Rep Power: 812

Everyone knows by now that if you got stuck with an auto trans, you're gonna need a cooler for it to last over 100k miles. It is a very cheap mod and relatively simple to install.

Tools needed: just a tool set with sockets, screwdrivers, and pliars. Have a bottle of honda ATF fluid ready for the end.

1. Make sure your car is completely cold!! Start by removing your front bumper. This is outlined in another diy.

2. Once the bumper is off, take apart your new oil cooler. All you really need to install it is the actual cooler, some hose, and a few hose clamps (possibly sold separately). Take these out to your car.

3. Locate your auto trans cooler lines. These send fluid from the tranny through the radiator. This is NOT a real cooler. The civic hx actually has a separate oil cooler much like the one you just bought.

In this pic, you can see the two lines coming from the tranny. This area is to the right of the battery, where the big radiator hoses run through. Pull off the hose from the right side as shown. It should be held by a tension clamp that can be loosened by squeezing with pliars. A small amount of fluid spillage is common. Leave the left hose stock. Again, do not touch the left hose at all! It connects to the radiator somewhere on the left side.



4. Next you want to take the hose you disconnected from the right side tranny line and follow it to where it connects to the radiator. Disconnect this end and remove the stock hose completely. Lay it on the ground for later. Don't throw away! Remember the spot on the radiator where you pulled the hose off, for later.

5. Now you want to mount the actual cooler. What I did is very simple and has held up fine for over a year. What I did was loosen both upper mounts of the A/C condenser enough so that I could slide the cooler inbetween the condenser (front) and radiator (rear). Here is what you need to loosen.



6. Now just take the tranny cooler and shove it in carefully. There is only room if you slide it over to the left side. Check the pic. You can see the cooler installed here with hoses coming out each side already. Don't worry, that is the next step. Notice how the cooler is sandwiched between the radiator and condenser. mmmm sandwich drool.



7. Okay almost done! Grab some new hose that should have come with the new cooler. Go back to the open inlet on the radiator where you removed the stock hose. Connect one side of the new hose to the radiator inlet. Don't cut the new bulk hose yet! Once you connect one side to the radiator, you have to run it up and connect the other end to the right side inlet of your tranny cooler. Use common sense here and don't run the hose in the fan blade. I was able to run mine around the bottom and inbetween the two fans and finally connect it to the right side inlet of the cooler. You will need a hose clamp to secure the hose to the cooler. Also make sure the other end connected to the radiator is secure.

8. Now for the return hose to the tranny. Pick up the piece of stock hose you saved. Connect one end to the left inlet of the tranny cooler. Secure with hose clamp. Run the other end back to the tranny and hook it to the right side inlet (see first pic).

9. Done. You now have tranny oil flowing out to the radiator, then to the oil cooler, then back to the tranny.

10. Don't celebrate just yet. First you need to double check all hose connections to make sure they are tight. Go start the car and put it in D (drive gear) with the e-brake up. Go stand by the engine bay for at least a minute and check for any leaks around the hose connections. There is a risk of the car slipping off the brake and hitting you, so it would be great if someone else can sit in the car with foot on the brake so you don't have to worry.

11. Drive the car around the block (slowly) until operating temp is reached. Go back home and pop the hood. Leave the car running in D with e-brake up. Go check for leaks again. Turn off the car and immediately check the level of transmission fluid using the dipstick. You will need to add more fluid to compensate for the extra space in the cooler. Just fill until the level reaches the max line on the dipstick.

12. Yay now you are done finally! Enjoy the feeling of stepping on the gas without worrying if the tranny is dying. This mod is especially useful in the summer and if you go on long trips.



here are update pics.,

first is the mounted cooler, inbetween radiator and condenser. if you loosen condenser side bolt, it will open a bit and then you can stuff it in and tighten. its not too tight but hasnt fallen in years.



here are fluid send and return lines to the radiator for stock cooling. the left side stays stock. the right side comes off, disconnect it from the trans and the radiator on the right below (not shown).



now from the right side inlet, run a hose to one of the trans cooler inlets. optional: you can first connect the hose to an oem civic hx cvt trans fluid filter kit available from dealer. i chose to get the mounting hardware too which makes it easy to install. after the cooler, i have the line going into the cooler.



finally, run a line from the second port on the cooler down the fan and around to the radiator inlet, where the stock hose was originally plugged to. note, you need more hose than stock, altho you can reuse parts of the stock one for the install. the kit should come with extra hoses.

 
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good DIY as always. is this with the transmission fluid cooler that the site had for a group buy?

 
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No its with an old B&M I had bought a while back. Should be very similar except maybe the cooler looks different.

