I was changing the cooling lines on my brother's IDI Ford pickup (with the C6) and noticed the fluid dripping out was looking kind of milky -- a bit like dark Pepto. Rats! I've been chasing a very slow cooling leak in this thing for a couple of months and I think I may have found it. Not sure if the picture really captures it. The fluid is also a bit darker as I poured it out of my not so clean Mityvac. Anyway, he doesn't want to spend $5-600 on a new copper radiator so I guess we're going to buy a big external transmission cooler and bypass the radiator. After doing a cooling line flush.
Coolant in C6 Transmission Fluid
- Thread starter ripcord
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It wont work. The C6 does not have a lockup converter. If you put on on, it will not handle the excess heat.
You will need to plumb in an external coolant cooler. Then after the coolant cooler, run it into a front air cooler in front of the A/C and radiator.
You will need to plumb in an external coolant cooler. Then after the coolant cooler, run it into a front air cooler in front of the A/C and radiator.
I've never even heard of an aftermarket coolant heat exchanger
Do you have an example of an aftermarket coolant heat exchanger like you suggest?
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I'm thinking that a transmission cooler is the "coolant cooler" that post #2 mentions. My 460/c6 uses a radiator and trans cooler (in front of the radiator and AC condensor) plumbed together.
"Early" isn't quite the way I'd phrase it. It's got a ton of heavy hauling miles on it. If it went out soon, it doesn't owe us anything, lol.
After talking with my brother, we decided to send out a sample for analysis. There's no evidence of oil in the coolant so maybe we caught it in time. The fluid hasn't looked like this long.
You can do what my brother does on his dirt track automatics-plumb in the biggest A/C condenser you can find as an ATF cooler, and put external electric fans on it (either thermostatically controlled or watch the ATF temp on a gauge & turn them on). I wonder if Spectra makes an all-aluminum racing style radiator for it? They make (made?) one for the IDI F-450 in my sig.
If a copper/brass (old style) radiator bring it to a radiator shop to be repaired.
Send out the ATF for a UOA to be sure its
^^^ This^^^ Clutch and band materials are quickly damaged by coolant.
I'm pretty sure he meant transmission fluid heat exchanger.
A quick Duckduckgo search yielded these, but there's lots of other online and brick/mortar stores that have them:
https://www.jegs.com/p/JEGS/JEGS-High-Performance-Transmission-Coolers/1032940/10002/-1
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