trans cooler heat

[wideopen231]

 Have seen some of the guys with coolers mounted above trans. Wondering how much heat it adds to cockpit.

Was thinking about mounting one out front,One hate look.Two  lots of plumbing to get there which adds weight and more chance of leak causing me to be shut down or worse wad car up.

[Calkins]

Personally, I would never mount a transmission cooler inside of the cockpit.  I think that is not allowed in a door car.  Just think if it burst, or a line broke.  I have seen plenty mounted out front.  I have also seen them mounted behind the seat, under the parachute.  I think that is the safest location for it.

[BK]

Ya, I don't think the cockpit is a good idea either that's a RED thing. I'm pretty sure the heat would be next to unbearable.
When I bracket raced mine on a 80+ degree day you wanted your firesuit on after the third round because the cockpit was so hot just from making laps. I would put a fan in there and cool it down the best I could.
I had an extruded aluminum cooler mounted on the frame just ahead of the starter. No fan on it but I wasn't on the converter very long because of the SLE.

[masracingtd1167]

Chris do you really even need a cooler ? I took mine off a long time ago . If I need to I put a fan on mine !

[JrFuel Hayden]

I agree with Bill, why do you think you need a trans cooler at all ?
I see very few FED dragsters with coolers, SuperComp with over 50 cars when they run round robin, yes, but nostaliga dragsters don't run round robin.
No JrFuel teams run coolers, or NE-1-2-3, OR 7.0 Pro.
It's just extra weight and makes it simple , and they allow us enough time between rounds to allow the trans to cool.
Only once in 15 years did we even put a fan on the trans, it was in Vegas GoodGuys race where it was 120+° air temp.

Good Luck with your combo.
Jon

[wideopen231]

After weekend at Big Money race watching guys dbl enter and go 9 rounds of racing .Some where still dbl at 8 cars. So Hot lapping is not even word for it. I can see where excessive heat in everything could be issue.. Cooling motor I can handle with fuel system and richening valve I have plumbed it. I have quick oil change deal setup also that I could use in earlier rounds say mid way thru.

Now running event where plenty of time to let it cool or throw fan on it between rounds as I could during early rounds,no its not needed. Regardless what lts think this car is going to go rounds when run at bracket races. Mainly because I am determined ( wife calls stubborn) and there is really no good reason a FED can't be just as consistent as RED with cushy ride. Main reason for build other than FED's are Bada$$ , was to run in brackets and win while doing so. Covering all bases for consistency and temps is part of it. Going to need .00_ to .01_ package to win races,just the hard facts.

So in jut shell Do I have to have it? Probably not for while. Is there chance it could help keep trans temps consistent and that help win yes. WIth items I have it cost about 50 bucks(about 1/2 of nice dinner out for us). Plus its not holding anything else up while waiting to get stuff for trailer build. Ok it is adding weight but very little.

[THE FRENCHTOWN FLYER]

Yes - I think one is useful for bracket racing.

No - I do not think it should be inside the cockpit.

[wideopen231]

reading thru cpl or your post. I think I am going with fan under bell housing that will blow around converter and run it after run for initial runs and see how much heat trans builds. I have temp sensor in pan and one in trans at high pressure tap that I can switch back and fourth to and see how much heat and what difference is. If looks like cooler is a diffinet need I have everything sitting here and ready to pop in. Figure cpl test and tune sessions and trying to get as many runs as can will be good indicator.