Can an aftermarket bumper cause excessive transmission temps?

[19963.4lsr5]

Where there's a will, there's a way. Grinder to the bumper, mount the cooler on the back side, spacers as needed, etc. There's plenty of room left in there for a trans cooler.

I custom mounted my cooler - it sits behind everything, right next to the AC condenser so the fan pulls as much air through it as possible. Modified the upper and lower condenser mounts, etc. I also used a thermostat on the cooling system to minimize overcooling in the winter. There's now a winch control box in there, and it all still fits...

-Charlie

That cooler looks like it was from my cummins……


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[96RedRunner]

Where there's a will, there's a way.

No truer words my dad started saying that when I was around 10 yrs old, along the way I added no risk it no biscuit.

 

[Option01]

Thanks! Yes you are correct, my bracket won't work with that bumper. Is it a Coastal Offroad?

Yes it is. They make 2 versions for the 3rd gen 4runner and I got the one that is extra low-profile. Their other bumper might have more clearance.

 

[Option01]

Where there's a will, there's a way. Grinder to the bumper, mount the cooler on the back side, spacers as needed, etc. There's plenty of room left in there for a trans cooler.

I custom mounted my cooler - it sits behind everything, right next to the AC condenser so the fan pulls as much air through it as possible. Modified the upper and lower condenser mounts, etc. I also used a thermostat on the cooling system to minimize overcooling in the winter. There's now a winch control box in there, and it all still fits...

-Charlie

Oh wow, I really like how your cooler is shorter but goes all the way across. Can you tell me what kind of cooler that is?

Also, I assume you do not have a Coastal Offroad bumper? It seems like it will be a very tight fit to get both a cooler and a winch to fit in mine.

 

[thezentree]

Oh wow, I really like how your cooler is shorter but goes all the way across. Can you tell me what kind of cooler that is?

Also, I assume you do not have a Coastal Offroad bumper? It seems like it will be a very tight fit to get both a cooler and a winch to fit in mine.

It'll go but it's a fight. I've got a lot of snakeskin and cut up fuel hose in there to prevent chafing.

 

[phattyduck]

Oh wow, I really like how your cooler is shorter but goes all the way across. Can you tell me what kind of cooler that is?

Also, I assume you do not have a Coastal Offroad bumper? It seems like it will be a very tight fit to get both a cooler and a winch to fit in mine.

Trucool LPD4921 (I got the kit with the thermostat). Thinner, more open fins and large frontal area than most trans cooler options. With some work, it fits behind the hood latch support, as you can see. If a winch will fit in front of the vertical support, it will fit with the cooler like that.

My bumper is from Shrockworks. More open on the front than yours and my lower skid plate has some holes to feed the bottom of the radiator too. There's a winch in there now too, but I don't have any current pictures of that setup.

-Charlie

 

[Option01]

How is your coolant temp? The needle gauge can be way off from the OBD temp. I bet you are over 190 on your coolant temp. I sit right at 189 degrees all day long with my stock bumper.

I'd suspect a cooling issue - and seeing as how the whole front is blocked off, I'd suspect the bumper is part of it. Once you have those coolant temps, that will be the information needed - it could also now be showing your fan clutch is weak or some other similar issue too.

I solved my engine coolant issues (set the jiggle valve on a new TStat to 6 O'Clock along with a new radiator and cap) and my high transmission temps issue ( trans cooler, drain-n-fills, magnefine) while I still had a fatlip bumper.

So I made the same trek up the mountain on Friday and recorded both the coolant and transmission temps. This time I used OD off for the long inclines and did not use the AC. The outside temp was also about 10 degrees cooler but the 4Runner was fully loaded with camping gear (compared to being empty on the last trip).

The coolant temps stayed between 188-190 almost the entire time with a few short spikes to 192 and 194. I assume those temps rule out the engine cooling being an issue?

The transmission temps did a lot better on this trip but still too high maxing out at 215 on the hour long inclined drive up the freeway and then a max of 232 on the hilly and winding paved roads after the freeway.

I also had trouble keeping the transmission temps down on the drive back down the freeway and turning OD on or off didn't seem to have a consistent effect. Any recommendation for which is better on an extended decline?

Lastly, the final leg of the return trip along city streets resulted in some transmission temp spikes back into the 230's. It seems I got the transmission pretty hot on the freeway and then it couldn't shed heat fast enough with the frequent gear shifts and lack of airflow from city driving.

