trans temp

[PMcCall]

This weekend the wife and I decided to drive to the beach on saturday (dumb idea spent most of the day in traffic!). We were pretty much stuck for about 30 mins at one point and I noticed my transmission was up to 190 degrees, I have never seen it get that hot before. The engine was also up to around 210-215. At one point I also smelled a burning metal smell, not sure if it was my ram or someone else. We were sitting for a while, maybe the DPF did a regen, I remember seeing that you will get that burnt metal smell from a regen. Anywho, it quickly went away when we got past the trafic jam, and the engine started cooling down once I got moving again.

I have 2 questoins... 1) Is this normal after running for ~3 hours then being stuck in traffic? Once we got to the beach, we parked and I let her run till the trans fluid temp was down to 175 then shut her off. She was back to normal on the ride home. I was thinking about investing in a mag-hytec replacement pan for the trans at some point, 2) will this void/cause any issues with the warranty?

 

[jacknife]

In stop and go traffic those are pretty much normal temps. Your engine coolant is 215 -220your transmission is going to get warmer because very little air is moving thru the cooler. You engine probably has a 210 thermostadt which will probably show 215 when cooling down after
fan kicks in. I have a 15 liter engine and it has a 210 deg thermostadt. You are ok.

 

[RustyJC]

When towing our 5th wheel, I've seen transmission temperatures of 215 degF in sustained 1st gear work up the side of a mountain with the torque converter unlocked. It routinely runs 195-205 degF in stop-and-go conditions when towing. At sustained speeds of 65 MPH with the torque converter locked, it will drop to 172 degF (160 degF when not towing). 190 degF is nothing to worry about.

Rusty

 

[JLandry]

We were pretty much stuck for about 30 mins at one point and I noticed my transmission was up to 190 degrees, I have never seen it get that hot before.

The owner's manual suggests shifting the transmission into neutral when stopped in city traffic to reduce the chance of overheating.

1) Is this normal after running for ~3 hours then being stuck in traffic?

Under the circumstances, it seems reasonable.

I was thinking about investing in a mag-hytec replacement pan for the trans at some point, will this void/cause any issues with the warranty?

Unless it somehow results in damage to the transmission (very unlikely if installed properly), it won't affect the warranty.

Best regards,

John L.

 

[Wertles]

Perfectly normal. I've been towing heavy the last two weeks and 170 cruising and 194 was the max I had in sustained stop and go traffic. I was quite impressed that it wasn't 230-250. I think we are all spoiled at how well these things keep themselves cool that anything over the idle temperatures and we get worried.

What was even more impressive was going uphill at 72 mph in 5th gear, the electric fan would kick on and the engine coolant temp would drop to 185.

 

[Larry Willard]

In my '08 those were my normal temps in those conditions. In stop and go traffic towing the 5er it would easily climb above that. More than once I put it in neutral but it never seemed to drop the temps much. In '13 with the Aisin the temp has never gone over 190.
Larry

 

[PMcCall]

Thanks for the feedback, I was a bit concerned as I havent ever seen the trans temp go above 168. So what is the high end of the normal operating temp range for a trans before there is a concern?

 

[transe]

Personally, I would start getting concerned (keep a close eye on it) when the trans sump temp hits 220°F, and then pull over and let it cool down if it hits 240°F. Actually, running at the these temps (or even higher) for brief periods (a few minutes) will not instantly kill your transmission, but I would not want to run in the 230°F+ range for extended periods. So brief spikes are OK, but don't drive it for 30 minutes straight at these temps.

 

[Bug Out]

DO NOT INSTALL A MAG HYTEC ON YOUR TRUCK!!!!!!!!! I bought a Mag hytec trans pan BEFORE i bought the truck thinking the 2500's of 2012 only had one transmission cooler, so would the 2013's. In 2013 and up they went with 2 trans coolers, from what I read. I did extensive temp checks before I installed the trans pan, and after I installed the pan and absolutely NO DIFFERENCE in running temps, etc. I put it on only because I had it anyway and would have lost $ by selling it.

If your dead set on installing one, I'll sell you mine for a good price. Other then looking good and costing me $30+ more in oil( more oil in pan) at fluid changes, did no good at all.

Same goes for rear end cover. Temps towing before MAg hytec installed, 160-185. Same temps with mag hytec.

 

[Cummins12V98]

If I were to choose one over the other I would still get the rear diff cover because it nearly doubles the fluid capacity. At 28K combined and 3:42 gears I think it was worth the money. I also have the trans pan.

 

[KYOUNG]

I just got done with 2200 mile vacation to Lake Superior and back. I had just changed transmission oil and aded the Mag Hytec pan to my truck. Most of the time I pulled 70 73mph in 4th and 5th gears and transmission rarely got over 175 going up, but coming home bucked ahead wind all the way home and saw 190 -200, plus it was 95 degrees at home. The truck was flawless other than clunky front end!