TeryT
New member
As requested, here's the pix to the tranny gauge install that was discussed in another thread. The sensor is installed in the center rear of the tranny pan on my V8, and is shielded pretty well there. The copper strap is for a good ground on the sensor, as I thouroughly Teflon taped it. A local maching shop drilled a hole & brazed a nut on the instide of the pan.
The gauge was placed as per the pix below. It is mounted in2 of the little pop-outs, and is quite steady. The gauge has a wire for dimming, which dims the gauge when the lights are turned on for night driving. I love/hate the location, as it is obscurred by the steering wheel, but a little head adjustment can be made to see it. I've actually come to think this placement is just fine, as I'm not bothered by it's red glare all the time at night! And about the only time I want to see it is when I'm hard towing up a big hill anyway.
The gauge is also programable to flash at a certain temp point. It also has a memory for the highest & lowest temp points registered during a drive (since engine was last turned on).
The unit is a Cyberdyne bought from Summit Racing on-line. It & the sonsor were about $85. Add to this $35 for the machine shop brazing the pan nut in, and $3 for a grounding strap, $10 for 2 qts. of T-IV fluid, and the total was $133.
Now I'm just trying to decifer the readings. It appears the pan temp runs about double the ambient in Phoenix while driving around town. That means if it is 90 degrees out then pan temp is around 180; if it's 100 degrees out, the pan temp runs around 200, and so on. (BTW - I did check the calibration of the gauge against an accurate themometer.)
The thing jumps about 30 degrees when I towed a 3,000 lb. load up 6,500 feet elevation gain. This was at around 100 degrees ambient starting out, and reached a high pan temp of 229 degrees. You can read about this here if you like RV.net forum message on 4R trans temp
I'm having a conversation with my local Toyota dealer service manager (seems to know what he's doing & takes an interest in challenging questions) about what temp these transmissions should run at. Most RVers think that this temp is a little high. It seems most domestic big rigs (F250, etc.) run at temps under 200 even while towing in heat. Toyota says anything under 250 is OK, but this seems quite high, even if T-IV is synthetic (which Toyota people keep claiming & one said there is no diff between it & the new "World" fluid). I suspect that is where the factory trans temp idiot gauge is set at (250). Anyway, he is still checking with Toyota.
The gauge was placed as per the pix below. It is mounted in2 of the little pop-outs, and is quite steady. The gauge has a wire for dimming, which dims the gauge when the lights are turned on for night driving. I love/hate the location, as it is obscurred by the steering wheel, but a little head adjustment can be made to see it. I've actually come to think this placement is just fine, as I'm not bothered by it's red glare all the time at night! And about the only time I want to see it is when I'm hard towing up a big hill anyway.
The gauge is also programable to flash at a certain temp point. It also has a memory for the highest & lowest temp points registered during a drive (since engine was last turned on).
The unit is a Cyberdyne bought from Summit Racing on-line. It & the sonsor were about $85. Add to this $35 for the machine shop brazing the pan nut in, and $3 for a grounding strap, $10 for 2 qts. of T-IV fluid, and the total was $133.
Now I'm just trying to decifer the readings. It appears the pan temp runs about double the ambient in Phoenix while driving around town. That means if it is 90 degrees out then pan temp is around 180; if it's 100 degrees out, the pan temp runs around 200, and so on. (BTW - I did check the calibration of the gauge against an accurate themometer.)
The thing jumps about 30 degrees when I towed a 3,000 lb. load up 6,500 feet elevation gain. This was at around 100 degrees ambient starting out, and reached a high pan temp of 229 degrees. You can read about this here if you like RV.net forum message on 4R trans temp
I'm having a conversation with my local Toyota dealer service manager (seems to know what he's doing & takes an interest in challenging questions) about what temp these transmissions should run at. Most RVers think that this temp is a little high. It seems most domestic big rigs (F250, etc.) run at temps under 200 even while towing in heat. Toyota says anything under 250 is OK, but this seems quite high, even if T-IV is synthetic (which Toyota people keep claiming & one said there is no diff between it & the new "World" fluid). I suspect that is where the factory trans temp idiot gauge is set at (250). Anyway, he is still checking with Toyota.
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