I'm wondering if these temps make sense considering the reduced airflow and driving conditions?

 

[Option01]

It'll go but it's a fight. I've got a lot of snakeskin and cut up fuel hose in there to prevent chafing.

Oh dang, that is a tight fit. I wonder if another winch might be smaller and fit a bit easier? Although, with how much of the radiator it blocks, maybe I should forgo mounting a winch in the bumper...

 

[Option01]

Trucool LPD4921 (I got the kit with the thermostat). Thinner, more open fins and large frontal area than most trans cooler options. With some work, it fits behind the hood latch support, as you can see. If a winch will fit in front of the vertical support, it will fit with the cooler like that.

My bumper is from Shrockworks. More open on the front than yours and my lower skid plate has some holes to feed the bottom of the radiator too. There's a winch in there now too, but I don't have any current pictures of that setup.

-Charlie

Nice! I'm glad to hear it can be made to fit behind the hood latch support. Mine is currently removed to fit the bumper but I'm thinking about having a notch cut in the bumper to allow space for it to be added back in (the hood latch feels pretty unstable without it). Unfortunately, the support would have to be removed again to fit a winch but maybe I should forgo a winch considering how much airflow it'll block...

 

[phattyduck]

The coolant temps stayed between 188-190 almost the entire time with a few short spikes to 192 and 194. I assume those temps rule out the engine cooling being an issue?

Your engine temps are prefect, no worries there.

The trans temps, while high, are also not going to cause your trans to blow up immediately or anything. Dropping them 20*F would be good, but no need to go crazy. Get a cooler on there and try to find a way to leave room for a winch if you want. Drill holes in the bumper while you have it off to install the winch...

-Charlie

 

[Option01]

It'll go but it's a fight. I've got a lot of snakeskin and cut up fuel hose in there to prevent chafing.

Oh man, that's a really tight fit! I see you used the zip-tie method to attach the transmission cooler. I was hoping to figure out some kind of bracket solution but it looks like there's just not enough room with the Coastal Offroad bumper (if I want to do a winch).

Was it the wires on your winch that caused the clearance issues?

 

[Option01]

Your engine temps are prefect, no worries there.

The trans temps, while high, are also not going to cause your trans to blow up immediately or anything. Dropping them 20*F would be good, but no need to go crazy. Get a cooler on there and try to find a way to leave room for a winch if you want. Drill holes in the bumper while you have it off to install the winch...

-Charlie

Thanks again Charlie! I wanted some other adjustments made to the bumper so I'm having the wielder cut some holes while its there this week.

In the meantime, I'm looking to buy a transmission cooler and I liked the short/wide dimensions of your Tru-cool but it looks like that model is no longer in stock anywhere (maybe discontinued?). Its too bad since I was thinking I could probably get that cooler to fit on brackets and get the winch in there. I don't think I'll be able to get one of the taller cooler designs to fit unless I go with zip-ties which is not ideal IMO.

 

[phattyduck]

In the meantime, I'm looking to buy a transmission cooler and I liked the short/wide dimensions of your Tru-cool but it looks like that model is no longer in stock anywhere (maybe discontinued?). Its too bad since I was thinking I could probably get that cooler to fit on brackets and get the winch in there. I don't think I'll be able to get one of the taller cooler designs to fit unless I go with zip-ties which is not idea IMO.

The smaller LPD4920 does seem to be available. The rest of the TruCool coolers are a lot more square (or much smaller).

-Charlie

 

[Option01]

The smaller LPD4920 does seem to be available. The rest of the TruCool coolers are a lot more square (or much smaller).

-Charlie

Oh that might be an option. Do you have a link? I just did a google search and didn't see anything in stock :/

 

[thezentree]

Oh man, that's a really tight fit! I see you used the zip-tie method to attach the transmission cooler. I was hoping to figure out some kind of bracket solution but it looks like there's just not enough room with the Coastal Offroad bumper (if I want to do a winch).

Was it the wires on your winch that caused the clearance issues?

And the trans cooler lines and the winch itself and the AC condenser and the....

It's 10lbs of crap in a 5lbs bag. I actually had to move the trans cooler to the other side of the condenser/radiator when I got my winch because they were trying to occupy the same space.

