Added a transmission cooler, thanks to this forum!

[User5.2]

This forum is extremely helpful. Before the GT350, I never got under a car. The first time I ever did an oil change, exhaust modification and now the cooler addition was all on my GT350. Here is my installation info, hopefully it helps others.

Below are the parts I used. This kind of stuff is not available locally so I got everything online. It added up to about $1060, including shipping.
FROM Summit Racing

• Hose Cutter, Braided Stainless Steel, Maximum 12 AN, (Mfr. #: SUM-900040), $45. This hose cutter worked pretty well.
• Braided Stainless Steel Hose, -8 AN, 15 ft. Length, (Mfr. #: SUM-230815), $64.97 (I recommend you get 20', as I had to get 3' more)
• Earl's Performance Fitting, Straight, -8 AN Male to 1/2 in. NPT Male, Aluminum, Blue Anodized, (Mfr. #: 981688ERL), $5.81 (x2)
• Aeroquip Reusable Hose Ends, 90 Degree, -8 AN Hose to Female -8 AN, Aluminum, Black, (Mfr. #: FBM4433), $19.97

FROM Autonation White Bear Lake (Mike R)

• FR3Z-7A095-E Radiator
• FR3Z-8310-F Air Deflector
• FR3Z-7D388-A Bracket for Radiator
• Plus miscellaneous bolts

FROM RB Racing

• 03-1034 Oil pump, 2 GPM, $325
• FR303-1041 AN8 Adapters, $15 (x2)

FROM Optimum Performance

• BG Synchro Shift II kit for GT350 Track Pack, $99 (has extra bottle of oil for radiator and hoses)

I used the Ford radiator, air duct, and associated bracket because I did not want to have to create custom brackets. Mike R at Autonation Ford White Bear Lake knows the right parts. Do not order the entire Ford cooler kit as you won't use a lot of the parts in it.

I went with the RB Racing pump based on various comments in the "2015-2016 Tech Pack and Base GT350 Cooler Solution Discussion", around pages 159-160. Some of the other pumps I considered seemed to spec a max oil temperature around 150F which the GT350 will exceed on the track. I have a switch inside the fuse box for now, though I plan to put it inside the car in the future. I plan to only turn it on during the hottest days and on the track. It is kind of noisy so I will never forget to turn it off, but I can only slightly hear it inside the car when I am idling. I just tell people I have a hybrid mustang.

The most challenging part is finding a place to install the pump. We used the same pump location as earlSpilner - there are a couple of bolts that stick out pretty far and I happened to have lock nuts that fit, plus I put on some Loctite We cut a metal plate and punched 2 holes to fit. We originally planned to bolt the pump to the metal plate but then realized the pump had to be angled to clear the radiator air duct. My son knows how to do basic welding, so he just welded it on.

The pump input on the left is pointing down to connect to the output of the radiator. The pump output on the right is pointing up to escape out of the wheel well and connect to the transmission fill. The pump is tilted to the left to fit the 90 degree hose ends. Note that the pump should be vertically oriented, which I mostly achieved. I connected the pump ground to one of the ground connections just to the left of it. The positive wire goes up and over to the fuse box switch. I tapped into the fuse box supply so I can run the pump even when the car is off.

The pump connection to the radiator is very short. The radiator connection to the transmission drain routes directly out. I used Gates 32915 PowerGrip Hose Clamp and a metal clamp to directly attach the AN8 to the Ford radiator. The Gates clamp was too small to get around the lip of the radiator connector so I did the best I could with it. I plan to revisit those connections. I used metal wire to strap down and support the hoses in order to deal with the G forces on the track.

So far the system has worked great! I ran a track event yesterday in 90 degree weather. During a 40min session in which I hammered the engine in the 5K-redline range, the transmission temp maxed out at 181F (and the engine oil at 260F). It is a great relief to know I will wear myself out before the car! The temp stays below 150F when driving to work on a hot day, in traffic - it used to get as high as 200F.

This took me most of 2 weekends as everything was new to me and I had to order the hose cutter after the first weekend. Just getting the splitter and splash guard off/on took time. And working in tight areas requires the right size tools and patience. It is well worth it, though!

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[ducatismo]

Great stuff! how long did it take to remove the front splitter and bumper? Seems like we have similar wrench experience. Can this be done with basic tools?

