Transmission Cooler

Years ago I put an aftermarket B&M trans cooler on my truck. I pulled it off when I pulled my condenser as I'm re-doing my AC. I think it's probably time to change out the trans cooler, current unit showing some corrosion. Looking for recommendations for a replacement before I order a like unit. Thanks!

Im actually looking at two different transmission coolers for my truck if I need it, I wont know till I finish my engine and install a new transmission then I will be checking the temp.

Coolers I am looking at are both Derale plate & fin type which is more efficient than traditional round tube.

Part # 13611 : 5 row 9000 series plate & fin cooler 1/2" NPT, GVW 16,000, BTU 12,500, Width 9 3/4" x Height 4 1/8" x Depth 1 1/4"

Part # 13612 : 9 row 9000 series plate & fin cooler 1/2" NPT, GVW 18,000, BTU 14,000, Width 9 3/4" x Height 6 1/4" x Depth 1 1/4"

Another thing I like about these is you can install 1/2" NPT to AN.  Thats what I will be doing if I need the cooler and will be bending a stainless steel hardline from the radiator to the cooler then from the auxiliary cooler to the OE line.

Rusty_S85 wrote

Im actually looking at two different transmission coolers for my truck if I need it, I wont know till I finish my engine and install a new transmission then I will be checking the temp.

Coolers I am looking at are both Derale plate & fin type which is more efficient than traditional round tube.

Part # 13611 : 5 row 9000 series plate & fin cooler 1/2" NPT, GVW 16,000, BTU 12,500, Width 9 3/4" x Height 4 1/8" x Depth 1 1/4"

Part # 13612 : 9 row 9000 series plate & fin cooler 1/2" NPT, GVW 18,000, BTU 14,000, Width 9 3/4" x Height 6 1/4" x Depth 1 1/4"

Another thing I like about these is you can install 1/2" NPT to AN.  Thats what I will be doing if I need the cooler and will be bending a stainless steel hardline from the radiator to the cooler then from the auxiliary cooler to the OE line.

I've been doing some home work and will be replacing my old tube and fin unit with a plate and fin unit, for the reason you stated above. Funny, I've been looking at those same Derale units myself along with a couple of Hayden units and can't seem to make a decision. The Derale coolers are Chinese while the Hayden coolers are supposedly Australian.  Thanks for the response!

According to the tech at Derale all their coolers have AN fittings.  And those fittings add up, so if you find a cooler that matches what fittings you have you might let that influence your decision.

Gary Lewis wrote

According to the tech at Derale all their coolers have AN fittings.  And those fittings add up, so if you find a cooler that matches what fittings you have you might let that influence your decision.

According to Derale`s website they all are NPT pipe fittings but they come with the NPT fittings, most come with a 1/2" NPT to 3/8" barb adapter for the Series 9000 and 9500 plate & fin coolers.  If you go with the Series 8,000 plate and fin cooler they have built in 11/32" hose barbs that you cant remove.  I wonder if the tech was misinformed or if the website is incorrect.

This is why I personally am looking at the Series 9000 as its not oversized for our trucks.  The series 9500 only comes in a 13 row plate and fin design and its rated at 34,000 GVW.  I dont think any one of our trucks fit that size.  If I remember right Derale states to take your GVW and double it and thats the size you need.  If that is correct then that means my 5,250 GVW truck would need a cooler size of 10,500 GVW.  The smaller 5 row Series 9000 plate and fin cooler is 16,000 which I think would be ideal but I really am leaning towards the 9 row as its not that much bigger and more cooling capacity is never a bad thing with in reason.

On the AN fittings, they can be quite pricy, its why most people use the hose barb fittings and run the included rubber hose as its cheaper.

Me I have a bunch of 3/8" stainless steel coil tubing for my EFI project and I can always use the left over to bend a hardline from radiator to the auxilary cooler and from the cooler to the transmission line.

You dont have to run AN though either, you can buy a 1/2 NPT to 3/8 inverted flare adapter and run traditional flares.  I plan on using traditional flare at the radiator and traditional flare at the transmission line for the union but at the cooler I will flare it AN which will require just two AN tubing nuts and two AN tubing nut sleeves and two 1/2" npt to -6AN fittings.

Still you are right AN fittings are pricy.  Regular flare will work just fine the only benefit for AN is supposedly you dont have to tighten them as tight as double flare to get a high pressure leak free seal.

Machspeed wrote

Rusty_S85 wrote

Im actually looking at two different transmission coolers for my truck if I need it, I wont know till I finish my engine and install a new transmission then I will be checking the temp.

Coolers I am looking at are both Derale plate & fin type which is more efficient than traditional round tube.

Part # 13611 : 5 row 9000 series plate & fin cooler 1/2" NPT, GVW 16,000, BTU 12,500, Width 9 3/4" x Height 4 1/8" x Depth 1 1/4"

Part # 13612 : 9 row 9000 series plate & fin cooler 1/2" NPT, GVW 18,000, BTU 14,000, Width 9 3/4" x Height 6 1/4" x Depth 1 1/4"

Another thing I like about these is you can install 1/2" NPT to AN.  Thats what I will be doing if I need the cooler and will be bending a stainless steel hardline from the radiator to the cooler then from the auxiliary cooler to the OE line.

I've been doing some home work and will be replacing my old tube and fin unit with a plate and fin unit, for the reason you stated above. Funny, I've been looking at those same Derale units myself along with a couple of Hayden units and can't seem to make a decision. The Derale coolers are Chinese while the Hayden coolers are supposedly Australian.  Thanks for the response!

I didnt know the Derale coolers are chinese made.  I will have to look into that.  I was mainly looking for a cooler that was compact.  My truck is dealer AC and the AC condenser mounts only on the passenger side half of the opening infront of the radiator.  My goal if I do run an Auxiliary cooler was to mount it in the open space on the driverside half of the opening infront of the radiator by using brackets off the core support.  I dont like those through the radiator push pins to mount coolers.  They work but they are such a pita when you have to pull the radiator or replace the radiator.

Also keep in mind you dont have to do AN on the cooler.  You can buy inverted flare adapters to bend hardline and flare it with a double flare.  Only thing I like about AN is they just dont seem to be as leak prone as inverted flare.  I am looking forward to see if that is true with annealed stainless steel tubing though, I know with double flare you have to crank them down as tight as you can loosen them up and crank them down again multiple times to get the double flare to seat properly and seal.