 

[96RedRunner]

10lbs of crap 5lb bag easy fix less crap, not cheap though.https://www.warn.com/90rc-winch-71550

One thing I can think of is can you drill new mounting holes for winch that moves winch closer to face of bumper.
Drilling four holes is easy whatever you gain is rearranging crap in the bag could make things easier

 

[Endlessblockades]

The smaller LPD4920 does seem to be available. The rest of the TruCool coolers are a lot more square (or much smaller).

-Charlie

I got a smaller more square unit and it dropped my transmission temps in a MAJOR way. I don't think venting a bumper will have anywhere near the cooling effect.

I was curious what I have was so I looked up my invoice from Oregon Performance Transmission. What's crazy is that I paid half the price in 2021 (see invoice below). Must've been a sale AND pre-inflation.

Tru-Cool LPD 4454 Automatic Transmission Cooler 18,000 GVW LPD4454 Fluid Oil True-Cool OC : Oregon Performance Transmission

Edit "Out of Stock" Maybe it's been superseded.


Code: LNG-4454 Tru-Cool LPD 4454 Automatic Transmission Cooler 18,000 Product: GVW LPD4454 Fluid Oil True-Cool OC
Quantity: 1
Price: $69.67
Shipping: Expedited Shipping (1 - 3 days): $3.99
Sales Tax: $0.00
Total: $73.66

 

[Option01]

And the trans cooler lines and the winch itself and the AC condenser and the....

It's 10lbs of crap in a 5lbs bag. I actually had to move the trans cooler to the other side of the condenser/radiator when I got my winch because they were trying to occupy the same space.

Haha, that's what I'm realizing as I try to plan out how to get it all in there. Thanks for the heads-up about the ATC needing to be on the drivers side. I'll keep that in mind if I go with one of the more square shaped coolers.

10lbs of crap 5lb bag easy fix less crap, not cheap though.9.0Rc Winch | WARN Industries

One thing I can think of is can you drill new mounting holes for winch that moves winch closer to face of bumper.
Drilling four holes is easy whatever you gain is rearranging crap in the bag could make things easier

Oof! Thank you for the suggestion but that's a bit more than I'm wanting to spend. Still, good to know options like that exist (I didn't have much luck google searching for small profile winches)

I got a smaller more square unit and it dropped my transmission temps in a MAJOR way. I don't think venting a bumper will have anywhere near the cooling effect.

I was curious what I have was so I looked up my invoice from Oregon Performance Transmission. What's crazy is that I paid half the price in 2021 (see invoice below). Must've been a sale AND pre-inflation.

I would have guessed the same thing about the bumper venting having minimal impact on temps but what started this whole thing was my cupholders getting noticeably hot after the bumper was installed. Driving with OD off dropped the trans temps considerably and the cupholders stayed cool so it seems there is some link to the new bumper and higher trans temps. I can only assume that link is reduced airflow to the lower section of the radiator which is where (I presume) the stock transmission cooling section is located.

As for the Tru-cool pricing/availability, I'm wondering if they are phasing out some of their products as the availability seems way down and pricing has shot up for many of them.

 

[19963.4lsr5]

Thanks again Charlie! I wanted some other adjustments made to the bumper so I'm having the wielder cut some holes while its there this week.

In the meantime, I'm looking to buy a transmission cooler and I liked the short/wide dimensions of your Tru-cool but it looks like that model is no longer in stock anywhere (maybe discontinued?). Its too bad since I was thinking I could probably get that cooler to fit on brackets and get the winch in there. I don't think I'll be able to get one of the taller cooler designs to fit unless I go with zip-ties which is not ideal IMO.

For the record, I’ve never had the zip method fail me. Even on a condenser with half rotted fins. It was the only way to reasonably mount the 4589 I put in the 97 Limited Puppy Hauler.

It is a bummer the 4921 isn’t available……


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[phattyduck]

I can only assume that link is reduced airflow to the lower section of the radiator which is where (I presume) the stock transmission cooling section is located.

Yes, in the bottom tank:

But if the coolant is sufficiently cool for the engine, it should work on the trans cooler too...

Get a 3/4" or thinner cooler, mount things carefully and you'll have room.

Oh, and don't think about using a narrow 'race' winch - you'll need one with 4.5"x10" mounting foot dimensions.

-Charlie