[tag1]

I RECENTLY TOWED A 16' ENCLOSED STEEL TRAILER (full of antique motorcycles)FROM FLORIDA TO NEW ENGLAND,ONTO OHIO THEN BACK TO FLORIDA. was impressed how much torque it had going through the mountains,and pleasantly surprised that it gets better mileage in the mountains than on flat land towing the same trailer.seems the torque it produces allows it to calmly climb mountains with out screaming high rpm's. and then once topping the mountain it more or less coasts down resulting in over 18 mpg. towing on flat land its a 15 mpg limit. my question is transmission temperature at one point i was reading 218 degrees with or without tow haul on. at what temp should i be concerned? 218 degrees seems to me to be alot?

 

[oak1971]

There are a couple of plastic/rubber? covers in front of the trans cooler/radiator/AC condenser area. Try removing those. 218 deg f would be too warm for my taste. Although that was a long trip and a decent workout for the truck, still it would bug me. I don't know what "IDEAL" temp should be, but that is not it.

 

[tag1]

i will look for them and remove them. it did not keep that temp the whole trip but mostly it was 209 degrees. i thought that was plenty as well but my duramax dually has a gauge for trans temp but no numbers on it,just marks. it also seems to get up in temp when towing but the allison is built for heavy duty work( not so sure about the canyon trans(?)

 

[Rexydg]

Howdy gents, Just wanted to ad to this thread.

I own a '19 ZR2, I noticed the trans temps were high as well. I live in south Florida and it has been HOT.

I crawled under, removed the skid plate, then popped those panels out from the rear. Pushed them down and out, re-installed the skid plate.

My temps went from normal 210-220 and are now down in the 190-195 range.

I honestly believe that those are MADE to be removed for hotter climates and that our "dealers" have no damn clue about it.

Left in they help warm the truck faster where it is cold, but in 100 plus degree temps they are a hindrance and should be removed. They are able to be popped out easily and I cannot see any engineer doing this if they were not MADE to be removable.

So there ya go.

 

[tag1]

i will look for them and remove them. it did not keep that temp the whole trip but mostly it was 209 degrees. i thought that was plenty as well but my duramax dually has a gauge for trans temp but no numbers on it,just marks. it also seems to get up in temp when towing but the allison is built for heavy duty work( not so sure about the canyon trans(?)

HMMMM, thanks alot i live in ocala and its probably hotter here than even miami!! i will look for the panels and pop them out-thank,!

 

[scarfile]

I RECENTLY TOWED A 16' ENCLOSED STEEL TRAILER (full of antique motorcycles)FROM FLORIDA TO NEW ENGLAND,ONTO OHIO THEN BACK TO FLORIDA. was impressed how much torque it had going through the mountains,and pleasantly surprised that it gets better mileage in the mountains than on flat land towing the same trailer.seems the torque it produces allows it to calmly climb mountains with out screaming high rpm's. and then once topping the mountain it more or less coasts down resulting in over 18 mpg. towing on flat land its a 15 mpg limit. my question is transmission temperature at one point i was reading 218 degrees with or without tow haul on. at what temp should i be concerned? 218 degrees seems to me to be alot?

About right... I towed 5000 lbs in the smokies and read the same.. Thing's a beast huh lol

 

[Dmax Dan]

218 is nothing to be concerned about, it’s actually pretty low for towing at interstate speeds. When I tow my tandem axle boat trailer, I see 220-230 regularly in the summer. Luckily 233 is about as far as the cooler let’s it go before knocking it down a few degrees. I pulled those panels as suggested earlier this year. Initial assessment is my temps take longer when towing at highway speeds to get into the 220+ range but it still doesn’t prevent it. I would say that between changing fluids and pulling the panels, I may get a 5-10 degree advantage when towing, but I will wait to pass full judgement until the July and August temps come around.

 

[Mtnminor51]

I had similar concerns towing a 2800 lb. trailer over the Syskiyous on a hot day last summer. I gleaned this reply from GM from another forum:

“These are the points at which the engine fans go to half and full speed, based on air conditioner pressure, engine coolant temp, engine oil temp, and transmission fluid temp. For the trans fluid, the fans go to half speed at 253 F, and full speed at 257 F. Higher than I would have thought. The warning message TRANSMISSION HOT IDLE ENGINE comes at 270 F."

