ATF cooler

[Spoggle]

Just fitted a ATF cooler I got from Kenlowe yesterday. Took all the bumper off bash plate and aircon intercooler. Put the whole lot back together, and hey guess what. No bit's left over!!!! Something of a first for me Even flushed the cooling system out and gave the old girl a new stat and radcap. Even that appears to be O.K. I'm off out to get a lottery ticket, I'm on a roll Now with a bit of luck dragging the caravan wont be quite as exiting. I hope!

Spoggle

[The Lovely Boyo]

[QUOTE=Spoggle]Just fitted a ATF cooler I got from Kenlowe yesterday.

Hello,

Well done!

Transmission cooler is one of my upcoming jobbies - can you post details of the Kenlowe unit you used.

And, more detail of 'How to Fit a Kenlowe ATF Cooler' (with a couple of pics).

Thanks.

[Spoggle]

[QUOTE=The Lovely Boyo]

Just fitted a ATF cooler I got from Kenlowe yesterday.

Hello,

Well done!

Transmission cooler is one of my upcoming jobbies - can you post details of the Kenlowe unit you used.

And, more detail of 'How to Fit a Kenlowe ATF Cooler' (with a couple of pics).

Thanks.

I just called Kenlowe. told em what car I had and they made up a kit which had all the bit's needed to do the job, they also included a set of fitting instructions which I used in conjunction with advice I found on the Hi-Lux Surfing FAQ website. If you have a quick look on that site it has photos etc that are quite easy to follow ( if I managed they had to be easy ). The Kenlowe unit is a bit smaller than the one in the thread but I found that fitting it slung below the rad was a better option that attaching it to the front of the rad, which is what Kenlowe suggested. Also didn't require taking the grill off and damaging the plastic clips which is a common problem. Got a bit of a sweat up trying to get the front bumper off though, got all the bolts out except one that is attached to a rubber bush located just at the back of the plastic inner arch, it just kept turning. But I found that as the rest were out I could still drop the bumper and leave it hanging by the bolt that I couldn't get out. If you had air con you will also need to remove the bolts that hold the inter-cooler in place so you can slide it back a bit to get to the oil feed pipes to the rad. The one you need to cut is the longest of the two and it enters the rad at the nearside. Use the pipe, connectors and clips in the kit, jobs a good un. Sorry didn't take any pics but if I made a cockup I didn't want to remind myself about it: Spoggle

[mud skipper]

heres one i did earlier well 2 weeks ago

i also got a electric fan from them but it failed to keep a surf cool so i bought a brand new viscous now all seems cool real test this weekend im pulling the caravan up to southport so will report outcome on here
john

[Spoggle]

Nice one john. Just a thought mate, cos I fitted mine in the same spot. but I also moved my number plate op a bit by drilling 2 new holes near the bottom edge. Should let a bit more air at the cooler. Did you get yours from Kenlowe and if so what do you make of the towing advice they gave, ie, use power mode on the gearbox and avoid using O/D unless on a long flat road. Sounds sense to me but what about the fuel consumption, . But a bit more derv is a lot less than a new head.

Spoggle

[Apache]

heres one i did earlier well 2 weeks ago

i also got a electric fan from them but it failed to keep a surf cool so i bought a brand new viscous now all seems cool real test this weekend im pulling the caravan up to southport so will report outcome on here
john

John, is your cooler a separate entity, or have you fitted it in series with the water rad cooler?

I've yet to find the time to do mine, but am planning to fit it in series with the water rad cooler as per advice from TonyN.

Have you top fed the cooler? If not, how did you bleed the air out?

[Spoggle]

According to the fitting instructions from Kenlowe: because the gearbox has it's own pump the system primes itself, any air is chased round and disperses through the open breather on the top of the gearbox casing. So it does not matter if the pipes come up under the cooler or over the top. I followed this advice, didn't prime the cooler, pipes come up from under the cooler. Done about 200 miles since I did the job with no probs.

Spoggle

[Shab]

What is the advantage of having an ATF cooler then? Apologies for my limitless ignorance...

[MattF]

Cooler oil going through the bottom of the rad, so water feeding back to
the engine is cooler, keeps the ATF oil cooler thereby keeping the AT cooler
and making it harder to cook the ATF.

[The Lovely Boyo]

What is the advantage of having an ATF cooler then? Apologies for my limitless ignorance...

Hello,

I worked for Borg Warner for years - we used to make automatic gearboxes and transfer cases.

It is very important to keep ATF cool. As it heats up, it looses viscosity, which means the torque convertor starts to work harder (more slippage). This makes the oil heat up, etc etc............

It always amazed me the temperatures we would inside development gearboxes - 170 to 190 deg C commonplace.

[Shab]

Thanks Andrew,

So pretty important then...

Now that's another thing to worry about along with the various rattles, rumbles etc...

[The Lovely Boyo]

So pretty important then...

Hello,

Important when the gear box is under heavy load - towing in the summer with a truck full of camping stuff up a long steep hill in mid Wales, screaming kids, etc etc...

Otherwise, you're OK. When Toyota specced the Surf, they would have made it as good as the ACCOUNTANTS would allow i.e. not as good as it could be.

But then again, no one's got an unlimited budget.

Actually, it's the likes of Ford/GM who make things to a budget.

[Shab]

Ahh. that's a relief. The only thing I tow around is my daughter to her [numerous] friends houses...