is it better to run a separate trans cooler?

stroked10

stroked10

Forum Member
iv got a champion radiator for my s10. but it has built in trans cooler should i cap those off and run a separate cooler or can run my lines right to the radiator?
 
Run the rad cooler and then add the biggest aux cooler you can. Liquid to liquid is always better than liquid to air!
 
If you run the fluid through both the radiator and a big external trans cooler you can actually "shock" the fluid. Not good........ Just run a good external cooler that has threaded AN style fittings on it instead of a hose clamping cheap barb/flare fitting. I've seen to many trans lines blow off the hose clamped lines.
 
camaromann said:
If you run the fluid through both the radiator and a big external trans cooler you can actually "shock" the fluid. Not good........ Just run a good external cooler that has threaded AN style fittings on it instead of a hose clamping cheap barb/flare fitting. I've seen to many trans lines blow off the hose clamped lines.
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ok thanks so do i have to cap the radiator off or can the holes stay open? and can the external cooler be on the back side of the raiator? because my fans are on the outside or front side of the radiator.
 
Maybe get an external cooler with its own fan on it. Feeding your trans cooler hot radiator air seems kind of pointless.

You can leave the holes open but I would put some pipe plugs in it anyways. I had good results running both the internal cooler and an external in series but its not something everyone wants to do. Im debating doing it again with my new combo.
 
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Watrer in radiator usually higher than 180* optimal temp for a trans is below 170* So i NEVER use the cooler in the rad. You want the trans to be much cooler at about 150 in my opinion. So feed it it's own fresh air, and keep it out of the radiator. Make a bracket to mount the transcooler forward of the fan if space allows so it pulls air through it.
 
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stroked10 said:
ok thanks so do i have to cap the radiator off or can the holes stay open? and can the external cooler be on the back side of the raiator? because my fans are on the outside or front side of the radiator.
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You do not need to plug the trans line holes in the radiator. You can mount it behind the radiator just fine if you wish. But if it was mine I would put the fans on the inside side of the radiator and put the trans cooler on the outside of the radiator/core support to try and keep it as far away from heat as you can (i.e. the engine, headers, ect.)
 
With all the thermal engineers in this thread, this poor trans has a 80/20 chance of living. 80% failure 20% living. Scientific fact
 
Ultimatly where i work the OTA coolers have worked the best, usually mounted in front of the radiator in a spot where they will get adequate airflow. Ive never used the transcooler in the radiator and never had an issue either, and to be honest unless you are towing just an external cooler is more than good enough.
 
What are you doing with the vehicle? Do you care about fuel economy? Will you run the car year round or is this a fair weather car? FWIW the trans cooler in the rad is in the outlet tank, so the water temp at that point is at engine inlet temp.

If you run in cold weather you want to keep the rad cooler in the loop and put it AFTER the external cooler. There is a negative impact of over cooling the trans in cold weather.

If you are running a built trans with increased line pressure, i would ditch the barbs and clamps as others have noted and go with AN/JIC fittings.

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If you look at the curves on transmission fluid it seems to be most stable from 130 to 180. I know Dexron IV starts falling apart above 250. There is a GM specification, GMN10060, that might be useful to you.

I usually add a large one in front of the radiator, then pipe it back through the radiator tank (ever notice they're always on the cold side of the radiator?). On my offroad crap I skip the radiator (because the transmission is always 200+).

My Silverado has a 6L80e and even when beating on it towing when it's hot out it has only ever gotten to 197. Most of the time it's from 130 to 165.

Over-cooling is bad also. Until I've cooked the fluid a few times, my offroad crap will put your head in the back window in the 2-3 shift (700R4) after startup.
 
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