You may have heard advice from your local garage mechanic or your auto dealer service department tech writer advising either yourself as a motorist towing a motor home trailer for summer vacations or perhaps a sportsperson angler who tows a larger boat trailer that it might be a wise idea to invest in a transmission fluid cooler.
What are the reasons for, rationale and benefits of transmission coolers to car, truck and jeep owners? Will it save on vehicle costs, maintenance schedules and repairs? If these devices were that essential in the first place – why didn’t the auto manufacturer build it in as standard OEM equipment in the first place?

Transmission fluid can become very hot, especially under what are termed “severe operating conditions”. Some of the heat comes from the automobile or truck engine because it is more than closely coupled with the transmission and transmission systems. However it can be said and stated that much of the heat buildup and accumulation develops in the transmission itself. As the fluids are tossed from the torque-converter pump to the turbine and back again, the fluid gets very hot. In chemistry and chemical processes it is a known fact in any laboratory setting that rapid stirring of any liquid will heat it up. The fluent is also heated up by the friction effect of the shafts and bearings rotated with the fluid serving as lubricating oil.

To prevent overheating of the mechanical components involved in driveshaft power delivery and of the power train hydraulic fluids, most automatic transmissions have a smaller and somewhat minimal fluid cooling system built in. This system includes a fluid-cooler tube and set of tubing in the outlet tank of the engine glycol coolant radiator. This tube is immersed in the coolant – be it water, ethylene glycol or a combination thereof. The beauty of this arrangement within the efficient radiator engine cooling system is that it allows the engine cooling systems of your automobile vehicle to work effectively and efficiently to keep transmission hydraulic fluids and hence the transmission and automatic transmission systems themselves from suffering the mechanical ravages and damages from overheating.

Generally with planning in the auto design stage these built in internal transmission coolers are adequate and highly effective. Yet add stress and strain of extreme driving conditions and the mechanics and limits involved may be inadequate and substandard. Driving during the hot summertime periods, coupled with greater than normal or estimated heat generation by unplanned for, or overly demanding situations like towing of large trailers or for example a “flat lander” on a summertime vacation holiday driving up steep mountain terrain all add extra vehicle stress and strain and out of the ordinary transmission and motor heat generation and buildup.

The danger is not only one of mechanical reliability, road side breakdowns and safety. Breakdown and repair of most transmissions is exceptionally delicate, intricate and expensive. Thus by installing an extra or optional form or means of transmission cooling may be money very well spent , and a cheap form of prevention of extra auto repair costs as well as preventing major inconveniences.

Some vehicles therefore have had extra air cooled auxiliary hydraulic fluid coolers added as an option. These are often at the recommendation of transmission shop mechanics or their technical service writers. A pound of prevention, as recommended by auto and truck mechanics is worth many tons of cures. Usually these add on optional transmission fluid cooler arrangements are mounted in front of a vehicle’s rad or air-conditioner condenser unit to provide for greatly enhanced cooling capacities and function.

No doubt about it, this is money and time well spent in the auto budget of any family, business or transport service.

Author Bio: Kirk I. Inkster Automatic transmission service issues Alberta Edmonton Jeep Grand