p.diddy

iTrader: (3)

i would love to do the 3.5 but 4k, im leaning putting that towards another car.

nf3d0149ab

iTrader: (5)

My summer out here in San Francisco has been like the movie Sleepy Hollow.

But temperature aside...any economical mod to ward out a potential tranny issue is "cool" in my book! lol

civicdrivr

iTrader: (9)

The torque is fun.

But I definitely hear you on that one. I was working at a Honda training facility Sunday and Monday and they have a black S2000 CR. I was drooling over it the entire time.

Im going back there Monday for more work, Ill be taking pictures of a few things they have there that may interest you guys

nf3d0149ab

iTrader: (5)

^

thevikas87

iTrader: (2)

Just out of curiosity, what difference would running CL-S heads make?

civicdrivr

iTrader: (9)

They flow better = more power.

thevikas87

iTrader: (2)

Well damn. I may need to get that done...we'll see how the car pulls now, I haven't driven it yet (obviously).

civicdrivr

iTrader: (9)

There was a video pits posted. Seemed to pull pretty nicely. Im wondering how the tuning is though since IIRC hes still running the CL-S ecu.

CL-S progression 01

iTrader: (2)

So I finally did it today.


Installed the transmission cooler. As you can see



INFO:

it was 20 degrees out and I just had installed the cooler.. went to McDonalds which was 1km away went through the drive through, came back. Trans cooler was very warm I was amazed!

I feel bad I didn't do this sooner to tell you the truth. I drove home later on the highway about 10mins and got home and then checked the temp of the cooler and it was WAYYYY cooler.

INSTALL:

used 12ft of 3/8 cooler hose (35ish bucks)
2 screw clamps
12 inch x 1 inch piece of mild steel
4 self-taping screw

To mount the cooler as I did I removed the one bolt on the hood latch(on the farthest right) and the bolt holding on the condenser mount. That span is roughly 12 inches. Cut the piece of metal to the proper size. Dill out one hole in each spot where the screws you took out are located. Now you can put the bracket behind the screws when you secure them and the bracket is STURDY.

I mounted my cooler with the inlet/outlet facing downward so you can put the self-tap screws through the bottom of the cooler (the flat plate piece). And voila, it's sturdy and has a front row seat to get blasted by air.

Lastly I just need to paint the silver parts so it's not noticeable when looking through the grill.

As for the hoses I am going to get pictures for those when i can find a camera that is good enough so u know wtf to do. It's a tight space in their so it's hard to find, especially if you are just looking around to see where your trans cooler is gonna go and thought it is obvious.

I hope this inspires more AT CLers to take this route. Cheap insurance for a costly fix

TheWeez

It's been shown that the issues with the automatic transmissions have zero to do with the temp of the fluid and everything to do with a design flaw. If it was as simple to fix as throwing on a cheap cooler, everyone including Acura would have been doing this years ago.

Keeping the transmission from overheating will help any automatic transmission (although too much cooling can cause issues and prevent the fluid from reaching proper operating temperature) but don't think it'll prevent transmission failure from a flawed design.

Having TransGo design a shift kit may help to remedy the issue. I know their $40 kit provided more than a 500% increase in lubrication to one of my previous vehicle's transmissions and solved a similar automatic transmission design issue.

CL-S progression 01

iTrader: (2)

I never heard of that.. I cheack it out.. but that's only for domestic cars, that I see at least.

And our trans do get hotter than the average automatic transmission. Got my car at 81000kms and at 96000kms my gears had to be replaced because they were melted. literally the grooves on 2 of the gears were gone. not a pretty site.

It's gonna do more harm than good.

and i'm getting a gauge pod soon (i have the gauges) which will tell me the temp so i'll know if things are too cold or hot.

So I'd have to have a bit of a different opinion.

civicdrivr

iTrader: (9)

The auto trannies are overheating not because they dont have a cooler but because the fluid flow is horrible, thus causing the overheating. The cooler will help to a degree, but dont put all your faith in it.

p.diddy

iTrader: (3)

Basically a tranny cooler is pointless unless your boosted.

civicdrivr

iTrader: (9)

I wouldn't say its pointless, but its not going to stop it from blowing.

p.diddy

iTrader: (3)

Well yea that's what I meant. Tranny cooler or not your trannys still going to blow. If it was that simple we wouldn't still have this problem 10 years later.

CL-S progression 01

iTrader: (2)

Also put on the glowshift trans temp gauge in line with the cooler. waiting for the a pillar pod tho

CH46ESeaKnight

Progression, looks like a nice job on the cooler install.

I'm sure it won't hurt in the summer time, but I would be worried about flow problems in the warm Canadian winter. Maybe you can cover it up when its too cold. As I'm sure you know, the colder the fluid the slower the flow will be. Just some food for thought to consider.

Either way I'd rather have it then not have it.

CL-S progression 01

iTrader: (2)

yea I thought about that, i'm disconnecting it once she gets to 5 degrees C or less.

trans cooler/line will get to 140-150 just sitting still in park in 20 degrees C. Found that out yesterday.

the trans cooler temp gauge was cooling down as I drove, because the air was cooling the thermister. So at midnight i wrapped it up in header wrap (keep heat in) and duct tape (to prevent air from cooling down the header wrap
went for a 3 min drive and the temp was climbing as I drove for a min... as it should.