 
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excellent GEARBOX, i just recently bought a tranny cooler too. THANKS rep for u!

 
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yo gearBox.... just put in a B&M cooler and B&M trickshift synthetic, bout to go test it out in a few minutes...

i didn't need to remove the front bumper tho. had to loosen up the condenser and radiator clamp-down peices, but was able to snake the 4 zip-ties w/o needing to messin w/ the front bumper. pain in the *** for a few minutes on the hands but everything went on and flushed and filled in about 90 minutes

funny tho, B&M specifically says "don't use this with CVTs" but paul @ dezod (tech support paul, not owner paul) said it performs great and they've tested it out thoroughly, like 8 months on a turbo auto and says it performs great under every condition. might be a little quirky warming up, but once at temp suppose to do great stuff. i'll post after tonights testing myself.

 
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hey..

my automagic tranny wont last a logn time without a tranny cooler??
is that correct?

 
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correct. the new 01+ tranny is designed poorly and will fail much sooner due to excessive heat. a cooler is REQUIRED. As far as the cvt statement, those cars actually come with a separate oil cooler stock. so maybe they say that because adding a third cooler will divert too much fluid from the tranny.

 
Rep Power: 388

I just built mine up instead and ran red line fluid but great DIY

 
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whats a good brand of transmission coolers, cause i think im gonna get one

 
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I bought mine from NAPA auto parts. It was a napa brand, but made by hayden.

 
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ya thats the plan when my pos breaks down. and it will...

the brand of cooler doesn't matter too much but just keep in mind some are harder to fit than others.

 
Rep Power: 302

Uh.... Gearbox.... Putting the car in drive with the handbrake up and then standing outside looking for leaks is a really BAD idea. IF the handbrake slips.....
It's just a really BAD idea. Have someone sit in the car with a heavy foot on the brake, or just leave it in park. The transmissions pump is working anyway, so if it leaks, it will leak in park as well.

 
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but it doesn't get the fluid hot unless its in drive. okay bad idea I'll change that. i do it all the time tho.

 
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um negative captain. unless you don't know how to ebrake, you've got to be borderline clinically retarded to put the car in a situation where it rolls forward in D with the e-brake on. putting it in D with the e-brake on is EXACTLY a good idea, because it puts stress on the tranny, specifically by increasing the pressure of the transmission lines. if its gonna leak, better in that situation then 10 miles down the road.

 
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hes just being safe. i wouldn't want the car rolling on me and even if it missed rolling up the curb and messing up my lip since car is too low to clear. anything can happen with cars i've learned the hard way alot.

 
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Exactly. I just borrow a friend to sit in the car when I need to do that, or bleed the brakes. It's just better to be safe. The emergency brake should, BUT NOT ALWAYS WILL, hold the car while in drive.

Gents, LOL, I have a cracked wall on my garage to PROVE it.
I was young....

 
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reviving an old post...

but anyways Gearbox if you still have the pics to go with this diy can you post them up or email it to me? Just got one of these and wanna make sure Im using the correct hose

 
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i dont but sometime i can go look at how mine is installed and post new pic

 
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That would be excellent, I'm interested in this mod as well.

Did you use a cooler kinda like this?
http://www.bmracing.com/index.php?id...ubcat=&pid=382

 
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yea b&m supercooler idk which model but its a small one i wedged between radiator and condenser.

 
Rep Power: 247

any ideas where to put it if you have an intercooler riding shotgun? Can't mount it above it because the radiator won't get any sweet blowing action...

 
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Like said mount it between the rad and cond. Thats where i mounted mine and im boosted with a FMIC and NEVER have had a cooling issue.

 
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I was just looking through this as well wondering if the pics were still around. I would like to do this to my g/f's car.
Thanks!

 
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hmm true that. anybody got pics of the install?
and ill be getting a few of these http://www.dezod.com/pd_bm_super.cfm
is there anything else required for the install?
thanks

 
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Will the cooler in that link work with an 01 Civic EX?

 
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can n e one put up pics again??

 
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It should. its universal and its the smallest one i could find from b&m. just dont know if it comes with everything needed

 
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Cheaper and free shipping:
http://www.autoanything.com/coolers/65A3046A0A0.aspx

And it does come with pretty much everything you need. Mine just showed up yesterday so heres the parts included:
4 Hose Clamps
4ft of hose
Some brass fittings
foam insulator pads
Metal strapping, hardware, and zip ties for mounting

Now I just have to get some ATF and get to work!

 
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Please post back and let us know how it goes!

 
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ill try and take new pics in a week or so when i get back to my car