transmission cooler - manual to automatic swap

[Joe T]

i am looking to swap my manual out for an automatic (th350). can anyone recommend a transmission cooler from jegs or summit? this is not going to be hooked up through the radiator at all, just right up to the transmission.

I saw a bunch on there and was looking to spend around 50 dollars. I have a 71 c10 with a 307. Thanks!

[cdowns]

being up in the frozen north if you plan on driving during colder months your tranny will live longer with the radiator hookup

[mpotts64]

I got one out of a 96 tahoe, it is a steel cooler with the hookups out the bottom, I then ran the lines inside the frame and under the radiator support and came up through the bottom, that cooler has two long supports that you can bend and screw to the bottom support and mount the cooler so the air blows through the bottom slot of the 68 grill, you can then screw it to the grill above the slot and you are anchored on 4 corners, paint it black and you hardly even notice it is there, best of luck, got mine out of a wrecking yard for $10.00, oops, you have a 71, not sure how it would mount on there, but it works well

[MARKDTN]

You are better off spending your $50 on a used radiator that has a cooler in it IMHO.

[Joe T]

ok, so those coolers are not that great then?

[cdowns]

tranny should b at optimum running temp for longevity that's where the radiator does it's job// stand aloone coolers can cool too much not allowing that optimum temp to b realized// especially true in the frigid northeast climates

[Indyuke]

^^ Yep. Tranny running too hot isn't good. Neither is letting it run too cold. Both the trans and the fluid is designed for a specific temp. The trans fluid should run through the radiator cooler first to help regulate the temp to where it should be, and then run through the external cooler to drop the temp a bit more.

[MARKDTN]

Originally Posted by Indyuke

^^ Yep. Tranny running too hot isn't good. Neither is letting it run too cold. Both the trans and the fluid is designed for a specific temp. The trans fluid should run through the radiator cooler first to help regulate the temp to where it should be, and then run through the external cooler to drop the temp a bit more.

That is what I was saying. Cooler quality is fine, but as an auxilliary cooler not a primary cooler.

[mrein3]

In the north country you want to plumb your system like this:
Tranny (hot) -> external cooler -> radiator (to heat things up a bit in winter) -> tranny.

Down south where it is hot all the time you go:
Tranny (hot) -> radiator -> external cooler -> tranny.

I put my external cooler in line before my radiator years ago when I did my swap. With an aftermarket tranny temp gauge it never gets over 215F pulling my boat in the summer and more importantly in the winter it never gets below 100F after the engine warms up.

When I first did my manual to auto swap the PO had a 2 or 3 core radiator with a tranny tank not hooked up to anything. I purchased a can of radiator tranny tank flush made for that job from the local NAPA. I ran the whole can through and never looked back. I have since replaced the radiator with a 4-core. I think they all come with the tranny tanks now a days.