[Spaceman Spiff]

With summer coming I am just wondering if I should get a tranny cooler in my 92 Sable Wagon with a 3.8. I do a mix of highway & city driving. Last summer my tranny would intermittantly leak quite abit a fluid when it got hot out. The tranny shop never did find out what caused the leak

. Any recommendations on which cooler or type to get? I also have Windstar with the 3.8 which I am considering getting a cooler for.

Thanks
Spiff

 

[jinhopark]

Mine leaked very, very slowly out of 2 hose couplings...There is a plastic piece (well there is on my '97 Vulcan) that holds the nipple and the coupling together. I guess over time they just break, and for some reason it too never really leaked until the car really warmed up.

I could leave the car on idle and it would not leak, which baffled me because I could see drops of oil in my driveway. Took a while to diagnose, and at one point I lost so much fluid that I thought my trans was going to need replacing (the plastic piece totally worked it's way loose through vibration and started leaking heavily at this point).

A transcooler is a good idea, but I would most certainly figure out why it's leaking before I start adding stuff...because that cooler ain't going to do you no good with no or low fluid. Just my thoughts.

 

[sixfofalcon]

I recommend the B&M Supercooler. The 19,000 GVW size seems to be the best size for average use (no towing.) It's big enough to give our trannies a much needed boost in the cooling department, but it still fits comfortably in front of the A/C condenser.

Whatever brand/model you decide on, make sure it is a stacked-plate design, preferably with a bypass function. Stacked-plate designs are much more efficient than the tube and fin designs. Thus, you get better cooling out of a smaller cooler. The bypass function allows cool fluid to bypass the stacked-plate portion, thus allowing the trans to get up to operating temperature more rapidly. Then, once the fluid is hot, it flows more easily through the stacked-plates, and the cooling action kicks in.

 

[Spaceman Spiff]

Thanks for the replies. When my tranny it leaked, large amounts it was literally streaming out (it leaked 2 qts over two miles) and of course once I got it to the shop, they looked at it the next day and over the next three days they couldn't replicate the problem. Its been ok since then.

Spiff

 

[93taurusSX]

Check where the fluid is leaking; I had the same problem where after driving for a bit, the tranny fluid would literally flow out. The problem was this shop I went to replaced my tranny pan gasket with a gasket made from the wrong type of material - it expanded too much when heated, allowing the fluid in the pan to flow out.

Oh yeah, I don't know if this helps any, but here's a little documentation of the cooler I installed on my 3.8l last summer:

http://homepages.nyu.edu/~bgn200/coolerinstall.html

 

[3-fords1000]

Originally posted by SixFoFalcon@Mar 11 2004, 02:13 PM
Whatever brand/model you decide on, preferably with a bypass function. Stacked-plate designs are much more efficient than the tube and fin designs. The bypass function allows cool fluid to bypass the stacked-plate portion, thus allowing the trans to get up to operating temperature more rapidly. Then, once the fluid is hot, it flows more easily through the stacked-plates, and the cooling action kicks in.

Is the bypass a built-in feature or an add-on? I've seen thermostats that are sold seperately for using with engine oil and trans oil coolers.

 

[sixfofalcon]

Originally posted by 3-fords1000+Mar 11 2004, 04:12 PM-->QUOTE (3-fords1000 @ Mar 11 2004, 04:12 PM)

<!--QuoteBegin-SixFoFalcon

@Mar 11 2004, 02:13 PM
Whatever brand/model you decide on, preferably with a bypass function.  Stacked-plate designs are much more efficient than the tube and fin designs.    The bypass function allows cool fluid to bypass the stacked-plate portion, thus allowing the trans to get up to operating temperature more rapidly.  Then, once the fluid is hot, it flows more easily through the stacked-plates, and the cooling action kicks in.

Is the bypass a built-in feature or an add-on? I've seen thermostats that are sold seperately for using with engine oil and trans oil coolers.[/b]

It's just an inherent feature in most stacked-plate designs. In most cases, there are no moving parts. In addition to the countless narrow passages across the stacked-plate grid, there is a larger (about 1"x.5") channel that runs across the edge of the cooler. When the fluid is cool and viscous (thick), the majority of the fluid takes the bypass path since there is much less resistance. As the fluid heats up and gets less viscous, it can flow through the stacked-plate grid with very little resistance, and the full cooling effect of the stacked-plates is realized.

There are also mechanical bypasses that are added-on to an existing cooler, IIRC. But that seems like too much work, especially when the stacked-plate coolers are now so cheap and plentiful.

 

[Matthew Ebel]

You think the Transcooler mentioned above will work with a 2003 SES Duratec?

Pax,
Matthew

PS - This won't adversely affect horsepower, will it?

 

[biteableniles]

Originally posted by Matthew Ebel@Mar 11 2004, 03:40 PM
You think the Transcooler mentioned above will work with a 2003 SES Duratec?

Pax,
Matthew

PS - This won't adversely affect horsepower, will it?

It'll fit, and it won't affect horsepower.

I don't know why people just wouldn't go with a larger 24000, though. It's only 5 bucks more expensive, and it'll fit just as well(here) Thats where I got mine, and it's perfect for my hot Houston weather (although I would recommend it for most any other climate)