trans cooling lines

[merlin3]

on my 72 c10 509 cu in with a th400 i have the trans cooling lines hooked to a trans. cooler only,should i connect it to the radiator also? i have the stacked plate design ,not racing just cruising a few miles on the weekends and a few burnouts.

[BlackedOut67shorty]

Yes you should hook them into the rad and into the cooler back to the trans

[WIDESIDE72]

Originally Posted by blackedout67shorty

yes you should hook them into the rad and into the cooler back to the trans

x2

[WIDESIDE72]

Originally Posted by blackedout67shorty

yes you should hook them into the rad and into the cooler back to the trans

x2

[davepl]

I think this depends on the climate you live in. If you're driving around in -30 temps I would have it go through the radiator last in order to bring the trans temp up to something reasonable more quickly.

In a hot climate I'd run it through the radiator first to shed heat down to the coolant temp (200F or whatever) and then through the aux cooler to take it below that.

I'm actually not sure to what extent the radiator heat exchanger was intended to act like a heater, not just a cooler.

[trac209]

An automatic trans is the hardest working part of the drivetrain and I've never seen or heard of a trans running too cool. I've had many and I mean many a dd with air only trans coolers and haven't had any issues. Winter or summer. And where I live we GET winters.

[davepl]

I dunno, but at -40 you can cut a bottle of 20-50 in half, though I haven't checked trans fluid at that temp. But if it survived Portage & Main, it'll survive most anywhere.

[merlin3]

thanks for the help.I will only drive the truck in the summer the temp. here rarely gets above 80.

[knomadd]

Think of this... I've hear this from several transmission builders, some reputable, some not so much. I'll paraphrase a bit, since I can't remember exact quote...

"Transmissions don't like a lot of heat. A lot of times, the engine is running warmer than you want your transmission to be. Especially on hot summer days. If you run your transmission fluid through the radiator, often times the engine coolant is actually heating the transmission, not cooling it."

This isn't much of a problem in colder climates, but here in the gulf coast region, it's always hot. I run mine to an external cooler, without the radiator. Now, if I lived in a colder climate where I'd want the heat added to the fluid, I'd run it through the radiator.

[BlackedOut67shorty]

For everyone who thinks running it just to the cooler is best http://67-72chevytrucks.com/vboard/s...=586983&page=2

[davepl]

Originally Posted by BlackedOut67shorty

For everyone who thinks running it just to the cooler is best http://67-72chevytrucks.com/vboard/s...=586983&page=2

The one guy says this, which I agree with:

"It's Not about who can get the lowest trans temp, It's about who can maintain a reasonable trans temp in extreme conditions"

Remember that a transmission valve body looks like a circuit board? It really is kind of a mechanical computer that runs on fluid pressure rather than electricity. And that's why I wonder how well they can operate if the fluid never gets above freezing, for example.

I was surprised to see that an air-only cooler wouldn't keep up with towing, but it makes sense that the liquid-liquid section in the rad is going to do a lot more heat transfer than air.

Then, after the pass through the rad it can go to the air cooler. My thinking is (now) that even if its really cold outside you'll still bring the temp up by going through the rad.

Now I can't remember which way I did mine, I have to go look. But I'd wager having both in either direction and your trans will last longer than with just the rad.

I find it interesting that the B&M cooler is sort of self-regulating based on temp. If you read it carefully it's just that colder and more viscous fluid can't get through as fast.

[knomadd]

No need to jump on me about it. I forgot to mention that this setup is in my GTO, which is not a heavily loaded vehicle. No need for extra cooling in a vehicle that doesn't see high rpm/low speed/high loading as mentioned in the linked thread. My trans temps never get above 195*, even in the 110* summer days, while my engine sees 210*+ in traffic.... That's not ideal for a trans so I won't run it through my radiator.

I'll agree the "extra cooling" of the radiator would be good for a tow vehicle, or one in a lower temp area.