 

[Oliveman]

I RECENTLY TOWED A 16' ENCLOSED STEEL TRAILER (full of antique motorcycles)FROM FLORIDA TO NEW ENGLAND,ONTO OHIO THEN BACK TO FLORIDA. was impressed how much torque it had going through the mountains,and pleasantly surprised that it gets better mileage in the mountains than on flat land towing the same trailer.seems the torque it produces allows it to calmly climb mountains with out screaming high rpm's. and then once topping the mountain it more or less coasts down resulting in over 18 mpg. towing on flat land its a 15 mpg limit. my question is transmission temperature at one point i was reading 218 degrees with or without tow haul on. at what temp should i be concerned? 218 degrees seems to me to be alot?

I hope 218 is low as I live in the Central Valley of California and on hot days 110 pulling my 4K lb trailer, I see temps of 225-230 on my 2019 truck four hours at a time

 

[scarfile]

212 max temp towing 5500lb camper in 95 degree heat in stop and go hilly terrain. Cooled to 209 at 60mph level. 16 mpg

 

[turbodiverart]

I just towed this past weekend in 95 degree heat with my 5500-6000 24ft long car trailer. I too got to 212 at one point when I needed to pass a few semi's after accelerating from an on-ramp and up a long 2-3 mile hill that I'd way was about 3-4% grade but most of the time it was around 204. Few hills, highway speeds at 70 MPH, 6th gear with cruise control. I have the 2 front radiator block-of'fs removed, stock tune.

 

[Mtnminor51]

My trans temp stabilized a when I stopped passing slow semi's going up a mountain pass and tucked in behind them.

 

[oak1971]

I think I have the plastic covers removed, need to look.

 

[oak1971]

Both were still there, one had a corner missing like somebody tried to remove it. I used some tin snips to chop it up a bit more and pulled it out the front. I ran out of motivation on the second one and left it there. After an hour of countryside driving between 45-60 mph the highest temp was 188 Deg F. It went down to 186 Deg F. by the time I got home.

 

[Rexydg]

Geez.. butchery is not needed, there are 2 small tabs on each side.. just push them from behind and they come right out. Then slide them down past the air seal. Took less than a minute. It took more time to take the skid plate off and put it back.

 

[oak1971]

I didn't take anything off.

 

[Duken4evr]

A long needle nose pliers is the ticket for squeezing the mounting tabs. One could run them in the winter and pop them out in the summer. I removed and pitched them into the recycle bin in a minor attempt at de-cluttering my life. No adverse effects running without them this past winter.

 

[turbodiverart]

Geez.. butchery is not needed, there are 2 small tabs on each side.. just push them from behind and they come right out. Then slide them down past the air seal. Took less than a minute. It took more time to take the skid plate off and put it back.

I strongly disagree! It took me at least 2 minutes to remove them....... 😀

 

[oak1971]

Geez.. butchery is not needed, there are 2 small tabs on each side.. just push them from behind and they come right out. Then slide them down past the air seal. Took less than a minute. It took more time to take the skid plate off and put it back.

Butchery or not, unless you want to sit out in the heat to drop the skid plate and then put it back on by yourself after suffering a brain tumor and a stroke, I'll do it as fast as possible without ruining other, more vital parts. I'd love to do everything just right, I no longer have the luxury.

 

[Rexydg]

Butchery or not, unless you want to sit out in the heat to drop the skid plate and then put it back on by yourself after suffering a brain tumor and a stroke, I'll do it as fast as possible without ruining other, more vital parts. I'd love to do everything just right, I no longer have the luxury.

Well lets see.. I had a heart attack last Nov. that killed me 3 times, I have two torn up knees, both ACLs and meniscus, have broken my back once, was paralyzed from the waist down for 4 months, have seven herniated or ruptured discs, two torn rotator cuffs... Broke 3 out of 4 fingers on my right hand back in Feb. Thats for starters and heat?.. I live in south FLORIDA.

I managed to keep mine intact.. just sayin.

As for the temps.. they have remained lower since I removed them, I have had to have the alternator replaced under warranty.. and just had to have the fan clutch done yesterday. the truck threw a P0483 code about a month ago and it was coming and going on its own every 60 to 80 miles. The CEL would light up and I would scan "P0483".. then after about ten miles it would turn off. kept getting more frequent so i took it in while it was on for the dealer.. they drove it 6 miles and it went off, then 9 miles it came back on.

So far it is off I drove about 35 miles today with no issues.