I have a 2008 Wrangler and when I hit the dirt eventually the HOTOIL light comes on. The road I take is a long gradual upgrade and about 6-7 miles in the light comes on. I have installed a aftermarket transmission cooler and still the light comes on. It does not matter if I am in two wheel or four wheel drive. I have drove this same road in my 2003 Yukon XL and my 2003 Ford Escape with no problems. Does anyone know of another fix? Do we all still have problems even after adding a cooler. This is my third Wrangler and the other two never had a problem with overheating. Any help would be appreciated.

 

My first time to Rausch Creek this happened to me... I was in 4hi the whole time and the HOTOIL message came up and started dinging. I was told that in the mountains we need to use 4lo and let the transfer case do the work. Since then I've NEVER got the message ever again. Try using 4lo and I bet it won't happen

 

Clearly you have an automatic transmission. You need a transmission cooler. Do a search on here. There is a ton of helpful threads on this.

 

He has one

Sent from my Obama phone using JK-Forum

 

I guess this guy didn't read your issue.

 

Emptyl,

What's the speed you get to on this uphill stretch?

Have you tried it with the O/D turned off? This will cause the torque converter to lock sooner, and perhaps stay locked in 3rd gear, depending on the road speed. A locked torque converter produces far less heat than a slipping one.

 

When going up the grade I am going anywhere from 5-25 MPH.

 

Try it with O/D off.

If that makes no difference, you need to get more air through the grill.
Do you have any aftermarket obstructions in front of the grill?

 

I experienced the same problem on 2007 and I installed a Mopar transmission oil cooler. I checked other kits and it involved cutting the lines. The most difficult task was removing the front grill and the rest went relatively easy as far as an install goes. I would spend the extra couple bucks and stick with the OEM cooler.

 

I take my JK on the beach. I have an automatic trans with a cooler and a temperature gauge. My trans runs 30-40 degrees F cooler in 4L versus 4H. I never tried with overdrive off as has been suggested. I will test that next time.

Are you sure your trans cooler is plumbed correctly ?