 

[User5.2]

Yes, it can be done with basic tools. It came down to having the right size wrenches and sockets. The splash guard and splitter took me a couple of hours mainly to find all the screws and push pins. I could do it a lot faster now. Also, attach both ends of the splash guard before attaching the middle area to make sure all the holes to line up.

 

[ducatismo]

Thanks. Push pins, how do you remove them? Dealer said they have to be drilled out and replaced. Mine are worn down to the last bits from scraping.

 

[Lurker_350]

Are you asking about the rivets in the splitter (which do not need to be removed)? There has been some confusion from dealer service as to what needs to be removed to pull the splitter. I believe there are 20 screws total plus the moon clips in the side pieces. There could be more, but that is what I recall.

See attached image for a little detail - I created it for a friend who was picking up a GT350 and wanted to know if the splitter had been put on correctly. I also sent him to the "is your splitter on correct" thread. Sorry for the large image size, I don't know how to reduce it.

If you have actually ground down the screw heads, you may have to drill those out if you can't get a vise grip to grab the head and rotate.

 

[User5.2]

I only had to remove 4 screws and a couple of plastic push pins. The dealer apparently left out the other screws, but I have scraped plenty of times without any issues. I just searched for a youtube of splitter install to figure out the screw locations. You don't need to mess with all the metal rivets that are ground down from scraping.

 

[ducatismo]

Are you asking about the rivets in the splitter (which do not need to be removed)? There has been some confusion from dealer service as to what needs to be removed to pull the splitter. I believe there are 20 screws total plus the moon clips in the side pieces. There could be more, but that is what I recall.

See attached image for a little detail - I created it for a friend who was picking up a GT350 and wanted to know if the splitter had been put on correctly. I also sent him to the "is your splitter on correct" thread. Sorry for the large image size, I don't know how to reduce it.

If you have actually ground down the screw heads, you may have to drill those out if you can't get a vise grip to grab the head and rotate.

Correct. I was referring to the metal rivets in the splitter so it looks like those don't need to be removed, thankfully. Thank you for the pic, it is helpful. Anything that makes this endeavor easier is helpful. Called Mike R and ordered the parts today. Much appreciated.

 

[TxOilMoney]

Pretty damn impressive for someone who had never been under a car. A friend of mine says he is going to buy a lift, and I plan on breaking it in for him with my cooler install. Finally. 2 years later.

 

[ducatismo]

This forum is extremely helpful. Before the GT350, I never got under a car. The first time I ever did an oil change, exhaust modification and now the cooler addition was all on my GT350. Here is my installation info, hopefully it helps others.

Below are the parts I used. This kind of stuff is not available locally so I got everything online. It added up to about $1060, including shipping.
FROM Summit Racing

• Hose Cutter, Braided Stainless Steel, Maximum 12 AN, (Mfr. #: SUM-900040), $45. This hose cutter worked pretty well.
• Braided Stainless Steel Hose, -8 AN, 15 ft. Length, (Mfr. #: SUM-230815), $64.97 (I recommend you get 20', as I had to get 3' more)
• Earl's Performance Fitting, Straight, -8 AN Male to 1/2 in. NPT Male, Aluminum, Blue Anodized, (Mfr. #: 981688ERL), $5.81 (x2)
• Aeroquip Reusable Hose Ends, 90 Degree, -8 AN Hose to Female -8 AN, Aluminum, Black, (Mfr. #: FBM4433), $19.97

FROM Autonation White Bear Lake (Mike R)

• FR3Z-7A095-E Radiator
• FR3Z-8310-F Air Deflector
• FR3Z-7D388-A Bracket for Radiator
• Plus miscellaneous bolts

FROM RB Racing

• 03-1034 Oil pump, 2 GPM, $325
• FR303-1041 AN8 Adapters, $15 (x2)

FROM Optimum Performance

• BG Synchro Shift II kit for GT350 Track Pack, $99 (has extra bottle of oil for radiator and hoses)

I used the Ford radiator, air duct, and associated bracket because I did not want to have to create custom brackets. Mike R at Autonation Ford White Bear Lake knows the right parts. Do not order the entire Ford cooler kit as you won't use a lot of the parts in it.

I went with the RB Racing pump based on various comments in the "2015-2016 Tech Pack and Base GT350 Cooler Solution Discussion", around pages 159-160. Some of the other pumps I considered seemed to spec a max oil temperature around 150F which the GT350 will exceed on the track. I have a switch inside the fuse box for now, though I plan to put it inside the car in the future. I plan to only turn it on during the hottest days and on the track. It is kind of noisy so I will never forget to turn it off, but I can only slightly hear it inside the car when I am idling. I just tell people I have a hybrid mustang.

