__Good idea or bad idea ? Air conditioner condenser used as a auto transmission cooler. Some of them are about the same size as the trany coolers are._
Seriously?,,I would think running hot transmission fluid through a air conditioner condenser would contribute to the tendency to run hot since most are positioned in front of the radiator. HRP
I never ask anything unless i am serious, after all many of the add on coolers are built close to the same way. So i got you answer ,bad idea, now next person step up .
Dont think it whould be a problem if you are talking about a used one I whould flush it real good the thing is made to chaing the temp so whats the differance.
That's what i was thinking and it would mount in front the same as for air cond. It would be in a 73 f-100 that i changed to an automatic trany. But i used the big 360 radiator that never came with a cooler in it. The engine now is a 302. I have a trany cooler in front of it now but it started leaking, really don't want to buy a new one. Thanks.
Here's a section of a newer condensor. As you can see,the passages in a condensor are way too small for tranny fluid.
Okay , yes they might plug up easy. Well just trying reuse left over parts as i like to build everything i do. I might just have to buy a new one to replace the leaky one. Thanks
Didn't say it was a bad idea,,try it and let us know how it works,, Lots of radiators have a transmission cooler built in the lower tank,,but they are small.I'm big enough to admit it if my thoughts are wrong. HRP
I saw one of those, in a 55 GMC truck (stock),...and it seemed to work for the guy. I used a Hayden 18" trans cooler, in front of the a/c condenser, nothing ever ran hot. 4TTRUK
Ps; Using full synthetic trans fluid will run 10 degrees cooler, according to the trans temp gauge I installed. 4TTRUK
I have a 8x12 with an electric fan under my car where it can only pull cool clean air. i have a 1953 DeSoto 8 passenger sedan with a BB mopar 400/904 in it and figured i would want to keep that 3 speed auto cool with the big car at 70 mph. Like posted above I would worry about too much restriction in the passages but ya never know!
Your return cooler line should flow at least a quart of transmission fluid every 20 seconds at fast Idle this oil is also used to cool and provides the lubrication circuit for the transmision, If you install an air conditioning condensor I would make sure you are getting this flow or you will burn the transmission up. I would also recommend a radiator cooler since heat transfer from liquid to liquid is much more efficient than liquid to air! a transmission cooler should be used after the radiator cooler and then to the return line.
It's always cool to read about a do-it-yourselfer, but considering a trans cooler is only about $25, I'd just buy one.
I ran a cooler on my first street rod, a Chevy sedan. I built a TH350 for my second Chevy sedan and did not put a cooler on it. I used a 400 converter which holds about 1qt more than a 350 converter. Just installed the outlet side to the inlet side. Never had a problem. And this was in Georiga summers. The early aluminum Power Glides did not have a cooler and worked fine.
Tranny coolers today are very different from A/C condensors. Atleast the better ones are. The better tranny coolers flatten the fluid out and spiral it or twist it, to add cooling surface. Ya some are round, but the better ones are flat. I have seen condensors used from the back of fridgerators as well. Tranny coolers are cheap. They also need to flow free, and restriction will slow the fluid, and cause heat.... technology today uses big hoses to flow more to cooler, and larger capacity pans even finned pans.... YAY or NAY??? I say NAY, but thats for me...
I think this is a case where you really don't want to experiment, and risk burning up a transmission; use at least an after market trans cooler. As far as the early aluminum Powerglides NOT being cooled is'nt true, they were at least "air cooled". And, those were only in low perf applications, like the 4 and 6 cylinder Chevy II's/Nova's; even so, they were AIR COOLED, and had a shroud around the converter, and turbine housing instead of an inspection cover, that directed air around the converter housing to cool it. There were also 4 large holes in the trans bellhousing to aid in cooling. The fluid cooled units just had the cooler circuit "unblocked", and a cooler added to the radiator. Now, I knew a couple of bracket racers once that used the cooling coil off the back of an old refridgerator as a trans cooler, and it seemed to work OK for them in their BBF/C-6/9" Ford Falcon ex-gasser class car. Butch/56sedandelivery.
