# 6.0 Deisel Trans Cooler



## linckeil (Sep 18, 2007)

so as many ford guys know, the 6.0 PSD has a massive automatic transmission cooler. they came in either 26 or 31 row designs, versus the 7 or 9 rows that the stock cooler on my 1996 F350 with e40d trans has. if i can find one, i'm toying with the idea of using it to replace my stock cooler. 

i don't tow much, but i do snowplow a lot with this truck (well not a lot this season....) i have a trans temp guage in the test port of the e4od and sometimes see temps as high as 190 degrees, at which point i put the truck in low range and that cools the trans right down. 

my only fear is that this massive 6.0 cooler actually cools my e4od too much - is that even possible? i want it to be at an optimal running temperature - not to hot, not too cold... 

i have to imagine there are plenty of 6.0's out there that are babied and never tow or plow, so i'm sure ford wouldn't put a cooler on a truck that wouldn't allow the trans to reach operating temp - unless the 5R110 thats behind the 6.0's is designed to run at a lower temperature than an e4od? 

i just want to be sure i think this through and am not doing any harm by installing a 6.0 trans cooler. what are your thoughts? thanks!


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## dieselss (Jan 3, 2008)

Lots of guys put in the 6.0 coolers in there 7 3s.


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## linckeil (Sep 18, 2007)

i know, but most i see are the 99-02 trucks, which have the 4R100 transmissions, not the e4od's. very similiar, but they have their differences. 

there are guys putting this cooler in the 94-97 7.3's with e4od's also. they comment how it cools the trans down (as you would expect), but is that necesarily a good thing? i'd imagine there's an optimal operating temperature range and could the 6.0 cooler be so effective that will not allow that optimal point to be met under normal driving circumstances - ie if not plowing or heavy hauling?


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## damian (Jan 29, 2009)

190 is quite far from 245 which is where I would start to take action.Go with synthetic oil. why solve a problem you probably dont have. keep your truck repair dollars in your pocket for when you need them. Jasper transmission actually issued a bulletin regarding certain trans fluids gelling (mercon I think)in cold climates in large aftermarket coolers.


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## Unrealo4 (Nov 5, 2011)

6.0's have two tranny coolers. One is inside of the bottom of the radiator. It's also keeps the tranny at good running temps. The other is mounted at the radiator area. And is the one your asking about.


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## linckeil (Sep 18, 2007)

all vehicles with auto trans have the cooler in the radiator. some have the external cooler as well. my truck has both. the question is whether or not to upgrade my existing external cooler with the larger 6.0 external cooler. 

depending on who you talk to, temps of 180 are too much. others say you're fine up to 240....


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## Derek'sDumpstersInc (Jul 13, 2014)

I would suggest you go to your Ford dealer and see if you can talk to one of their tranny techs. I'm not sure, but I believe that some of the newer trans have some sort of thermostat in them (not like a coolant thermostat, but some way to regulate flow) otherwise, the trans may never get warm if running with no load. It would be like driving a car with a stuck (open) thermostat or no thermostat at all. I will take forever to warm up, but once warm, it will then overheat because the coolant circulates through the system so fast, it doesn't stay in the radiator long enough to dissipate all the heat.


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## MostWanted (Nov 9, 2012)

linckeil;1929821 said:


> all vehicles with auto trans have the cooler in the radiator. some have the external cooler as well. my truck has both. the question is whether or not to upgrade my existing external cooler with the larger 6.0 external cooler.
> 
> depending on who you talk to, temps of 180 are too much. others say you're fine up to 240....


The 6.0's tranny ran about 160 before the thermostat opened. Im not sure what the thermostat is set at on my new 2012 6.7. But I can tell you it runs at 190 alot. Both trannys used Mercron LV. When I first saw the new tranny temp I panicked and did some research. According to ford the hotter fluid temps increase viscosity. So it was a positive design change to run at 190+. My 04 6.0 when I worked it hard could see tranny temps at 205. I wouldn't worry if it stays below 225. I think anything north of that is trouble.
That being said I very little experience with a e4od. We had a 97 f350 cc lb with 495k on it in my old fleet. It had gone through 4 or 5 transmission rebuilds in that time. Those are trannys are like paper plates and plastic forks, disposable!


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## damian (Jan 29, 2009)

Torqushift trans ,E40D and 4R100 do not have any thermostat mechanism in the trans. The cooler circuit in all these models return the cooled oil to the rear part of the trans to the lube circuit for shaft and rotating part lube.The oil viscosity decreases with higher temps, 97 and 98 models had only air to air trans cooler in the front of the radiator no cooler in the radiator, all 6.0s I have worked on have the cooler in the radiator with optional aux cooler in front.


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## MostWanted (Nov 9, 2012)

damian;1930314 said:


> Torqushift trans ,E40D and 4R100 do not have any thermostat mechanism in the trans. The cooler circuit in all these models return the cooled oil to the rear part of the trans to the lube circuit for shaft and rotating part lube.The oil viscosity decreases with higher temps, 97 and 98 models had only air to air trans cooler in the front of the radiator no cooler in the radiator, all 6.0s I have worked on have the cooler in the radiator with optional aux cooler in front.


The Torqshift(5R110,6.0 trans) has a internal thermostat the is fully open at 162 degrees.


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