The most challenging part is finding a place to install the pump. We used the same pump location as earlSpilner - there are a couple of bolts that stick out pretty far and I happened to have lock nuts that fit, plus I put on some Loctite We cut a metal plate and punched 2 holes to fit. We originally planned to bolt the pump to the metal plate but then realized the pump had to be angled to clear the radiator air duct. My son knows how to do basic welding, so he just welded it on.

The pump input on the left is pointing down to connect to the output of the radiator. The pump output on the right is pointing up to escape out of the wheel well and connect to the transmission fill. The pump is tilted to the left to fit the 90 degree hose ends. Note that the pump should be vertically oriented, which I mostly achieved. I connected the pump ground to one of the ground connections just to the left of it. The positive wire goes up and over to the fuse box switch. I tapped into the fuse box supply so I can run the pump even when the car is off.

The pump connection to the radiator is very short. The radiator connection to the transmission drain routes directly out. I used Gates 32915 PowerGrip Hose Clamp and a metal clamp to directly attach the AN8 to the Ford radiator. The Gates clamp was too small to get around the lip of the radiator connector so I did the best I could with it. I plan to revisit those connections. I used metal wire to strap down and support the hoses in order to deal with the G forces on the track.

So far the system has worked great! I ran a track event yesterday in 90 degree weather. During a 40min session in which I hammered the engine in the 5K-redline range, the transmission temp maxed out at 181F (and the engine oil at 260F). It is a great relief to know I will wear myself out before the car! The temp stays below 150F when driving to work on a hot day, in traffic - it used to get as high as 200F.

This took me most of 2 weekends as everything was new to me and I had to order the hose cutter after the first weekend. Just getting the splitter and splash guard off/on took time. And working in tight areas requires the right size tools and patience. It is well worth it, though!

Purchased the listed parts so much appreciate the info and guidance . Did want to ask though if it makes any difference logistically speaking to install the cooler before the pump or vice versa?

Also I don't have a lift so I'm not planning on pulling off the front bumper or front splitter. There's another thread where everything was able to be installed through the wheel well. Thoughts?

 

[rb92gt]

Purchased the listed parts so much appreciate the info and guidance . Did want to ask though if it makes any difference logistically speaking to install the cooler before the pump or vice versa?

Also I don't have a lift so I'm not planning on pulling off the front bumper or front splitter. There's another thread where everything was able to be installed through the wheel well. Thoughts?

You want the oil to flow through the cooler first, then the pump. This way the fluid hitting the pump is cool(er).

 

[stanglife]

Good job, sir! I 2nd the "you've never been under a car before?"

 

[Side_Pce]

I too just recently installed a cooler kit on my own. Very similar install. Good work. I ended up not drilling into the body at all, utilized the front engine frame to mount the pump (weldon 9200a pump). I used Eaton/Aeroquip socketless fittings and socketless blue hose. Purchased 15' and used probably 10' to do the install.

Works great. Today I did a cruise and some testing went down. When I hit 180 degrees, turned it on and the temp went down to 160 within a minute. Very happy with the flow. I purchased a "painless performance" relay to wire the pump. Some wiring parts I picked up from lowes and auto zone were used as well. Drilled a hole in the panel next the steering wheel for the rocker switch. Has an LED light when turned on.

I used Amsoil ATF with the same specs as Tremec. Filling it was fun, when you can't "overfill" the transmission because it will pour out the fill hole if too much fluid is pumped in. I made a little mess.

 

[User5.2]

Excellent! I ended up turning the pump on most every highway commute this summer and so plan to put a switch in the same spot, also with an LED to indicate it is on.

I also changed out the differential oil, and it looked pretty bad after 9600 miles, 2 track events, and 1 autocross. I plan to add a differential cooler using the same approach next spring. I don't plan to add a differential temp monitor, I will just turn on the differential pump with the transmission pump.

 

[ducatismo]

You want the oil to flow through the cooler first, then the pump. This way the fluid hitting the pump is cool(er).

Sorry, I phrased my question wrong. It was more of a fitment concern. I was referring to the install procedure and whether it made a difference installing the cooler first and then the pump or do you have to install the pump first.

I am dropping the car off next week at a performance shop to get the plumbing done and I would like to install the pump and cooler myself beforehand to save some labor costs.

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