Well, I don't see the point of reinventing an oil cooler. They are cheap and easy to find, just get a cooler, if you need a bigger one look at farm and industrial oil coolers.
I imagine it "would" work. The reality is that's a lot of fluid in there. Most condensors would probably hold a lot of fluid and even with the small passages, the total volume would allow them to work. There really isn't a sound reason to do that though. Between making connections and running plumbing you aren't saving yourself anything. Kind of like making your own intake because you have a pile of sheetmetal and a mig. By the time you do all you have to do to make it work, the time you spent doing it would cost at least 2x as much as just buying a cooler designed to work with a transmission and using it. Also, it is recommended to mount the cooler instead of using the ones in radiators for more efficient cooling. My vote is no, just buy a cooler and mount it next to the trans where air can get to it and be done with it.
Just use a transmission cooler. They are cheap and easy to mount. I'm using a tube style trans cooler to cool my Ford C4 in my 27 T. It was only $39.
I run mine thru the cooler in the radiator tank and also thru a power steering cooler from a late model Silverado as an auxilary. Blue
I run a B&M tranny cooler 12"x8" in front of the Rad. I run the fluid thru the radiator cooler first then to the B&M...that way it gets to temp in cooler weather (lower rad temp in the 150's-160's). I run a 200 4R in Az 100 plus heat and that set up keeps my tranny temp in the 150's-160's to 180 max if pulling up a steep incline at speed (read Mountain say 2800 to 5000 ft). It was a cheap buy.
A full-scale AC condenser up in front of the radiator is probably more cooling than most transmissions need, but it'd certainly cool the fluid. An in-tank cooler also helps heat the fluid to operating temp more quickly, which is a good thing.
I'm using a tube style cooler like that on my 35 chevy . I guess i can get one for the 73 tk. It already goes though a 13"x 6" x 2" power steering cooler. From there it goes in to a 12" x 8" x 1" cooler in front of the radiator. It is a c/4 trany too.
I have used them before. They work, if you live in a really cold climate they work too good and you may have to partially block it.
Well the OP just asked if using a condensor okay, he didn't say if it was for tradition or cost. If it's for tradition then, as I previously mentioned, it was used by some in racing. If it's for cost then, as others have mentioned, these things don't break the bank. Go buy a new one. I've got the biggest one Hayden offers and I think I only paid about $90.00 for it. That's a hell of a lot cheaper than the cost of a new tranny. As far as plumbing it...... Any well respected tranny shop will tell you that it is best to isolate the tranny cooler from the radiator. That is, eliminate and do not use the one in the radiator. By doing this you'll accomplish 2 advantages. The first is that engine heat will not effect the tranny fluid temperature. Therefore, in the event of an engine overheating, you won't overheat the tranny fluid and risk cooking the tranny. The other is that the internal cooler in a radiator has been known to leak, allowing coolant to inter-mix with the tranny fluid and destroying a perfectly good tranny.
I have built more than 100 P/G trannys for roundy round cars no converter no cooler and controled slip in low and reverse I used mobil 1 motor oil for fluid it whould hole about 3 qt and never a fluid problem or burn up from heat it was always a bump to the rear end that whould bend the drive shaft and brake the case. Now there was no converter to generate heat and if thay didnt brake it thay whould last for at least 2 seasons. I had to stop suplying cases or the drag race guys whouldnt have any to run.
Well the sun is up now so i will go look at the ones i saved , they may be damaged by now and that will tell me what i will do. The reason for doing it is the tradition of using what you have and a little for the cost. But i can buy a new trany cooler from B&M for $65.00 shipping included . Update later and thanks for the information of yea and nay . __
There are so many commercial trans coolers designed especially for cooling transmission fluid and come with complete instructions of how to mount, where to mount and sizes to fit your application. I would use those!!!! They are typically smaller than an air conditioner condensor and can fit anywhere that there is airflow through it. my 2 cents.
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