Ranger Mods

Just fitted the new Cool Flow Control Valve To my auto trans to drop fluid temp it opens at 160f (71.11c) and holds 180f (82.22c) as it used to climb up & above 212f (100c) which is boiling point for water, I also run a bypass oil cooler with fan. Very Very happy
They can be purchased through Motospecs AU. in all capital city's. Extends the life of transmission especially when towing, 4X4 driving etc.

Part no. Superior STL009 made in USA at $55.00 And a easy 1.5 to 2hr fit time.

This post is quite old just wondering if there are any comments on these or has anyone else had one fitted. Been looking at them to possibly instal.

Aparently the mod does help lower the trans Temp, BUT if you have a trans issue and Ford find it you get no warranty, you wear all the costs.

If you have no warranty then you are all good.

The only thing Ford seem to accept is an external oil cooler, provided it is professionally fitted.

By that they mean fitted by a transmission specialist, not a normal workshop install.

Thanks RossPat, yes was going to do after it's out of warranty.

I am getting a cooler fitted on the 24th of this month.

I prefer that to the internal bypass.

It gets rid of the original therefore removing the chance of pipes busting and filling the trans with water, it does happen.

With the trans cooler pipes removed from the radiator it should help the motor temp as well.

Am thinking that once you install a accessory Thermal Relief Valve and Accessory Oil Cooler you should then be able to perform future fluid flushes without dropping the Auto Transmission sump pan unless of course you want to replace the filter which will need the Auto Transmission sump pan removed. If you want to do just a flush you would just need to remove hose from oil cooler at the inlet side to transmission and then pump fluid out of transmission, refill transmission then pump out again till fluid is nice and clean. As you have fitted a replacement thermal bypass valve you don’t have to have the transmission up to operating temperature to get it to pump to the oil cooler.

A flush will never remove all the dirty oil.
As the saying goes, if your going to do something do it right or not at all.
I would rather pay and have the pan removed and a filter changed, Autos hate dirty oil.
Cheaper than a replacement or repair.

I am very happy with the By pass and cool runing trany. The stock valve can stick shut and there goes $6000.

hoges wrote: ↑Fri Sep 27, 2019 5:11 pm I am very happy with the By pass and cool runing trany. The stock valve can stick shut and there goes $6000.

If it's under warranty, who cares.

If you have warranty and have trans problems then Ford will pull the trans and look for the problem but when they find the bypass then there goes the warranty and there goes $6,000 +.

I will also do the bypass once the warranty is finished, providing I still have the Ranger.

In the meantime I have had an oil cooler fitted by a professional to keep Ford happy.

The cooler is especially made for a Ranger by PWR.

It is virtually 2 coolers mounted together with a total thickness of 39mm.

There are 4 hoses going to it, in and out for each cooler.

There are several benefits to this, the engine radiator doesn't have to cool down hot fluid and stays more consistent and it gets the stupid water pipe out of the trans, they have split inside the trans and you know the result there.

I haven't towed yet but I can see things running cooler & I keep my warranty.

I care if stuck out in the middle of no where

Very happy with the cooler.
Towed the new van with an all up weight of 2.4tons today in 36deg temps.
It sat on 90-94 deg @ 100kph in 6th gear, got to be happy with that.
Will look at the other mod when warranty runs out.
Met a bloke in Edithburgh who did the bypass mod while still under warranty.
Once Ford saw the mod that voided his warranty, the mod didn't cause his trans problem but that didn't matter.
The exercise cost the guy $6,800, an expensive lesson.

RossPat wrote: ↑Fri Sep 27, 2019 5:48 pm

hoges wrote: ↑Fri Sep 27, 2019 5:11 pm I am very happy with the By pass and cool runing trany. The stock valve can stick shut and there goes $6000.

If it's under warranty, who cares.

If you have warranty and have trans problems then Ford will pull the trans and look for the problem but when they find the bypass then there goes the warranty and there goes $6,000 +.

I will also do the bypass once the warranty is finished, providing I still have the Ranger.

In the meantime I have had an oil cooler fitted by a professional to keep Ford happy.

The cooler is especially made for a Ranger by PWR.

It is virtually 2 coolers mounted together with a total thickness of 39mm.

There are 4 hoses going to it, in and out for each cooler.

There are several benefits to this, the engine radiator doesn't have to cool down hot fluid and stays more consistent and it gets the stupid water pipe out of the trans, they have split inside the trans and you know the result there.

I haven't towed yet but I can see things running cooler & I keep my warranty.
20190925_143754.jpg

If it happens to me in the middle of no where with not a Ford Service Centre within Cooee, I care a lot.
At next service will discuss and get in writing what I can do without breaching warranty conditions.
Actually, perhaps a full upgrade breaching warranty that virtually guarantees no issues on Anne Beadell Highway etc is better than having a warranty not worth paper written on if there is no help around.

