Just a question. I know Andy R stresses that transmission coolers are needed for successful towing. And my sister had mentioned also that farmers were pretty stout about having a transmission cooler installed on there farm trucks for moving stuff like hay etc.
So I was at a mechanics place the other day and he said a transmission cooler was built in to the radiator of this 96' model F250. Should I go ahead and install another one anyway?
This is covered in several other threads. All auto trans have coolers built-in the radiator, both to warm the fluid and to cool it. A downstream heat exchanger and filter are good insurance against the strain of towing. Same for a power steering fluid cooler/filter going back over forty years.
Heat is the enemy of transmission fluid. Burn the fluid by getting it too hot and the transmission suffers..... The cooler built into radiator is a good thing but extra cooling capacity is better....especially if towing.
Bruce
Ditto on the "yes" votes for extra cooling capacity. The built-in units meet specs but excessive heat is the death bell to an automatic tranny. Aftermarket coolers are inexpensive and easily installed by the DIY'er in many cases.
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"One of the best lessons I've learned is that you don't worry about criticism from people you wouldn't seek advice from."
"96' model F250. Should I go ahead and install another one anyway?"
Yes...better safe than worry.
External transmission filter and temp gauge.
I installed one of these on our 95 Burb, different brand but same function.
Keeping track of tranny temps helps a lot when towing.
For most vehicles made in the last 20 yrs or so you can get a scangaugeII that will read things like transmission temperature for you off the vehicle computer. I have one on my 2000 Excursion and it tells me the temperature and if the Torque converter is locked or not. Overheating occurs much faster if the torque converter is not locked because it generates a lot of heat. My gage also can read many other things and it calculates MPG for you as well.
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