FTB Diff Cooler Installed

[db252]

As the title states, I added this to my car recently as I and most of us have had issues with overheated diffs on track. I have not run it on road course yet but I’ve been just testing it’s ability to cool at somewhat lower temps plus dial in the setting to not kicking on till about 200-225 degrees so during normal daily driving it never kicks on. As I can tell for the month that it’s been on the car it works perfectly. When I tested it at lower settings in would turn on and run till it lowered the temp and then shut back off. Without further ado......

Kit contents.

New oem cover with hose connection points return/send and the thermo sensor plus the connection point for factory diff temp sensor in 16’s and up which I still utilized.

The diff has to be dropped to get access to all the cover bolts.

Installed.

The black relay on the right side of the spare tire well has an adjustable dial to set in the activation temp. As you can see I have the Watson battery relocation kit that I put in the spare tire well which makes running power and ground connections easier.

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[ANGST]

Thanks ! Looks good. Eventually I'll do this , looks fairly straightforward.

How much more fluid capacity does this add ? How is the diff fluid change procedure different ?

 

[ihasnostang]

What keeps the added fluid in the cooler from draining back into the diff? or does the pump run continuously without fan until it hits desired temp?

 

[Grintch]

So the cooler is installed above the diff?

Seems like a bad spot to get cool airflow.

 

[1 old racer]

I had this type of setup on my CTSV and it worked very well.

 

[wildcatgoal]

There is no way to install the cooler "below the diff" and there is no concern installing it where it is; let the pump do it's job.

The fan on the cooler has significant efficacy in the process of cooling the fluid passing through the cooler just the same as your radiator fans are capable of keeping your car cool with no airflow from movement.

If you are willing to sacrifice free access to a fill plug, you can setup a diff cooler without needing the supplied FTBR cover, which adds a lot of cost. If you have a '16+ car, you would have to also take out the factory temp sensor.

 

[db252]

Thanks ! Looks good. Eventually I'll do this , looks fairly straightforward.

How much more fluid capacity does this add ? How is the diff fluid change procedure different ?

Thanks. It added a little over half a quart. All you do is provide power to the pump for it to pull into the cooling system and recheck/add as necessary. When draining, you literally can detach the lower hose and activate the pump to flush the system out and then reattach and refill.

So the cooler is installed above the diff?

Seems like a bad spot to get cool airflow.

It's not. wildcatgoal explains it in the post above.

What keeps the added fluid in the cooler from draining back into the diff? or does the pump run continuously without fan until it hits desired temp?

This is something I wondered as well but the fluid doesn't drain back into the diff. The reason for this is that the pump is a self priming pump which pulls vacuum wet or dry and when the pump isn't on, it prevents fluid from moving. I rechecked levels several times and it alway checked out at the correct level regardless of the pump not running for periods of miles. The pump and fan don't run at all unless it hits the thermostat setting the user chooses. If you wanted it to run full time all the time, all you have to do is turn the adjustment knob to the lowest setting.

Also for further information, when the pump is on, I can only hear it at idle and stopped with the stereo off and barely at that. If the car is moving I have no idea its on unless i know exactly what temp it turns on and the temp i notice on the gauge is going down. It really is an awesome setup albeit a little costly and I can't wait to ultimately test it on track. No ragrets

 

[Mountain376]

Just a comment: I would set the activation/on temp more towards 225. I’m only saying this as, at 200, that thing will be cycling a lot.

Nice install post!

 

[db252]

I’ll keep that in mind for sure, thanks. I won’t get the opportunity for track till March which I’ll need for better dialing in.

 

[PoppinJ]

Ive really been considering this kit depending on how this track season goes. Nice to hear your impressions and I hope that you give an update after a couple of track sessions. I prob cant attempt the install though since I dont have access to a lift. Ive never dropped the differential before so Im not sure how tricky it would be in my garage floor, plus Id have to buy a trans jack or something to get it taken care of. Another 600+ dollars for install really sucks.

 

[db252]

Ive really been considering this kit depending on how this track season goes. Nice to hear your impressions and I hope that you give an update after a couple of track sessions. I prob cant attempt the install though since I dont have access to a lift. Ive never dropped the differential before so Im not sure how tricky it would be in my garage floor, plus Id have to buy a trans jack or something to get it taken care of. Another 600+ dollars for install really sucks.

The summer time track sessions here in CA will be a good test for sure and I’ll definitely post my results after those events.

Having a lift is obviously very helpful but you truly could do this job on jack stands and I wouldn’t hesitate to do it that way if I had to. Literally a floor jack could support and lower/raise the diff enough. To drop the diff you’d have to get to the point of removing the half shafts. I don’t consider that a difficult job either as I've done it plenty of times. If you go this route, don’t hesitate to ask anything.

 

[gtorpedo]

I installed the FTB diff cooler on jack stands - totally doable. I dropped the diff and supported using a harbor freight transmission jack which after coupon was only ~$80 shipped. https://www.harborfreight.com/autom...450-lbs-low-lift-transmission-jack-61232.html

Go for it, its not that bad, and certainly worth saving $600 if thats what your being quoted for install.

 

[shogun32]

If you are willing to sacrifice free access to a fill plug, you can setup a diff cooler without needing the supplied FTBR cover, which adds a lot of cost.

Do you happen to have the price difference of the custom-machined cover handy? I can mill and thread my own I should think. During install did you happen to notice how much clearance is on the back-side of the plate between the 2 (in/out) holes? I'm thinking a small, finned cooler might fit on the inside of the cover and still clear all the rotating bits so you could run a very simple oil/oil or oil/water intercooler setup.

I'm thinking of something like these and a simple coil of copper tubing.
https://www.mcmaster.com/flared-tube-fittings

 

[PoppinJ]

I may give it a shot. Im going to see how the temps do at the track in the cooler months first.

 

[DLW]

Do you happen to have the price difference of the custom-machined cover handy? I can mill and thread my own I should think. During install did you happen to notice how much clearance is on the back-side of the plate between the 2 (in/out) holes? I'm thinking a small, finned cooler might fit on the inside of the cover and still clear all the rotating bits so you could run a very simple oil/oil or oil/water intercooler setup.

I'm thinking of something like these and a simple coil of copper tubing.
https://www.mcmaster.com/flared-tube-fittings

Judging by the price of their (FTB) universal kit ($775) and their S550 specific kit ($999), there is a $225 delta. Do not see the cover offered separately though, might have to call.
The cover, if I am not mistaken, has two extra holes drilled. Should be easy to drill and tap those.

To the OP, thanks for the write up and pics, looks great.

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