[67_Bird]

I’m replacing my radiator. Previous owner had a trans cooler mounted to front of radiator. Do I keep it or just mount the new lines to the new radiator? 67 Firebird 400 with TH350, no heat/ac, long tube headers. Car is rarely driven. Anyone got pics of how the lines are run with headers?

[ZeGermanHam]

I think a separate trans cooler is more effective at cooling the transmission than a radiator with an integrated trans cooler, but I'd stick with the stock setup unless you're doing something that necessitates a remote mounted trans cooler. If it's just a cruiser, the stock setup is fine.

[OCMDGTO]

If you have more than stock stall I would keep the transcooler. I don't think they're ever a bad idea, personally.

[78w72]

Originally Posted by ZeGermanHam

I think a separate trans cooler is more effective at cooling the transmission than a radiator with an integrated trans cooler, but I'd stick with the stock setup unless you're doing something that necessitates a remote mounted trans cooler. If it's just a cruiser, the stock setup is fine.

not always... a remote trans cooler works by air flow, when not moving or slow stop & go traffic it has almost zero cooling ability.

the best way to run an aux cooler & the way all trans cooler companies recommend is to use the radiator cooler first, then out to the aux cooler then back to the trans. this does 2 things, gets the fluid up to operating temp fast, (important in cooler/cold temps) then lets the radiator cooler remove excess heat & keep the trans at or closer to operating temps. the aux cooler will then cool it as much as it can based on air flow.

for racing you can use just the trans cooler since the car is usually moving at a good speed when the engine is ran. or for a stock stall or non racing the factory rad cooler is efficient enough to not require a aux trans cooler, but it cant hurt to run one the right way.

for most headers, the factory trans cooling lines will usually not work or require re-bending them to clear the headers or run/bend new lines as needed.

[67Fbird]

mostly stock form......stock cooling is all you need. When you start adding converter stall and towing is when you start adding more "stuff"