Does anyone know the actual PROPER temp I should be seeing with our car?

I seached google and read that 185 is already kinda high.

So what 165-170 C ?

if anyone knows that'd be sweet, thanks

civicdrivr

iTrader: (9)

175*F or lower.

CL-S progression 01

iTrader: (2)

K well I got the trans sensor in the cooler/filter/oil jet line but I know the trans is hotter than the fluid itself. touching the trans vs touching the cooler and or the lines are not the same.

which reading is more important? probably the actual trans temperature.

thus i should get a threaded adapter so I can thread in my thermister .

i went for a drive on the highway and the temp read 115. that cannot be right. once I got on the streets it went to 140s... then i ripped it a lil and got it to 160. but this seems lower than I thought it'd be

civicdrivr

iTrader: (9)

On the highway it will be lower because the air is hitting the cooler. The heat of the aluminum tranny housing means nothing. Some of that heat is from the motor itself. You want to know the tranny fluid temp.

CL-S progression 01

iTrader: (2)

alright roger that. temp sensor will stay where it is

CL-S progression 01

iTrader: (2)

today it is reading 35 on the car's air temp sensor. trans temp was between 140-160. 160 was in city streets giving it the beans a couple times. 140ish was the avg on the highway.


LOVE the cooler

fsttyms1

I had 4 failures with the cooler. (none of the trans lasted as long as the original trans without)

CL-S progression 01

iTrader: (2)

tru.... well when I am in the city in bumper to bumper... temps can go to 170 if it's 30s out. then u drive on the highway and u get a steady 140 give or take 5.

So it works, quite evidently.

I'm actually going to install one on my company MDX (towing vehicle). that thing must heat up WAY MORE than my CL. damn i feel bad for it

richardparker

iTrader: (7)

you are already seeing 30 degrees outside where you live ?
sorry to take a left with your thread but that sounds amazingly low.

civicdrivr

iTrader: (9)

Celcius. Thats like 153* in real people temps

On a serious note, IIRC Honda recommends a tranny cooler on the MDX/Pilot if you do any towing.

CL-S progression 01

iTrader: (2)

yea man sorry.. i was'tn specific... CANADA we talk celcius around here.. so it was 30 degrees C.

well i do know we got a towing package or something put on the MDX from acura.. but I think that was just the hitch, wiring, install and ball/tounge.

I'm gonna check it out this week again, cause I was almost certain there is NO trans cooler anywhere to be found. who knows tho. could very well be mistaken.

TheWeez

There may not be an auxiliary transmission cooler but the fluid is routed through the radiator to cool it.

CL-S progression 01

iTrader: (2)

interesting.. I'd like too see the temps that trans would get to tho. I best it'd hit 180s with a heavy ass hot tub on the back trailer.. not to mention the extra drag

whiteknight

The temp readings sound right to me. Once I installed my tranny cooler I used an infrared temperature gun after driving on surface streets for about 30 minutes. The inlet to the cooler was around 150 and the outlet was a little less than 100.

fsttyms1

not on the 2g CL/TL (other than the 4 speed 99 TL)

Jacobpockros

iTrader: (1)

Speaking of towing, here is an idea of what your car would look like with the tow hitch:

CL-S progression 01

iTrader: (2)

yea I think next year after I am done ALLL my mods I will add on the hitch so I can bring lots of stuff and people with me when I go places.

Gotta get coilovers FIRST before I tow. or else the rear shocks will be bottoming out practically.

Anyone know anything about towing with coilovers? is that a big no no or what?

Jacobpockros

iTrader: (1)

Technically should be better because you have way less rebound.

CL-S progression 01

iTrader: (2)

^^ see that was my philosophy too. but I just want some technical data/proof that supports the fact coilovers are ok and or better than oem set-up for towing. (in general)

obv not talking about towing anything massive... just lil things like 500lbs (inc trailer) and under

civicdrivr

iTrader: (9)

The rear suspension would probably act the same if you had 500lbs in the trunk. Arent you only going to have a bike rack and your bike on the hitch? Thats 200lbs at most.

CL-S progression 01

iTrader: (2)

I drive around with 100s of pounlds of crap in my trunk.

I use my car for hot tub and pool service. LOL so I need the back end to be stiffer than it is.. and the fact the rear is over 1/2 an inch lower than the front it's starting to piss me off.

I got my own hoists and garage now so I can do it no problem.. Just need to know if it will hold up if i decide to tow... say a 400-500LB uhaul trailer for 100miles.

^^ going camping a lot soon so I wanna be able to bring everything in one car.... my car. without bottoming out heheh

civicdrivr

iTrader: (9)

4-500lbs, is that tongue weight or overall weight? Something tells me that your tranny isn't going to like that.

CL-S progression 01

iTrader: (2)

trailer ..complete weight. not towing anything massive... just a little trailer filled with camping gear.