01 f250 5.4 auto tow rig, were is the best place to hook up a trans guage? I have heard in the test port, in the pan, and in the cooler lines. Which will give me the most accurate reading to keep from toasting my tranny.

I hooked mine up in the pan. I also installed the largest auxilliary cooler I could fit behind my grille. If the temps get above 210-220ish, park it till the temps come down..

Search (http://www.pirate4x4.com/forum/search.php?searchid=808191), with retsin... Two mints in one

i did search, just trying to gather more info, Whats the reason to putting it in the pan? I read that you wont get an accurate reading in the pan.

i wouldn't put it in the test port, those see high pressure (actual line pressure, hence the "test" part)

the pan would be the temp the fluid returns at..

you really want the sender in the output side of the cooler lines right after the trans, that way you can see how hot it got.. And if you're real anal put one on the return/pan so you can make sure your cooler is working well

Just put it in the pan.............

The fluid in the bottom of the pan can be cooler then the fluid going into the cooler. The output lines for your cooler will give your the most accurate measurement of the hottest temp the fluid is reaching, this is what you want to know, your fluid shouldnt be gettin hotter then 220 degrees or so. Remeber the fluid from the pan gets sucked up, then passed through the tranny, heating it up on the way, then it is passed through the cooler then back to the pan where it is at its coolest temp.

did you ever get a copy of that trans temp vs. mileage color chart?? I got it at home...i'll send it to ya at rrorc

Guess all the tranny builders I've meet/ known were wrong.......... :rolleyes:

Guess all the tranny builders I've meet/ known were wrong.......... :rolleyes:
evidently.

cooler lines here.
1 gauge 2 senders, hooked up before and after the cooler.
with a switch i can see the temp and how effective my coolers are working

evidently.

Better call chris a Continental.......give him the bad news :smokin: Pirate said so :laughing:

Damn straight. And just to make sure he knows we mean bidness, make sure you put in there that he's a stupid ugly head.

:laughing: :laughing:

I'll continue to run mine in the pans, thank you very much............same with oil temp :flipoff2:

Here's the deal....

First, there's no problem with pressure and using the test port. You can verify this with FSM if you like, but they're ~generally~ only about 50 psi.

Next... No matter WHERE you put the temp sensor, it WILL vary from another place. Meaning, the pan is one temp, port another (even two ports may vary somewhat), before cooler, after cooler... etc...

The temp you get will represent a somehwat weighted average of what the "innards" of the tranny are doing since you can't actually stick a temp sensor right in there as if it was a meat thermometer.

With that said... Get a gauge and learn what's NORMAL for your chosen temp sensing location. Learn the "normal" for your terrain and driving style for a bunch of different ambient air temps and vehicle load.

Once you have done this, the gauge is useful in the fact that it can be used to detect variations from normal.