What is Normal Operating Temperature Range for an Automatic Transmission  

Question:

Expert Reply:

Because there are so many variables that dictate what a transmission's temperature will be, it's not possible to point to a 'typical' temperature, but there's definitely an acceptable range. The ambient temperature, the speed the vehicle is traveling at, the elevation, the type of terrain you're driving in, how heavily the vehicle is loaded and whether or not the air conditioning is running will all influence how hot the transmission fluid gets.

Strictly speaking, 175-210º is roughly the normal operating range. When you get above 220-240º is where you're going to have problems.

There are many things you can do to improve the life of your transmission. Change the fluid at the manufacturer's recommended intervals. If your vehicle has a transmission temperature gauge pay attention to it, especially if you're on a hilly area on a hot day. When the temperature starts climbing, turn off the AC, and you can even crank the heat up full-blast to shed some of the extra heat in the system. You'll also want to make sure that your cooling system is in good order, because most automatic transmissions have a loop running through the radiator to provide cooling.

One of the best and least expensive things you can to to protect your transmission is to install a supplemental transmission cooler like # D13502. The cooler would install inline with the transmission return line from the radiator back to the transmission.

I've linked to a video showing a typical installation as well as to some help articles that explain how transmission coolers work.

expert reply by: Mike L

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