For those that have the sensor in the trans pan. What kind of temps are you seeing? I drove around last night for a 1/2 hour in single digit outside air temps and never seen the needle move. Of course, the engine temp barely made it past 140 too.

 

that is common. mine is in a test port on teh side of my trany, same idea. not a great reading but i will change it once i get my new trany. just remember it is an average reading and at times may be 30-50 degrees cooler than what it really is.

the single digit temps is what caused the no reading after only a half hour. were on teh freeway or around town? i know on my 18 mile drive to work mostly freeway that after about 14 miles it starts to read finally.

jiMMy

 

Jimmy,

Bill Kondolay from DTT had a post on his web site, and the NW BOmbers site and said that it is a BAD idea to install the probe in the test ports. Depending on the one used you can impeed flow, or measure no oil temp at all.

 

odd.. good info. dunno if the 1st gen auto ports are diff from from 2nd gen ports. so far mine has been very acurate (given its a pan reading and all). Somthing to look into for sure on my set up. Thanks, jiMMy

 

My 94 has the probe in the pan and the needle will not move in the cool weather unless the truck is towing.........IMO, the pan is the best location for the probe because you get an overall reading of trans temps and how well the ATF is actually being cooled rather than just reading how hot it is getting.........the pan location is also showing the ATF temp that the tranny is ingesting - the most important temp, IMO..........

 

Use to feel the same way..till I read some of the reports from guys with 2 probes (Pan & Oil Cooler Line). Their readings, when towing or when in the mountains, were scary enough for me to go to the oil cooler line.
I agree that the temp of the atf at the intake is an excellent indicator...if tranny is working well. The "never exceed" temp just needs to be adjusted downward.
On the other hand, if temps at the oil cooler line are within limits, the pan & intake temp should be of little concern, no?

RJ

 

My sending unit is in the "Hot" line.

In cooler weather, on the highway, I don't get a reading on my 140* gauge either.
In lock-up, the tranny runs cool.

In the summer, in traffic,........different story.

 

My gauge in the hot line reads down to zero. When the TC is locked in winter it's rare for the temp to exceed 120F, lowest I've seen it run for an extended time after things are warmed up is 80°, but the outside temp was minus 45° then. I imagine the pan would be even colder. Just a little time idling in gear or with the TC unlocked will bring the temps up pretty fast.

 

RJ,

I hear what you are saying and to some point I agree but I am interested in how well the ATF is being cooled and if it is acceptable or not........when the probe is in the hot line it does not clearly indicate the efficiency of the cooloing system............but I know what you mean - if there is excessive slippage in the tranny it may heat up fast and the best indicator for that would be in the hot line.

 

that is true but I would want to know what max heat was for heat is what kills transmission if it is getting too hot then yes you need better cooling setup or back off on the throttle

 

If your sensor is in the "hot" line or out line (fluid coming from the tc to the cooler), and your temp is say 200 degrees while pulling 5th wheel at say 30 mph's, then you get out on the highway, and get it up to speed, the temp drops down to about 140 or 150 while cruising at 70mph's in lock up, doesn't that tell you the efficiency of your cooler?

Another example, I'm sitting in traffic, temp is climbing up to 200, then 210, then 220 from all the slow speed and stop and go stuff, pop iit into neutral at the next light, run the rpms up a little and watch the temp gauge go down (goes down even faster with a cooling fan mounted over the trans cooler).

I want to know if my fluid ever got to a temp that could have possibly caused it to break down. If your measuring temps in the pan, (after the hot fluid has been cooled) how would you ever know that?

CTD, I'm really trying hard to convert you, have you seen the light yet? Kevin

 

I've got a probe in the "hot line" and in the pan... on average, they are 30-40° different... Pan temp barely moves when it's real cold out (like right now - 19°).


Tony

 

So again, the numbers are for reference only based on the application. If my pan temp is running 150 degrees then I doubt the hot line is running over 250. But if the pan was running 250 then we know there is a problem.
The main objective is to use the gauge for monitoring the system and note any drastic changes.

 

My guage starts at 100*, and sender is in the hot line. It was 7* today, and the gauge never moved off the peg.

 

I drove 20 miles at 70 mph after a short warm up. My gauge starts at 70 degrees (digital), and never got over 110 when it was about 15 degrees outside.

A good guide is while cruising at say 70 on the highway at full lock up, the tranny temp usually runs about 90-100 degrees higher than the outside temps. Kevin