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Towing temps?

BulldogsCadillac

BulldogsCadillac

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Just wondering from other members that tow to and from the lake(preferably with a few good hills to compare closer) , what kind of transmission temps are you getting?  I think I may be in need of a tranny flush, and maybe a coolant flush. Wondering if I have some contaminants or something. The past couple years, whenever I'm towing to the lake, there are a couple of pretty steep, long hills. I find my engine starts to overheat, as in it goes past the halfway mark, which it never does ordinarily. So I throw on the heat and roll down the windows and it starts to drop, then it seems to be good. Oh yeah, I'm towing with a 2010 Escalade 6.2L. Now I've never had a warning or light come on, for either the engine or tranny, but I don't know what is an okay temp for the tranny? Today it climbed up to 100C but then the terrain leveled out a bit and not so hard and it starts to slowly drop, by the time I got to the lake it was down to 84C, but had even hit 79C. When I had finished covering the boat and cleaning and engine was all back to cool/normal, I did some running around and it was at 76C. I looked all around trying to find what "normal operating conditions" were, but couldn't find anything. Oh and the temperature today was 32C, but felt like 38C because of humidity. Any help is appreciated! 
 
Oh, you Canadians and your metrics.  I've never known any OEM gauges on a modern car to be really accurate on temperatures. 

But with extreme temperatures of where you live, it wouldn't hurt to change the thermostat, thermostat housing and coolant.  And while you're at it, I'd suggest adding a TruCool or B&M auxiliary transmission cooler--about $150.  It could be the best money you could ever spend insuring your tranny will last longer.  Every tow vehicle needs one.

You don't want your tranny to go over 100 degrees C for any period of time.  It's heat that is the biggest killer of transmissions.
 
Speak english, Derrick!  ;)  Reminds me of the trip we took last month when we brought a german with us. I think I halfway understood the metric system by the end. Totally gone now. 

Sorry, I'm no help with the towing temps, but now I'm going to pay attention next time. 
 
I think mine gets to 82 C
 
Hey, don't blame me for being born this side of the border!! :D besides, you can just tell me in F and I can figure it out, or rather my little Convertinator App can!

I'm almost positive the Escalade already has an auxiliary tranny cooler, I'll have to double check that. It's weird though, it almost acts as if it needs to overheat and then it will kick in and start working. Do you think a flush will be beneficial? It has 120k km's, about 75k miles for the jokers(!), also wonder if I'm better off at a Chevy dealership, or go to a private guy? 

Oh, and 100C is around 218F, seems pretty dang hot to me! Thanks everyone! 
 
218* sounds hot. I remember when I towed to NC, I peaked at 205* on the steep uphill mountain passes. My normal temps run in the 180-190 range. I also have an auxiliary transmission cooler.

P.S. For fear of a Lakeliving response, I avoided a "how hot my tranny gets" statement.
 
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Flushing the system will not fix an over heating issue. Your radiator could be partially plugged but flushing it very rarely makes a difference.  I taught advanced engine performance and diagnostics so I have some experience with this  :D Do you have a secondary fan for the trans cooler?  Im assuming you are using the Tow/Haul mode?  I have the same engine and trans setup you have in my 2011 1/2ton 4x4. High humidity also affects the cooling efficiency of your radiator and trans cooler.
 
spinzone said:
218* sounds hot. I remember when I towed to NC, I peaked at 205* on the steep uphill mountain passes. My normal temps run in the 180-190 range. I also have an auxiliary transmission cooler.

P.S. For fear of a Lakeliving response, I avoided a "how hot my tranny gets" statement.
Click to expand...
Funny, I was going to title this, "I think my tranny is hot" but thought this had a better chance of getting answers! Haha 

Yeah, 180-190 I'm fine with, just hate seeing it creep up to that 200 mark!
 
JIm_Andrea said:
Flushing the system will not fix an over heating issue. Your radiator could be partially plugged but flushing it very rarely makes a difference.  I taught advanced engine performance and diagnostics so I have some experience with this  :D Do you have a secondary fan for the trans cooler?  Im assuming you are using the Tow/Haul mode?  I have the same engine and trans setup you have in my 2011 1/2ton 4x4. High humidity also affects the cooling efficiency of your radiator and trans cooler.
Click to expand...
Thanks for the response Jim! I have whatever that great factory put on there! :D Yes I use the tow/haul mode. Any other advice you have, I am all ears!! We had been thinking about getting a new vehicle, but now am leaning towards just trying to pay down some debt so I can actually afford my boat! I do like that new Caddy though, but would probably have to wait for a used one as that's a lot of cash for me, well for anyone really, but me especially!  I do really like the Infiniti QX80 as well, but closest dealer is almost 4 hours away and not sure I want that hassle again. So figure I should just fix what's wrong.

