Transmission Coolers

d_m_kolb · Post by **d_m_kolb** » Fri Jun 07, 2002 1:16 pm

Well as you already know I have an automatic transmission, why? well yes a manual is faster when stock ( You have 1 extra gear ) and more gears means you move faster. But in where I live I have little choice but to get an auto, first is availability, next is driving in traffic, here is where I hate manual. Does auto have any good points other than easy drive in traffic, well it is more consistant in acceleration, and also when given enough power it is better for drag racing, since you don't have to worry about missing a shift, and with nos autos definitly work best. A fact is that manuals are only better since you have more gears and a bit better control over rpm but you can get around this with autos with torque braking and selective upshifting. So autos are not as bad as people say they are ( most f1 and nascar cars are auto now ). But what about reliability? well the reason most autos fail is either by neutral drops ( rev in neutral and put it in gear ) or by over heating. The cooler keeps it cooler and extends tranny life, this is a good thing, and also since a seperate cooler will cool only the tranny your cars cooling system will also benifit. How hard is it to install? well rather easy actually, just get a cooler kit, 2-3ft cooling hoses and thats it. The kit may even come with the hoses. Just remove the old lines from the rad, use a 6" hose to reroute the 2 inlets to each other, now either go from under or above the rad, you have to remove the rad fan and then install the cooler in-front the rad. Why there? so at idle when the cooling fan comes on it will cool it. Also I have been told you can mount the cooler inline from the rad or seperate, seperate seems to be better but you can always change it as needed. The kit should come with a ties mount and spacers, mount the cooler and run the lines to the tranny, the old lines may still fit but I used new ones that came with the kit. once the lines are run just replace th fan and screw everything together, thats it. The cooler should help your tranny in winter and very hot summers, and extend it's life. How? well auto trannies have 2 clutches and several bands that connect it all together , a manual has 1 clutch which you manually engage and disengaed to change gears, since we have 2 and they are smaller they heat up more and disapate the heat slower. The tranny cooler also is independant to the rest of the cars cooling system, so an over heating engine will not also over heat the tranny and vs. Cooler th tranny, the cooler the clutchs and bands in it and this causes less heat stress and less wear, will slow the break down of the tranny fluid and makes shifting smoother and less harsh.

Black4drGT · Post by **Black4drGT** » Sun May 25, 2003 6:56 am

Do you guys think that with the supercharger from GM that the transmission should need a cooler?

d_m_kolb · Post by **d_m_kolb** » Sun May 25, 2003 9:11 am

It wouldn't be a bad idea by any means.

Lorin · Post by **Lorin** » Sun May 25, 2003 11:38 am

Is there such a thing as too much of a good thing? I remember some winter mornings where the shifter on the ol' college beater car ( 74 Chevy Impala ) felt more like a spoon moving through honey than a shifter with individual notches. Is there like a proper operating temp for a transmission? Any danger of getting so much extra cooling capacity that on a cold winter day the transmission might never reach temperature?

KSNeptune · Post by **KSNeptune** » Sun May 25, 2003 1:09 pm

I was watching one of the Sunday car related shows (Two Guy's Garage, perhaps) and they claimed that dropping the transmission's temp would greatly extend it's life since heat was the main killer of transmissions.That said, I'll agree that a transmission cooler is a good idea, especially if you drive your vibe hard.My neighbor owns a local transmission shop, and I'll ask him next time I see him what he thinks of them.KSNeptune

d_m_kolb · Post by **d_m_kolb** » Wed May 28, 2003 10:49 am

As much as it hurts me to say Amsoil does not make a trany fluid that is recommended for the Toyota transmissions The Vibe and Matrix use. What a difference it made in my 2001 Kia Spectra. Oh well.Has anyone run across a fully synthetic trany fluid compatible with the Toyota Auto trany? I haven't yet. Convention fluids scare me and I wont use them.As for you manual owners Celicas have been having LOTS of trany problems around the 30,000 mile and up mark. Make sure to change that manual gear lube! The manual requires 75W-90. It actually comes prefilled with Mobil 1 gear lube but in my opinion Mobil 1 gear lube is awful. Lots of trany problems and no transmission should be having problems at 30,000 miles.