Hi,

I have a 2002 Crown Vic and from time to time I have to drive it in very hilly areas, and I was thinking if it would be useful to install an additional transmission oil cooler. I put an additional one in my 1990 CV (that just has the integrated radiator cooler) and helped a lot, but this 2002 is different because it doesn’t have a cooler in the radiator and it just has the external cooler (I understand that it is for the transmission and power steering).

So, the question is: it is worth to install an additional TOC in my 2002? I bought this one some years ago form Ford, but I’m not sure if it would be useful, because I read that the OE one is capable enough, at least for "normal use":


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Also, if the answer is yes: where it should be mounted? In front of the condenser? Behind the radiator?
Just to give more context, here’s a pic of the road that I go through from time to time:

[img:center]http://[/img]

And here’s a video. The first 2 minutes is a map, and from minute 11-12 you can see the curves (yes, I live in Santiago, Chile): https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=CoWdLo4jum8

My main concern is the excessive shifting between 2nd and 3rd gear. I don’t want to overheat my transmission :-)

Also, with my family, when we travel to the south of Chile (about 500 miles from the capitol) we like to go to the Osorno volcano, with a similar road. Here’s a video (sorry for the crappy video, but I couldn’t find other):

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=m34t1mKh698

Any advice will be very much appreciated. Thanks in advance.

Here's what I said back in 2016:

I would put the aux cooler after the primary one, and here's why:

The primary cooler has a thermostatic bypass to allow the fluid to warm up when the ambient temp is cold. If you put your cooler inline before the factory cooler, you may in effect "over-cool" the fluid to the extent that the bypass stays that way and you lose the benefit of the second cooler. If you put yours after the primary cooler, the bypass will function normally and you will still get the benefit of the aux cooler when needed.

The other option is to just replace the transmission fluid more often. If you cycle out your fluid every 12k miles and your transmission has the J-mod your transmission should have a long service life.

More cooling sure won't hurt, especially on those hills. Inline after the OE cooler is best; that's how they run 'em on pickup trucks with the trailer-towing package. In front of the condenser is best.

That doesn't look like a cooler with a built in bypass (they can be thermostatic or the clearance is so tight that only hot fluid is "thin" enough to travel through the cooler.

I don't think it would over cool the transmission, and like others state after the OEM is best (more important for an in tank fluid to fluid exchanger like the older panther).

But that road! I am sure I would over do it and kill a family or 2.

I added a similar looking auxiliary transmission fluid cooler to our '01 Mercury plumbed into the return line from OEM cooler back to transmission a good 15 years ago when I put a hitch on it, before we took several trips out to the southwest, crossing the Rockies, etc. It hangs from that bar across in front of the main radiator and then two metal straps extend down to below radiator. Used transmission Fluid cooler hose. J-modded it medium in '14 @ 76,xxx miles.

I did the same to my '95 T-bird LX 4.6 and my '77 F-150 with C-6, many years ago. Both are still going.

This is a tube and fin style cooler, its practically useless as a transmission cooler.

The factory 98+ external transmission cooler is more than adequate.

http://www.idmsvcs.com/2vmod/tranny/cooler/pictures/index.html

You can put a deep pan on the trans for a little extra fluid capacity, which will extend fluid life by spreading the heat over 2 extra quarts. They usually come with a drain plug, too. It won't help with cooling per se, but the fluid will take longer to overheat in extreme use situations.

What's the temperature like in Chile? I know you've got some extreme elevation there, which calls for more cooling just because the air is thinner.

In addition to what old guy stu said I looked through your signature and didn't see the jmod listed as a modification.

In case you didn't know the jmod allows the clutch packs to engage more quickly with minimal slippage so this extends the service life of the transmission and less slippage also means the transmission creates less heat.

Over to the passenger side of the radiator are two lines that pass the radiator, the top one is marked "TOP", it comes FROM the transmission going to OEM cooler. Below it is the line that leads from the OEM cooler going back TO the transmission.
I plumbed my cooler into the lower return line.



A lot of air flows in under the bumper ahead of the car's radiator so I mounted mine low.








While there are better ones out there ... that doesn't relegate these to uselessness.

For sure in most of North America, but summer in the high mountains with steep laborious winding climbs that demand frequent shifts and TC slip can tax even a freshly filled with Mercon-V 4R70W if pulling a loaded Panther on it's back.

Thanks to all guys. Very, very useful information and advice here.



Now we are starting the summer, and it's not rare to have 95 or 98 degrees. However, today we have pleaseant 70 :-)





Yes, indeed. It is in my "to do" list :-)




This is very, very useful information. Thanks!!



Yes, indeed. That's why I'm concerned and I decided to ask here. In fact, here in Santiago or in Chile, in general I wouldn't need a TOC, but since we like to go to the mountains, and they are very close from the city, I prefer to be in the "better safe than sorry" side :-)

Thanks again to all of you for the advice.

That's a nice neat-looking job there, Mr. Pistol.

On a major side note, back in the late 1990s I had a female friend from Chile. She and her brother were adopted by a really good family here in United States. She was the sweetest girl you could ever meet and legitimately a good girl.

We went to the same high school for 4 years and we use to meet up in the summertime at a well known park to walk our dogs. Sadly just as she graduated nursing school she was murdered by her then boyfriend. I always get choked up whenever I think of her or Chile.

That's a very sad story. Sorry for your loss :-(