I think I still need to change my power steering pump and my outer CV boot apparently has a tear in it, so might change the whole thing as I'm not sure how long it's been torn. Thing that sucks about the PS pump is my mechanic isn't sure if that's the problem. I had a pin hole leak in the hose a while back, I thought I caught it in time since when I filled it back up with fluid it seemed quiet again and then after they changed the hose, it got noisy again. They said it was the return line or something. All I know is that it kind of seems if I give it a little gas and get the rpms up a little it seems to work better. I guess it has to be either the pump or the rack, and the pump is cheaper, so I'll start there!
 
Are you taking it out of "overdrive" to tow?
 
SEMPERFI8387 said:
Are you taking it out of "overdrive" to tow?
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There is no overdrive, there is "D" and "M" for manual shift. But I do use my tow/haul mode, which essentially changes my shift points and I never make it to the final gear ratio, which would be overdrive. 
 
Oh yeah .... Duh, I forgot the tow mode.
 
Just for kicks, try manual mode, and drop a few prior to beginning the ascent.

I've driven a few 6.2's and while it is a great mill, it loves RPM and the trans will hunt 'til hell won't have it.

The gear hunting makes heat FAST.

I would guess that you are seeing high temps descending also?

Engine breaking makes tranny heat fast as well.
 
All vehicles will have a tranny cooler, and it's usually the bottom third of their radiator.  What I'm talking about is an auxiliary cooler to that.  They'll drop your tranny temps something like 50 degrees.  To install them, you just make one cut in the return line to the tranny and splice a tube into each end of the hose and secure it with clamps.  The cooler mounts in front of the radiator.  It took me just a few minutes to install one on my F250 diesel.

I've never placed faith in the temperatures on the dash.  You might want to find a good independent mechanic that has a diagnostic system that can plug into your OBDII port and double check the real temperatures of your engine and transmission.  The penalty for not dealing with such an issue can be expensive.
 
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Anything over 195* F, you need to change your tranny fluid. I have the Ford F250 with the 7.3 Power Stroke Turbo. I have full gauges on mine sine I pull our 33' 5th wheel in the mountains. Mine regularly runs at around 130* F, but when getting into the mountains or poking around in heavy traffic, it can rise quickly. When it hits the 190* area, I pull over somewhere and allow it to cool.
 
BulldogsCadillac said:
Thanks for the response Jim! I have whatever that great factory put on there! :D Yes I use the tow/haul mode. Any other advice you have, I am all ears!! We had been thinking about getting a new vehicle, but now am leaning towards just trying to pay down some debt so I can actually afford my boat! I do like that new Caddy though, but would probably have to wait for a used one as that's a lot of cash for me, well for anyone really, but me especially!  I do really like the Infiniti QX80 as well, but closest dealer is almost 4 hours away and not sure I want that hassle again. So figure I should just fix what's wrong.

I think I still need to change my power steering pump and my outer CV boot apparently has a tear in it, so might change the whole thing as I'm not sure how long it's been torn. Thing that sucks about the PS pump is my mechanic isn't sure if that's the problem. I had a pin hole leak in the hose a while back, I thought I caught it in time since when I filled it back up with fluid it seemed quiet again and then after they changed the hose, it got noisy again. They said it was the return line or something. All I know is that it kind of seems if I give it a little gas and get the rpms up a little it seems to work better. I guess it has to be either the pump or the rack, and the pump is cheaper, so I'll start there!
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How many miles do you have on it?  What grade fuel are you running?  There is a big debate on what grade fuel the 6.2 uses.  I notice huge performance changes with 91 vs 87 even though they say you can run 87.  I especially see it when towing heavy loads.  The engine tends to bog down and my trans shifts funny.  Trans shifting is directly related to Load, RPM and vehicle speed.  IF the engine is lugging because of improper fuel grade the computer doest really know that and it can hold the trans in the wrong gear to long.  As far as you PS problem id let it go till it dies, then you know for sure what the problem is  :p   
 
Most all tranny oil is synthetic or a blend and is more than capable of running 230-250*f safely but if higher than that for an extended period would warrant a fluid change. Don't buy into the gauges on the dash they are about the most inaccurate things on the planet, nothing more than indicators, I have add on OBDII gauge tuners on most of my vehicles and while in normal operating temps on the dash gauge can be a 40* difference on the actual readings.

If you did not see any warning lites don't worry about it, they are set to alarm before danger zone temps set in to let you slow down or cool down before damage occurs.
 