Okay to begin with I don't tow, other than my neighbours 6x4 to the tip but I do undergo long outback journeys so to reduce the risk of overheating ATF (my Wildtrak is a 6 speed auto) I invested in a finned alloy deep sump from the US -at roughly AUD$600 along with a SAAS oil temperature gauge.
Checking procedur. The gauge is wired with a rectified 12.2 volts DC supply. The gauge registered 70*C with an actual temperature of 72*C and 80*C with an actual of 81*C; 90*C with 92*C; 100*C at 101*C so, for a "off the shelf" 52mm analogue gauge that's acceptably accurate.
This testing was carried out in my man shed using a cupel/nickel thermocouple as a checking measurement and the SAAS sender suspended in an oil bath.
Driving down hill from Katoomba to Baulkham Hills Private Hospital on the Great Western Highway, M7 and M2 and Windsor road with the cruise control set at 95 kph @1650 rmp the boost pressure never left 3psi and the AFT never went over 60*C. On the return journey, same cruise control setting and two hours later the AFT went up to 75*C climbing up Lapstone Hill, the steepest climb of the trip and turbo boost tweaked at 8PSI . On both journeys the coolant temperature sat at a steady 87-88*C - even in recent 45*C+ ambient heat wave days it has never exceeded 90*C.
I only mention the boost and coolant temperatures to demonstrate just how under-stressed my 3.2 litre motor is, in fact on our last trip out west from Cobar to Broken Hill it never went over 5psi boost -again at 95 kph returning 11.2 l/100K all up weight 3260kg.
You gotta love the big 3.2 !!!

Neilhoh wrote: ↑Sun Feb 16, 2020 12:05 am If it happens to me in the middle of no where with not a Ford Service Centre within Cooee, I care a lot.
At next service will discuss and get in writing what I can do without breaching warranty conditions.
Actually, perhaps a full upgrade breaching warranty that virtually guarantees no issues on Anne Beadell Highway etc is better than having a warranty not worth paper written on if there is no help around.

Asking a dealer for basically a 100% guarantee, I could nearly bet it would never happen. A dealer is not Ford and if smart would not warrant the change and if so should have a lot of lawyers handy for when Ford denies the dealers claim.

You make a modification out of what was designed from the factory and you take the risk unfortunately.

As much as its negative, its just the facts.

Neilhoh wrote: ↑Sun Feb 16, 2020 12:05 am

If it happens to me in the middle of no where with not a Ford Service Centre within Cooee, I care a lot.
At next service will discuss and get in writing what I can do without breaching warranty conditions.
Actually, perhaps a full upgrade breaching warranty that virtually guarantees no issues on Anne Beadell Highway etc is better than having a warranty not worth paper written on if there is no help around.
[/quote]

I made a conscious decision in 2017 when I purchased my Wildtrak that I wouldn't be confined by the terms of any warranties. From bitter past experience with the motor industry I am very aware that they have more and better paid lawyers than I can ever afford.
I paid cash for the unregistered vehicle and had it delivered to 4X4 Offroad in Bathurst to be accessorised. My car, my money, my risk.

So from day one I've ignored the fact that what I do to it may negate any warranty and instead I've gone out to make it as reliable as is possible and as under stressed as it can be made to be, the suspension system was replaced with ARB OME BP-51 with an increased rode height of 52mm. The exhaust system in total was exchanged for a custom made ceramic coated 75mm mandrill formed one, the radiator was replaced with a far larger Koyorad as was the standard intercooler for a Plasmaman as were both the hot and cold pipes, the turbo was exchanged for a modified PX1 unit and the ECU given a flash tune by the HPF in South Dandenong in Victoria for greater torque and economy and with a maximum rev limit of 3850 rmp. It has a maximum torque of 600 Nm at 980 rpm, and 148 kw at 2850 rpm. Primary fuel filter (20 micron) and oil catch can. The latest modification was fitting the deep alloy sump on the ZF gearbox with the additional 6 litres of ATF that it holds.

I do a full oil change and filter service every 10k but I use the Ryco filter pack (air, fuel, oil, pollen) and always use Castrol Tungsten "Edge" 5/30 fully synthetic oil.
On the few occasions I've had it back to the dealer, (the last time was for the navigation upgrade) - it has most of the service techs crawling all over it shaking their heads and amazed at what's been done.

Does it have a warranty ??? Possibly not.
Is it reliable and will it get me all over Australia - including the Anne Beadell for the third time -- yes, I believe it will because that's what I've modified it to do and that's based on 21 years of owning a Land Rover Discovery and doing 685,000 kilometres, every trick and from sometimes bitter experience, modification that we learnt on the Disco I transferred to the Wildtrak and I love it.

IanB, thanks for that.
Not sure I have the cash to go to those lengths, but I dig it, and agree.
Everything I mentioned to the Ford Service dude, he said nah, wouldn't do that - even the catch can. Guess he doesn't want potentially voided warranty because I would take it somewhere else for the fix. If a warranty job he gets paid by Ford to do it.

And, SAEB, "You make a modification out of what was designed from the factory and you take the risk unfortunately." not negative, just reality.