2016 SCrew | 5.0 | 3.55

I've been towing a 6000lb (that is loaded and scale verified) travel trailer for two summers now. All weights are in check, and below limits. Engine power is not a problem and most of the time the transmission temperature is good. Only when climbing long mountain grade of 6 - 8%+ will it get really hot, 115c (239f). That is peak temp and has never been there for more than a couple minutes. The engine temp is hot, but never above 105c (220f).

I also find that in cities on long hills with stop and go traffic it gets fairly hot with the torque converter doing overtime.

Yes, it is in tow/haul. I have tried using manual shifting and looking for the best speed that provides airflow but does not overwork the tranny. On these grades, I am using 3rd and sometimes 2nd, which I think really works the torque converter, which in turn creates a ton of heat.

I have the factory tow package with the additional tranny cooler. I can see the extra radiator in front of the main radiator. It is surprisingly small.

My questions are:

1) Would adding a second tranny radiator inline with the factory one have any significant effect on keeping the temperatures down?
2) Would it affect the performance of the main radiator as it would cut a little bit of airflow to it?

Thanks for your input.

 

Honestly, a transmission tune from 5Star may help you out a bit by keeping the TC locked up more. I can tell you that the shifting on their towing tune that I have on my truck is almost telepathic as far as always being in the right gear.

At least on the 2011-2014 ecoboost trucks you could stuff a larger cooler from the V10 Excursion in there. It litterally pops right in like its meant to be there and is almost double the size of the Max-Tow cooler on my 2014. I dont know if this would fit a 2016.

You may also look into the Raptor transcooler as I have heard that is larger than the regular trucks and is drop in as well.

 

Sorry I don't have any help for you on a second tranny cooler, but I have the same engine/rear end combo as you in my 17 Screw and have also seen temps in the 130-135*F range for short periods on 6-7% grades towing my 6300 lb TT, I was really stressing out about it until I read this thread:

https://www.f150forum.com/f2/anyone-...423720/index2/

Seems to me that keeping the truck in 3rd vs 2nd helps a bit for temps. I think we are fine as long as the analog gauge stays out of the red. I do plan on changing tranny fluid at 30K miles though.

 

Thats a great post.

One thing I will say is that I rarely(or maybe never) drop below 4th towing my 5500 lb TT at 70 mph. I dont think I have ever seen my transmission go above 210-212°F but my engine will get hot.

 

I have the same F150 as the OP only its a 2015. I do a lot of towing with my travel trailer, albeit it runs ~ 4,000lbs fully loaded. I know some others may disagree with this method but my inter-mountain towing trans temps typically run the coolest when NOT in tow/haul mode and using the manual selector (I live in the heart of the Colorado Rocky Mountains). On the flats I use "D" and maybe lockout 6th (6R80 trans). But on long mountain pass climbs/descents I use the manual trans selector to keep RPMs up around 3k and with enough speed to keep air flowing through trans/radiator coolers. Long climbs will find my trans temps ~ 210 or a little higher but seldom above 220. I also change my trans fluid every 65K miles - perhaps overkill but I'm a firm believer in clean fluids everywhere.

YMMV
Rich

 

I'd say this would be your best bet. Look for a larger trans cooler instead of a second one. Wonder if you could even wire up an electric fan that you could turn on manually when climbing.

 

Yes, but at a nominal level. The engine cooling system has a lot more reserve capacity then the transmission cooler and won't be effected to a degree that it would cause any problems. I added a rather large heat exchanger to the front of my radiator and noticed no significant differences in engine cooling. My situation is not apples to apples, but my heat exchanger is much larger than any transmission cooler you would use.

There are several stock replacement style aftermarket coolers that mount to the same bolt holes as stock but are much larger. Here is just one example.

 

Thanks for the example. That one is $400 and only 30% bigger than stock. Made me wonder what I could find. Found another thread on a different forum where the guy used the cooler from a V10 Excursion.