I have a 96 PowerStroke with 4.10 gears and factory size tires.... not oversized! I was wondering what temp my trans should be running down the interstate? I have had it up to 185 degrees when pulling an empty flatbed car hauler while running 70 mph and the outside temp was around 65-70 degrees. Does anyone else have a set up similar to mine.. that could give me some input? If so i'd appreciate it.

I don't have PSD, but that seems like it's on the warm side to me. When it's 65°-70° out and I'm pulling my loaded gooseneck @ 70-75 mph, my trans temp is about 150°.

that seem's too high... I don't see 185 in my psd unless I'm going up hills with lots of shifting, loaded or not. I barely broke 200* once but that was hard pulling up 7% grades with 20mph corners. I still have a stock trans cooler.

you might want to have the tranny flushed and see what comes out more than likely the fluid is broken down and not working as designed and the cooler could be covered as well have you cleaned mud,sand or grit or anything that shouldnt be there out?

Where's your temp prob located?

I believe its located in the pressure test port on the side of the trans. I put it were my instructions told me to, seemed to me that it was hot.... normally it runs around 160- 180 dgrees. How much does outside temp have to do with it? what year trucks do you all have?

Mine is an 05 runs about 160 or so

around town i see ~150*. on a long haul (unloaded, and this was in the summer) i would see 210*. same w/ towing she tops out @ about 210, 215*.

i have a mag hytec pan that adds about 8 qt's of fluid. there was a huge thread about the proper temp for the psd over on FTE.

i have the stock cooler, (im going to upgrade to the 6.0 cooler soon).


--edit--
i have an 02 f250 4x4 AT.

'94 IDI 7.3 with synthetic fluid and 2 coolers never gets above 175. Change the fluid, probably the trans filter also.

running around is a bit to close to danger area for me I dont know what kinda weight your pulling but you might want to do the B&M 20K upgrade.

Loaded with 18k I'v hit 200* many times in south FL(OST 95*) with an Allison.
100% Stock

Mine gets up to 250 in the summer @100 deg. empty.
Had trany flushed guess i should see where my temp probe is?
2000 f250 psd

Mine gets up to 250 in the summer @100 deg. empty
Go ahead and find you a phone# for a tow truck, Cause you about too need one..

lilox that does seem hot but nothing to panic over. Your temps seem more in line if you were loaded. I've also got a 96 PSD with 4.10 gears and stock tires. A good rule of thumb is you should only see about 100* above ambient air temps, even less empty. The greater the temp difference between the anbient air and fluid temp the greater the cooling ability is of the cooler. If you have not had the trans serviced you could try that, I would recommend a real good trans fluid like Molbi-1 synthetic. I used to use Schaffers which is a good semisynthetic but they have raised their prices to over $7.00/Qt. I can get Mobil-1 full synth for about $5.50/Qt. Plus Schaffers now quit making it in 5 gal. pails.:shaking: You could also get a bigger trans cooler, one good for a GVW of #25,000+ will do just fine. Another good one is a stock V-10 or 6.0 PSD cooler are both biger than a 7.3 PSD cooler. When your trans temps get that high, if you pull over and let it idle will the temps come back down right away? or does it take a while for them to cool down? If the temps fall quickly then the cooling system is working and your trans is making a lot of heat. If they are slow to fall then something might be plugged or restricted.

Mine gets up to 250 in the summer @100 deg. empty.
Had trany flushed guess i should see where my temp probe is?
2000 f250 psd
You got trans tmps that are very high for empty. On your trans (4r100) it is not uncommon for the cooler bypass valve to stop working and stay in the bypass mode. This prevents the oil from ever going to the cooler. Regular trans fluid starts to break down at about 225*. So I would look into getting it changed if you see those temps regularly.

Not sure about cool down time.
Temp is definetly cooler with lower ambient temps.
My truck has the factory cooler plus an additional cooler.
I was thinking since the truck has pillar gauges added prior to my purchase that maybe sensor or sensor location may be giving me a poor reading.
Thanks for help i will locate valae and check for proper operation.

Normal should be 80 degrees or less over ambient outside temp. Even towing my 35' 5er it is never more than 100 over ambient. Any more than that indicates excessive slippage, plugged/undersized cooler, cooler bypass stuck open, or other problems.

Anything over 185 and normal tranny fluid starts to break down. Synthetic is good to 230 or so.

Placing the sensor in the side test port of the 4r100/e4od is the correct place as that is the temp of the fluid circulating in the tranny. A sensor in the pan will not show just how hot the fluid actually is as it is getting mixed with the fluid coming back from the cooler.

I use Mobil 1 Synthetic, the stuff before they just changed it. The old Mobil 1 was Mercon only rated. The newer stuff is dual Mercon/Mercon V rated. The powerstroke owners manual and the trans dipstick both say use Mercon only. Mercon V can break down the friction material in these trannies. If your tranny has been rebuilt, use the fluid specified by the rebuilder.

Suncoast sells adapters to remove the cooler bypass completely. This will force the fluid through the coolers. Beware that if the coolers are restricted, this may cause more problems than it solves.

Thanks guys, i have paid a little more attention to it now that i've been able to tow and travel since i originally posted this. Unloaded i run around 155.... last night i turned my truck up on the off-road program.... 70 HP over stock and put a 4500 lbs. tractor on a 1500lbs. trailor and pulled some good ol' Kentucky hills and my temp. never went over 165. I was watching what my truck did in town when i posted this. Thanks again for the help.. you all have given me some things to keep in mind and watch out for as my miles are now slowing rising over 150,000. Thanks again