Let’s talk transmission temps

[swathdiver]

The truck is AWD, I check the fluid regularly and still has good color and doesn't smell burnt. Last year was the first year of towing. This will be the second year and it will be going from Illinois to Missouri once then only be towed again if I need to move it.

My fluid was about 2 and half years old and had about a week of towing on it in mostly low speed city driving. At 36K miles I sent off a sample to Blackstone Labs and they reported back that the fluid had only about 10K of life left in it. It was still cherry red if memory serves.

 

[Rocket Man]

That’s pretty good I can only get about 3 1/2 quarts swapped through my tube. Also saw on a video that @Rocket Man posted that the oil level inside the pan should be at the gasket mating surface and that most factory dipsticks full marks are wrong. So they say anybody who drops a pan check that full mark location and fix it while the pan is off.

Interesting. I take the oil right to the top of the fill line when the temp is 190. I know anywhere is ok within the checkered area but it’s my OCD I guess.


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I just changed my filter and checked the dipstick hash marks at the same time. As far as I can tell it looks pretty close, top of the hash mark appears to be at the gasket line although it’s hard to tell because the seal for the dipstick hangs down so I couldn’t get a clear sight line. But I always run a quart or two over the hot line just to be sure. There’s plenty of room to run that much over.

 

[avalonandl]

Temps up to 230 are fine with the newer Dexron 6. Remember your engine temp is set to run 205. My temps ran to 220 when I was towing the 35' Donzi. It was a warm day.

 

[Foggy]

Your Temps are just fine.. Don't be alarmed at all
It Would be a good idea to make sure you have a fresh service on
the transmission before towing season - Drop the pan and change the filter,
Clean the pan & Magnet. Fill with Dex VI - and one bottle of LubeGard Red Trans
additive.
Change out your coolant as well. DexCool (or any other) is only really good for
about 2 ish years... So make sure your fluids are fresh and clean.
Your Temps might drop a few degrees.. But if they don't- drive ON - It's fine

 

[swathdiver]

Temps up to 230 are fine with the newer Dexron 6. Remember your engine temp is set to run 205. My temps ran to 220 when I was towing the 35' Donzi. It was a warm day.

See post #290 here: https://www.tahoeyukonforum.com/threads/useless-information.97483/page-29

 

[intheburbs]

 

[Rocket Man]

View attachment 272912

240 is not good. 220-230 is ok. Tru Cool 40k is what I would be looking at.

 

[intheburbs]

240 is not good. 220-230 is ok. Tru Cool 40k is what I would be looking at.

This was truly THE worst case. Running the Ike Gauntlet, at 16,300 lbs. Silverthorne to the Eisenhower Tunnel, cresting at over 11,000 feet in altitude.

I just like sharing this pic to make heads explode. Original trans, 207k miles, 30k at max GCWR. Stock coolers.

 

[dougo]

I believe more often is better with that said if you buy your fluid at Rock auto 4.10 qt plus shipping or catch it on sale its really cheap compare to repairs, if you use a vacuum bottle to suck it out of the dipstick tube its real easy , I have an 06 so i can`t see my temp so at the end of the summer i change my fluid depending of cash flow and sales some times just what i suck out of the pan or some times i do it twice with a 1 minute run time to circulate the fluid,

 

[JoeK]

I have a 2009 Yukon Denali XL that I tow our boat with. Boat is 3600lbs dry and trailer is roughly 1500lbs so I am at 5100lbs. My normal trans temps with no boat or trailer are usually around 160-170 degrees F in the summer. I have noticed when towing the temps are obviously higher. I am usually around 190-200 Degrees when towing in the summer. I am in Illinois so roads a relatively flat and I tow about 30 miles each way on the weekends. There have been a few times trans temps have gone up around 205-210 Degrees F. They usually come back down over time but is there anything I need to be worried about?

My other concern is I am going to be towing from Illinois to Missouri roughly 450 miles, in May. The Yukon does have the external trans cooler, but it looks small. Should I look into a larger cooler?

Should I look at draining the trans fluid and swapping with something different?

Thanks for the help

I towed my 5300lb dry weight boat all of last year and also taken it to Branson with no issues. I had concerns about my temp as well but on the highway it never went over 200.