eric_t

yeah...thought i made that point before (when i asked questions before towing). the car did better towing that than my f150 5.0 with a 7000lb boat trailer. got better gas mileage doing it, too. lol

Engine temp never went higher than normal. I stopped often enough for fuel that I could feel out the car in acceleration and deceleration, gear change harshness, etc.. fluid looked exactly the same after the trip as before the trip. (overheating would have caused the fluid to "burn" and discolor) I drove I-80 across.

 

Towing has a LOT to do with the driver.. I knew i'd be okay towing, guess I just freaked out since i'd never towed with a CAR before. It's still almost a brand new car, I mean 20k miles on a 2009 3.0R.

I ended up pulling the trigger on some Derale stuff.. cooler and thermostat. Next question: Should I just bypass the radiator for cooling? Seems like a lot of added length to the cooling system if I keep it in the loop.. I'm assuming there's some type of trans oil pump, won't the added length of hose put more stress on that? Thoughts?

 

Following up for FYI and anyone that may have been wondering..

 

I ended up not installing a cooler or doing a flush/fluid change of any kind.. The only thing i did was add a hitch and pulled the trailer. I had 800lbs of people, pets, and stuff in the car and the trailer weighed ~3500lbs (a lot more than expected), i pulled it 3300 miles in 4th gear, rarely did the car hunt for 3rd. It never overheated and did spectacular at 70mph. On the whole trip I averaged 16mpg (mileage/fuel calculation). I anticipated hills, stopping, slowing, and even ran the car hard a few times to merge in to traffic.

 

There is absolutely no reason I believe a trans cooler would have been needed and aside from the cost of fuel and boredom of the trip, I wouldn't hesitate to tow the same trailer across the country again.

 

And when I dig the cooler, thermostat, and extra hose out from the middle of my garage full of household goods, i'm going to post it for sale...what a waste of money.

i didn't read all 7 pages, but isn't there an order to do each corner? I know when i owned my STI and did fluid flushes, i had to go in a certain order...can't really remember why, either.

I ended up pulling the trigger on some Derale stuff.. cooler and thermostat. Next question: Should I just bypass the radiator for cooling? Seems like a lot of added length to the cooling system if I keep it in the loop.. I'm assuming there's some type of trans oil pump, won't the added length of hose put more stress on that? Thoughts?

Looks like all the plate/fin coolers are the same except for core size.. Any suggestions on a brand/size? Also, after doing some reading sounds like the most affective way is to run the cooler after the radiator?

Oh i'll do the fluid changes..don't mind that. I just don't want to mess with doing a flush - i'm too impatient. hah!

Absolutely do a fluid change and you should be good. If you don't tow regularly you shouldn't need to bother with an ATF cooler, especially since you'll be doing your limited towing in cold weather.

 

You say "flush". Just to be clear, if your fluid has been changed regularly just a drain and fill is probably good. If you have high mileage be careful about flushing all of the fluid with fresh stuff. Also, don't do any type of "power flush". There's a good write up here on how to do a flush just using the natural flow of ATF, and it works great with no added pressure to the system to cause any damage.

 

I saw that write-up, but honestly really don't mind paying to have it done. Obviously if it doesn't need a flush, I won't flush it.. Trans fluid has never been changed (flush OR drain/fill), it only has 30k.

 

Guess i'll just do a fluid change when I change the oil.. Probably also do the rear diff fluid while it's on the lift.

 

Thanks for the reply.

I'm getting ready to tow a 3,000lb (GW) u-haul trailer across the country (NJ-WA). I have an 09 3.0R legacy with 30k. Trans and everything is perfect - should I consider doing a fluid flush?

 

I've read a lot in regards to a cooler, but i'm on the fence leaning towards not installing one because I feel like i'm a smart driver. I've heard of some transmissions prematurely failing due to operating at lower than normalized temperature for so long, and others for improper install, and overheating --- could be due to other factors, who knows..

 

Finally, I'm Eric and i think this is my first post. I've owned a few Subarus... 07 STI, 99 2.5rs coupe, and finally my legacy. After I move back to the best coast, i'll be installing all my goodies-didn't want to put 3k towing miles on a brand new set of tires and coilovers..especially while snow's still falling out of the sky.