I am wondering whether installing a transmission oil cooler on an '06 V6 would be a good idea. I don't tow a whole lot right now, but I figure it could only help the AT in the long run, and it's not too expensive.

Would installing an aftermarket trans oil cooler affect my warranty if I have unrelated transmission problems down the road? Do Toyota dealers offer a cooler for V6's that would meet the warranty requirements?

I have one, and it does not affect the warranty if Toyota (or an authorized representative from Toyota) does the work. If you do it on your own and the tranny fails they can use it as an excuse why they would not cover it under warranty.

Now I am confused. I just spoke with the service dept at the dealer regarding the trans oil cooler, and they didn't know, so they connected me to the parts dept. The parts dept told me that no trans oil coolers are available for '06 models - even in the V8!

Is this correct? I thought the V8s equipped for towing had a trans oil cooler installed as part of the tow package? Did something change?

These people at the dealers do not inspire a lot of confidence. They never seem to REALLY know what they are talking about. They're always checking on computers, asking other people and arriving at conclusions that seem to be guesses at best.

Just a guess, but maybe Toyota doesn't list the optional trans cooler that comes on the V8 towing package as an available kit for adding on afterwards.

v8 comes standard w/ tranny cooler. It's not an option so I doubt they'll find it as a kit. v6 does not come w/ any tranny cooler but if you want to add one, just use the v8 tranny cooler or but an aftermarket one.

Easy to install and should take a novice wrencher 1 hr tops. You can find these items at JC Whitney, Summit Racing etc etc.

Good luck

I have an '03 V6, and though I have never actually looked at a V8, I assumed, by info I heard here and on Yota that all V8s came with the extra trans cooler. I just went through all the literature on the Toyota site for the '06, and can't find any reference to any type of additional cooler on either the V8, or the V6. I looked through all my original paperwork and OEM manuals for the '03 and can't find any reference to any additional coolers there either. I am pretty sure when I was trying to decide on the V6 or V8, the salesman mentioned that the V8s came with a HD towing option package which included a suplemental trans cooler. But then, I have learned to doubt most all I hear from salesmen. Does anyone know for sure about the aux cooler, and is it documented somewhere? Or is it just one of those 'undocumented' features I'm always hearing about.

Within 6 months of ownership, I asked the dealer to install a tranny cooler on my V6 (4spd). Not sure if this is a Toyota part or not, but they installed a cooler for me and clearly wrote that this is covered under the vehicle warranty (probably only at this dealer though).

A trans oil cooler is an available option on the 4.0L V6 Tacoma as part of the tow package, so I don't see why the same cooler could not be easily installed on the 4Runner. Heck, even the Highlander tow package comes with a trans oil cooler.

As Good Times mentioned, even the aftermarket ones are easy to install and would work just fine. However, my concern is that if it is not a "genuine" Toyota cooler that is installed by an authorized dealer, there may be problems if I ever have transmission trouble while under warranty.

Based upon what I know, these trans oil coolers really do not need to be vehicle-specific. Therefore, the trans oil cooler used for the V8 4Runner is probably the same one used on the V6 Tacomas.