the kit. I live in Florida so the temps never get super cold for very long. If I lived up north I would have opted to add a thermostatically controlled bypass.

I didn’t know it was just housed in the side of the one tank, I guess i presumed that it used a passage or two across the front of the entire radiator, but now I know.

I’ll look into the cooler with a bypass because I occasionally have mornings in the teens. I’ll see what a search pulls up.






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[gpracer1]

Perhaps my post came across wrong.

I wasn't trying to say that the built in trans cooler was ineffective or not as efficient as air to oil but rather that it has limitations due to it being submerged in the engine coolant where as an air to oil cooler is limited by the outside air temperature.

In other words the engine is constantly "preheating" the coolant before the coolant has the opportunity to cool the transmission fluid.

Yeah, that’s why the “towing package” usually includes the air to oil in series to further cool the trans fluid. It’s more about keeping the temp in the optimal window.

 

[GranPrix]

So for us that have PPV's with the cooler in the radiator pictured above, if we want to add an external cooler to further drop the temps how would one add the external?

I take it something like this?: (as you can see I have too much time on my hands at work..)

 

[kbuskill]

Pretty much nailed it.