Towing...and trying to clear a few things up...

[MikeWorcester]

So I've been reading a lot of threads about towing, tranny coolers, shift mods, etc. I have a few questions and am hoping to gather them into one place while picking some brains.

I tow in the mountains west of Denver. I have a pop-up camper weighing about 2500 lbs. +/- and have not had any problems other than being used to a Dodge Ram/Cummins Turbo Diesel for towing. I like the TB, but want to make sure I'm not hurting it. Let me get to the point...

What shift mods are available and which ones are the best?

Does anyone know of a pillar mount gauge pod for the TB?

Can you run an external tranny cooler in line from the radiator to the return, or do you have to run new/more lines?

Is there one cooler that is better?

Did anyone put in a tranny temp gauge? What's the temp normal/high limits?

I know this is a lot of questions, but I guess the more I read, the more that came to me and the more worried I got about what I've been doing to the TBaby!

Thanks for the info and the place to vent! :rolleyes:

[Rob]

Your TB should have no problem towing that trailer at all. When I was a tranny mechanic we would install coolers and shift kits on tow vehicles all the time. I recently installed a Hayden stacked plate type cooler in mine. You want the fluid to flow from the transmission then to the cooler, and then back to the transmission. It's simple to splice the cooler lines into the existing lines, you just have to figure out which way the fluid is flowing. The stacked plate types are supposed to be more efficient than the tube and fin type. I just installed the biggest one I could fit in front of the radiator - 9"x11" in think. You want the shift to be firm and quick, but not harsh. I'm not sure if there is a shift kit available for the 2003 and up 4L60E yet. I think the computer controlled shifting makes it a little trickier. I've also hear of some folks replacing a servo with a Corvette model to improve the shift, but I've not done that.

[gmcman]

I've been searching for a pillar mount also when I find one I will let you all know.

[Dave]

2500 lbs is well within the TB/EN limits although the mountains near Denver are pretty steep and high altitute.

Besides the normal severe maintenance stuff, I don't know if you need to do anything else. Also using the lower gears going down hill would save the brakes (an issue on some TB/EN) and using them going up would prevent the tranny from shifting often.

Now if you said 5-6000 lbs, I would be more concerned. Even that first hill out of Denver on I 70 would test any one towing anything.

[Bo185]

I hope he doesn't have 3.42's!