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Trans Temp Gauge

I just purchased a trans temp gauge and when I went to install it I realized something... I don't know where to put the sending unit. I've made a couple decisions however. I realize that since I do not want to have a bung welded into the pan I only have two other options; use an existing hole that the sending unit will screw into or "T" into the outgoing trans cooler lines. Does anyone have anymore info they can share about this. I don't know of any holes to use. Someone who's done this before please point me in the right direction...
 
i have an AW4 and i'm going to use a port just in front of the pressure line to the cooler. It's a star plug with m14x1.5 threads. I ordered an adapter from autometer this morning, pn 2267 i THINK. just an insert to go from m14x1.5 to 1/8" npt.

Hope this helps

Adam
 
You can also get a T fitting - with the branch the size of your sensor, and a 3/8" run. That way, you can plumb it into the cooler line directly (use a 3/8" barb fitting to go to the rubber line) and just zip-tie it up out of the way. Probably easier, and should be cheaper. Get brass if you can - it will last longer under there.

You could also talk to MachineMan - I know he did a temperature gage for his transmission - he had a whole slew of issues that took a while to resolve, and temperature was just one of them! I think he's got them all pointed in the right direction, tho...

5-90
 
What about replacing pan drain plug with temp sender for new aftermarket guage? Just crawling around underneath my '98 tonight, looking for a good place to install sender...anyone try this location? good idea / bad idea??
 
Re: Trans Temp Gauge / cooler install

OK you have me convinced, full flow it is. Now I've read posts that say the front most line from the tranny is the out line, and i've read posts that say the rear most line is the out or pressure line. Which is correct for my vehicle, a 1998automatic 4x4 stock with no tranny cooler (yet). I'd like to know which is correct, as this will be the line I pull my temp from, and the other the post-radiator line I install my cooler on. Thanks!
 
Thanks man!

Mine is a 1998 with only the radiator cooler, no aux cooler (yet). So the line that enters the top of the radiator is the line from the tranny, and the line that exits the bottom of the radiator runs fluid back to the tranny, correct?

thanks
nate
 
Correct.
 
Another option that I used is to by a transmission filter kit with the sensor in the adaptor. It is kind of pricey, around 79.00 I think, however, you get the benefit of a spin on oil filter to clean your tranny fluid and also monitor your temperatures. It fits nicely under the radiator of my cherokee behind the bumper and the kit come with everything, adaptor, filter, hose, fittings, temp gauge, and sending unit.
 
I've bought three of those kits from Summit (just the Perma Cool filter bracket, not the kit with the gauge) and 1/3 had the trans temp sender port tapped & plugged... the other two it looks super easy to drill & tap it out.

Looks like #1211 or 1213 on this site... http://www.bakerprecision.com/filtmnt.htm
 
So with that in mind it's time to figure out which line is which. The easiest way to do this is simply follow the lines back from the radiator. The feed line enters the radiator at the bottom (contrary to what you might think), and the return line enters from the top. The feed line is also the hardline that runs under the front of the oil pan. On our XJ the lines swapped places as they went around the oilpan, so the feed line was now the "lower" of the two lines.

The above is a quote from that great link http://jeepin.com/features/tranny_temp_gauge/index.asp. Now i'm totally confused. Some say the feed line is the line to the top of the rad, some say it's the line to the bottom of the rad

which one is it, surely someone out there must know for sure???
 
Also = pressure is the forward line from the tranny, and it returns to the rear fitting. Stu has a good selection of parts and numbers in his AW-4 install writeup on www.stu-offroad.com
 
I did the "T" on my '02 Grand Caravan (41TE trans with notorious rep for eating itself). I pulled the fitting for the output to the cooler and screwed the "T" into the body of the trans on put the original fitting on the other side to reconnect the line without any cutting or line changes.

ONLY problem, the 41TE has an internal thermostat, don't know if the AW4 has one. I often get ridiculous low temp readings, especially in cold weather, I think that is simply because the thermostat is cutting off the fluid flow to the cooler and past my sending unit. Which shouldn't be bothersome, because if its true, the fluid is below the design temp anyway.

The big benifit of the temp gauge, you'll see when the trans is under the most stress, it will surprise you sometimes the things the tranny doesn't get too hot over, and what will cause the temps to climb. But I've caught many cases that would have overheated my trans and stopped it before it cooked my tranny.

Taking an Overdrive Auto out of Overdrive almost always cools it off, at the very least it keeps the temp from climbing higher.
 
A friend of mine brought up an interesting point... What about using a toggle switch in the middle of the connection and getting another sending unit for the tranfer case. Then you could just label the toggle switch and save some money on an all new gauge. Any ideas on this? What is the normal operating temp for the t-case? Where would you put the sending unit at on the t-case?
 
SpikeSpeigel said:
A friend of mine brought up an interesting point... What about using a toggle switch in the middle of the connection and getting another sending unit for the tranfer case. Then you could just label the toggle switch and save some money on an all new gauge. Any ideas on this? What is the normal operating temp for the t-case? Where would you put the sending unit at on the t-case?

Would be nice but you would have to find a switch that will not introduce any resistance, the gauge reads the electrical current and the switch will throw it off. If you find such a switch, I'm interested also so be sure to post a report.
 
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