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Wild and Free said:
Most all tranny oil is synthetic or a blend and is more than capable of running 230-250*f safely but if higher than that for an extended period would warrant a fluid change. Don't buy into the gauges on the dash they are about the most inaccurate things on the planet, nothing more than indicators, I have add on OBDII gauge tuners on most of my vehicles and while in normal operating temps on the dash gauge can be a 40* difference on the actual readings.

If you did not see any warning lites don't worry about it, they are set to alarm before danger zone temps set in to let you slow down or cool down before damage occurs.
Click to expand...

I agree with Wild and Free on the dash gauges. I wouldn't trust them as far as I could toss them. I installed a pod mounted system with three gauges, Pyrometer, Trans Temp, and Turbo Boost.
 
Bill N said:
Just for kicks, try manual mode, and drop a few prior to beginning the ascent.

I've driven a few 6.2's and while it is a great mill, it loves RPM and the trans will hunt 'til hell won't have it.

The gear hunting makes heat FAST.

I would guess that you are seeing high temps descending also?

Engine breaking makes tranny heat fast as well.
Click to expand...
I sometimes kick off the tow mode going down a hill. It's not bad when it kicks down 1 gear, but when she kicks the revs up to 45-4700, it scares the crap outta me!!! So then I do a brake pump, release, brake pump, release etc.

JIm_Andrea said:
How many miles do you have on it?  What grade fuel are you running?  There is a big debate on what grade fuel the 6.2 uses.  I notice huge performance changes with 91 vs 87 even though they say you can run 87.  I especially see it when towing heavy loads.  The engine tends to bog down and my trans shifts funny.  Trans shifting is directly related to Load, RPM and vehicle speed.  IF the engine is lugging because of improper fuel grade the computer doest really know that and it can hold the trans in the wrong gear to long.  As far as you PS problem id let it go till it dies, then you know for sure what the problem is  :p   
Click to expand...
I do usually run 87, I guess it would be a good test to try 91 if I know I'm towing. Worth a shot. I haven't really noticed the tranny searching for gears, well yesterday I did notice it was bogged a little on the first hill because I was behind a slow poke. The speed limit through the park all the way to the launch is only 80km/h (about 50mph) , I find the truck seems happiest usually around 86-88, I think that's about 53-55ish? As for the PS, I just don't want it to go while the wife is driving!  She's always had PS and the yelling I may hear scares me!! Haha, plus someone told me that when the PS goes it is actually harder to steer than my old 1974 Coronet Custom!  And excuse my ignorance, but can that cause any issue to the rack if it crapped out and I still had to drive it? Thanks!

Wild and Free said:
Most all tranny oil is synthetic or a blend and is more than capable of running 230-250*f safely but if higher than that for an extended period would warrant a fluid change. Don't buy into the gauges on the dash they are about the most inaccurate things on the planet, nothing more than indicators, I have add on OBDII gauge tuners on most of my vehicles and while in normal operating temps on the dash gauge can be a 40* difference on the actual readings.

If you did not see any warning lites don't worry about it, they are set to alarm before danger zone temps set in to let you slow down or cool down before damage occurs.
Click to expand...

Bamaman said:
All vehicles will have a tranny cooler, and it's usually the bottom third of their radiator.  What I'm talking about is an auxiliary cooler to that.  They'll drop your tranny temps something like 50 degrees.  To install them, you just make one cut in the return line to the tranny and splice a tube into each end of the hose and secure it with clamps.  The cooler mounts in front of the radiator.  It took me just a few minutes to install one on my F250 diesel.

I've never placed faith in the temperatures on the dash.  You might want to find a good independent mechanic that has a diagnostic system that can plug into your OBDII port and double check the real temperatures of your engine and transmission.  The penalty for not dealing with such an issue can be expensive.
Click to expand...
Thanks for your help,  just as a question, why would the digital numerical readout of the tranny temp be different than what the OBD says? Isn't that where my information cluster would get the info? I will have to take a look under there and see if there is an auxiliary cooler, for some reason I thought I had read that somewhere, but I could easily be mistaken!!

Once again, I really appreciate everyone's info and comments, I am not the most mechanically inclined person, I do a lot of research and asking questions when it comes to it! I believe we are going to be keeping this vehicle for at least another year, but the wife is the one saying if it's going to keep costing us money we should buy a new one. I just want to get some breathing room in our debt so we can get what we actually want, or rather, what I want! Haha
 
D, I snapped this pic for you running on the interstate. Normal temp, not towing anything. 218* wouldn't scare me.


 
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