Syncro Newbie Question - Manual Transaxle Cooler?

[ChrisSyncro]

Hi, Everyone,

Another newbie question here: I see several automatic transaxle coolers for sale on the interwebs, but none for manual transaxles. Why is that? From poking around on this site, it seems as though installing cooling for manual transaxles is quite an involved affair, but you can buy one that is relatively "plug and play" for automatic transaxles.

Thanks for any insight!

-Chris
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1987 Syncro Westy with a 3.3 Liter Subaru Conversion

[Steve M.]

Automatic transmissions have a built in pump for one!
Manuals do not have one so you have to add that plus electrics for it and a place to mount it. Lines and inlet/outlet ports on pump and gearbox plus the cooler itself and a fan for it.
The location for everything has been fairly figured out by those who have down it before so you can follow their mod of do it your way.

It's going to cost a couple of bucks.
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This free advice is worth exactly what you paid for it.

There are seven days in a week. Someday is not one of them.

[vwjoel]

The automatic transaxle has an internal pump to pressurize the oil to operate the shifting in the trans. A manual transaxle is essentially all splash lube. There is no pump to move the oil through a cooler. When I had my last trans built at AA transaxle I had him drill and tap the trans case for an external cooler fittings but this cooler requires an external pump as well to move the fluid through it.

Auto transmissions make more heat too because the torque converter doesn't lock up like a clutch and is always shearing oil. Manual transmission do get hot but it take more to get up to the danger zone. Probably only an issue with manual tranaxles with the added power of a conversion or hopped up waterboxer. I'm sure someone with more experience on the temp limits of a manual trans will chime in!

[ChrisSyncro]

Thanks, Guys! My Syncro has a 3.3L Subaru engine, which is what makes me worry about the transaxle. And, I live in Colorado, which means big hills (i.e., mountains), but relatively cool ambient temps when driving up those big hills. Given the work of installing a cooler for a manual transaxle, I'm trying to convince myself that being extra good about changing the fluid will suffice...but I may be naive on that front.
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1987 Syncro Westy with a 3.3 Liter Subaru Conversion

[danfromsyr]

ignorance is bliss

and wisdom comes from hard experiences..


be happy till you learn how bad & $$ things can get.

don't run up large/long grades in 4th 'just because you can'
shift into 3rd and keep the side loading easier on the main shaft bearings..

same goes for long runs down the highway at 80mph in 80*+ heat.

here's a little story of someone else's trans failure.
http://www.livethevanlife.com/reviews/transmission-rebuild
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[raoul mitgong]

With that horsepower, it would be a good idea to at least keep the foot light and speeds reasonable (60?) up the really steep stuff like Georgetown westbound i-70.
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84 Westy with a 2.1 (Groover)
86 Tintop Syncro (Crow)
86 Tintop Syncro to Westy project (Tom Servo)
91 Westy (Only the top 12 inches of this van (a burn victim))

[flomulgator]

Hi Chris,
I have the same engine as you and have seen the wear and tear in my transaxle all that additional torque can do. What other folks are saying here is sage advice; it's a good engine and the big power is nice for short bursts but driving it like a rental will do bad things in the long run.

I have an external cooling circuit on mine now, there are a few good threads on manual transaxle cooling in this forum that are worth a lazy Sunday morning of your time. Building a cooling system is a really good idea not only for temperature control but to get lubrication into a critically heated and poorly lubed area that is the 4th gear / mainshaft bearing. Conveniently, that is located immediately inside the existing transaxle fill port. Unfortunately, building a cooling circuit isn't cheap because:
A) what folks above said about components
B) manual transmission gear oil is much thicker than ATF, meaning bigger passageways and the inability to use the bazillion systems designed for automatics.
C) Not many manual transmission vehicles need cooling circuits, so there are exactly zero mass-produced kits out there.

I've been working on a cheaper system than many of the fine examples you'll see when reading, but as I haven't been totally satisfied with the cooling performance I haven't written it up yet. I would budget $500 to $1000, which while expensive is much cheaper than a transmission rebuild.
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She's built like a steakhouse, but she handles like a bistro!

[Sodo]