Have a s2012 JKU Rubicon with 2.5 RK flex lift Kit. I toe a little enclosed trailer (5x8) whichever weighs 500 empty. I use it to haul garbage to dump and take on vacations to load up all the luggage, kids bike and what not. I love n WA state so I drive it over Mountain passes. I have a manual and 410 gears. I can't even tell that it is back there. I don't have the tow package and I can't find a pid to check the transmission tems via trinity or tq app. I would say full it is 1000-1500 lbs. I can go 75 over passes no problem in 5th 6th gear.

Think I should install a tranny cooler or manual tranny temp gauge. If so what is the easiest/ tranny cooler to install? If I go with a manual gauge do you just install the temp probe in the drain plug hole. If I do go with cooler how much transmission fluid will I need and what kind. Thanks in advanced. FYI the trailer is only used for on road use at this point.

Thanks in advanced.

 

Manual transmissions don't require a transmission cooler.

For those with 2012+ automatics, they already have a good cooler in front of the radiator.

 

You will be fine.

 

disregard, i clearly cannot read.

 

I have a 14 auto and recently put an Aeroforce gauge on it. It runs ~167 degrees at a mile high on the freeway at around 50 to 65 degrees OAT. I have not had a chance to run it up to the Eisenhower tunnel yet but am very curious to see how it heats up.

Transmission fluid degrades permanently over 240 degrees.

I had a transmission cooler on my 08 and it would get up close to 200 degrees on the run from Denver to the tunnel basically going ~65 all the way up. Crawling on a trail it never got over around 190 or so.

I suspect the new one will get unacceptably hot crawling on a hot day so I am planning on putting a factory cooler on it. They cost a little more than a B&M cooler but are also a plug and play with fittings and everything needed to bolt on. I have heard people say that the new cooler is adequate but I have yet to hear of a solid temp reading on one under heavy use.

Your ODBII port puts out a trans temp reading. You just have to pull it off with something like an Aeroforce gauge. The gauge will pay for itself with all of the programming you can easily do with it. A bit more than a dedicated gauge but just a plug and play item that will give you a ton of other info too.

 

I'm wondering what OEM cooler you are going to get for your '14 JK that is plug-n-play. The regular cooler on the 2012+ JK looks a lot like the additional MOPAR cooler that is plug-n-play for the '07s - '11 JKs.

 

You know what? I never looked! And the factory aux cooler is on there. I just assumed it was not a stock item.

So now I just have to give it the run from Golden to the Eisenhower tunnel to see if it gets too hot and needs more cooling. Hopefully not!

 

Run a cooler especially up here although running up I -70 is not a test if it's hot now crawling these mountains in low will really make it hot I just did a new rad.

 

So can you say what really hot is?

As long as I can work under 240 there is no harm to the fluid. My aux cooler on the 08 always kept it at 200 hottest, maybe a little more.

I ran the 08 from golden right up to the tunnel at 65 all the way then would take the left and go over Loveland Pass. On a hot summer day it would be at max temp by the time we go to the tunnel, more than it ever did crawling around the trails which we would do for hours.

I am tempted to make a run tomorrow just to see how it does.

 

Had a chance to run back to Fairplay this past Saturday. The transmission never got over 170 on the freeway. We started from Denver at around 60 degrees and it was closer to 80 when we got home.

It did get up around 190 crawling at between 9000 and 11000 feet. When I would turn off the motor it would hit 230. That is still well under the point at which the fluid permanently degrades.

So far so good!! I am just running 33's on 4.10 axles. The transmission may get a bit warmer when we go to 35's but that is probably for next year.

What a pleasant surprise that the jeep now appears adequately engineered without me having to improve anything. I can spend the money elsewhere!