Transmission cooler question.

[AZPartsGuy]

Quick question for the desert dwelling t4r owners:

I'm planning out my B&M cooler install and I have crawled deep across this forum soaking up all the excellent info the other members here have provided. The only thing I've noticed is that hardly anybody installed a pusher fan with their cooler.

As an AZ resident I'm wondering if I will see any benefit to adding a thermo-controlled fan or if that would be over-kill? It seems everyone is doing just fine with a cooler alone, and the main purpose is to avoid the milkshake anyway.

Thank you for any info/opinions you guys can provide.

 

[Tucson4runner]

I also asked this awhile ago. I was told that you can have adverse effects from keeping the oil at to low of a temp as in below operating temp. If your not hauling or don't have a supercharger then this type of setup could do more harm then good. Nonetheless if you do want a fan cooled one this is the one of choice from what I found
http://www.amazon.com/Mishimoto-MMO...ue&ref_=ox_sc_sfl_title_10&smid=ATVPDKIKX0DER

Sent from my SM-N910V using Tapatalk

 

[AZPartsGuy]

I also asked this awhile ago. I was told that you can have adverse effects from keeping the oil at to low of a temp as in below operating temp. If your not hauling or don't have a supercharger then this type of setup could do more harm then good. Nonetheless if you do want a fan cooled one this is the one of choice from what I found
http://www.amazon.com/Mishimoto-MMO...ue&ref_=ox_sc_sfl_title_10&smid=ATVPDKIKX0DER

Sent from my SM-N910V using Tapatalk

That cooler looks like a decent deal, actually.

I am thinking of using this Derale switch and setting it at like 190*F so it kicks on automatically until it gets down to 180*F and shuts back off. I agree that anything below 180 is not good because Toyota specifies that as the operating temperature.

It would obviously only be useful in the situations you have described, I was just thinking I may be able to keep the fluid a consistent quality if the fan can maintain a 180-200*F range.

 

[mtbtim]

I would suggest looking further into your choice of running a stand-alone external cooler and bypassing the stock cooler in the radiator. If you do any towing, mountain driving or 4wheeling, you have a high chance of reaching super high temps in your transmission and shortening the life of your fluid considerably. I would suggest anyone considering bypassing who drives in more extreme conditions or situations like I've mentioned above to think about running a pusher fan like you're thinking about or maybe run a second cooler like [MENTION=44220]BigFishAllDay[/MENTION] does. Or, run a cooler in series like I've done. There's pluses and minuses to each set-up. I don't know if any set-up could be considered the perfect one. Do your research and chose what's best for you and the type of driving you do.

What many don't consider in the bypassing choice is running your vehicle in cooler temps. Trans fluid does have a optimal temperature range and from what I've read, it's around 150-180 degrees. If you run an external cooler in sub-freezing temps, you will most likely be running at pretty low trans fluid temps which isn't good over the long haul for your transmission.

I have noticed with my in-series set-up that I am under 150 degrees (130-140) during mellow highway driving. If I start climbing hills, it quickly rises into the optimal operating range. With city driving, my trans temps are somewhere in the 150's. Don't know if running in the 130's to 140's is lowering the life of my transmission or not. What pushed me to install the cooler was seeing 232 degrees on my Torque Pro app while climbing a steep sustained mountain road. I'm guessing the temps would be even higher if I was driving up a slow 4 wheel drive trail with little air flow through the radiator. 230 degrees isn't horrible but if you just get a little higher into the 250's, the life of your trans fluid goes down drastically. This information is covered in one of the threads below.

Here's a couple threads to read through for more on this subject:

http://www.toyota-4runner.org/3rd-g...sion-temperatures-how-relates-life-fluid.html

http://www.toyota-4runner.org/3rd-gen-t4rs/217667-trans-temps-bypassing-using-external-cooler.html

And, here's a video I did of my install that might help you out when you get around to doing yours:

<iframe width="560" height="315" src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/2nVbwe2t2T8" frameborder="0" allowfullscreen></iframe>

 

[AZPartsGuy]

I would suggest looking further into your choice of running a stand-alone external cooler and bypassing the stock cooler in the radiator. If you do any towing, mountain driving or 4wheeling, you have a high chance of reaching super high temps in your transmission and shortening the life of your fluid considerably. I would suggest anyone considering bypassing who drives in more extreme conditions or situations like I've mentioned above to think about running a pusher fan like you're thinking about or maybe run a second cooler like [MENTION=44220]BigFishAllDay[/MENTION] does. Or, run a cooler in series like I've done. There's pluses and minuses to each set-up. I don't know if any set-up could be considered the perfect one. Do your research and chose what's best for you and the type of driving you do.

What many don't consider in the bypassing choice is running your vehicle in cooler temps. Trans fluid does have a optimal temperature range and from what I've read, it's around 150-180 degrees. If you run an external cooler in sub-freezing temps, you will most likely be running at pretty low trans fluid temps which isn't good over the long haul for your transmission.

Thank you for all the info, very helpful. I have come across some of this in my forum search.

I agree with what you've stated here. My main goal is to extend transmission fluid life by keeping the temps consistent and below 200*F. Being in Arizona I think using the B&M 70268 will be sufficient to meet those needs, with the plus of having the integrated viscosity ports for low temps and warm-up.

I did not consider the affect this may have in sub 40*F weather, though. Have any of the northern t4r owners had a problem with Trans temps being TOO low during winter? I see you have posted Trans temps at multiple driving conditions and temperatures and the only time it went above 200*F was on uphill terrain.

From what I've observed on newer OEM vehicles that do not route oil through the radiator they simply use an exposed cooler, maybe with a fan, and that oil is not being heated by coolant with no issues.

Sorry for the long-winded response.

 

[jgue467]

... The only thing I've noticed is that hardly anybody installed a pusher fan with their cooler.

As an AZ resident I'm wondering if I will see any benefit to adding a thermo-controlled fan or if that would be over-kill? It seems everyone is doing just fine with a cooler alone

I think in extended stop/go type large city driving the pusher fan could be a big help. Here in austin during the june-sept timeframe temps easily get to 100+ for 8+ hours a day.

In my experience even stop/go in town is the only time my trans temps can rise above 200 for brief periods of time. Soon after getting into flowing traffic, the temps drop so a fan could help keep it consistently under 200. :cowboy: