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Desert Run Arizona Excesive Heat

Posted: Wed Jun 08, 2022 6:14 pm
by Thupertrooper
June test run down at Rolls OHV in AZ. Newish 08 Armada subframe, stiffer springs.

Re: Desert Run Arizona Excesive Heat

Posted: Thu Jun 09, 2022 5:29 am
by palmerwmd
I am envious you have such an outdoors around you!
Serios rig.

I been to the desert southwest in summer onetime.
And the heat just jumps at you like an angry Puma as soon as u step out the Air-conditioned vehicle.

So aside from suspension this looks like an environment that will really challenge your cooling system especially in summer.
How is old is the radiator and t stat?

Do u ever thin out the coolant mix and add redline waterwetter?
(an old tuner trick for when we added forced induction to vehicles not OEM with it; to increase the heat capacity of the Radiator and also the rate of heat exchange by reducing cavitation at the water pump and inside the radiator's cooling fins)

Re: Desert Run Arizona Excesive Heat

Posted: Sun Jun 12, 2022 11:43 am
by Thupertrooper
It was 111 that day 113 today I have never ran into overheating issues on this guy. I run OEM stat and reman radiator. The coolant trick I will try for sure once I do a coolant flush ( overdue) Trick I learned is the truck doesnt like to go slow in heat or sit. I just make sure to keep air flowing through the radiator with minimal throttle. Im more worried the transmission overheating since it will do a ton of work just going 20mph in sand.

Re: Desert Run Arizona Excesive Heat

Posted: Sun Jun 12, 2022 2:00 pm
by palmerwmd
Tru enough.
Dont forget the tranny gets some cooling effect from the radiator too as the "heatexchanger" sits in the cooler part of the radiator flow. :D

Re: Desert Run Arizona Excesive Heat

Posted: Sun Jun 12, 2022 2:17 pm
by VStar650CL
palmerwmd wrote:
Sun Jun 12, 2022 2:00 pm
Tru enough.
Dont forget the tranny gets some cooling effect from the radiator too as the "heatexchanger" sits in the cooler part of the radiator flow. :D
You can always add a radiating cooler in series with the OE exchanger, and even force air with a small fan if necessary. There are lots of IP67 and IP68 waterproof 12V fans around these days, they work fine for stuff like that.

Re: Desert Run Arizona Excesive Heat

Posted: Mon Jun 13, 2022 11:51 am
by Thupertrooper
What I really will do first is figure out an easy oil temp sensor coming out the tranny. What avg temp do you guys see? My needle never reaches center.

Re: Desert Run Arizona Excesive Heat

Posted: Mon Jun 13, 2022 1:05 pm
by palmerwmd
Thupertrooper wrote:
Mon Jun 13, 2022 11:51 am
What I really will do first is figure out an easy oil temp sensor coming out the tranny. What avg temp do you guys see? My needle never reaches center.
Mine never reaches center either (Florida summer).
(1 yr old radiator ,1 yr old OEM thermostat, slightly thinner mix with Redline WW)

Re: Desert Run Arizona Excesive Heat

Posted: Mon Jun 13, 2022 2:01 pm
by VStar650CL
Thupertrooper wrote:
Mon Jun 13, 2022 11:51 am
What I really will do first is figure out an easy oil temp sensor coming out the tranny. What avg temp do you guys see? My needle never reaches center.
That's one thing there's no easy out for on an R51. The tranny fittings are banjoes, so there's noplace to put a threaded tee fitting on the pump outlet. The TCM is inside the tranny, so there's no external temperature signal to steal with a gauge-matcher. So rigging up a brass NPT tee with a pair of barb fittings is about the only way to mount a sensor. Protecting that from vibration and fatigue may require some forethought.

Re: Desert Run Arizona Excesive Heat

Posted: Mon Jun 13, 2022 5:38 pm
by palmerwmd
VStar650CL wrote:
Mon Jun 13, 2022 2:01 pm
Thupertrooper wrote:
Mon Jun 13, 2022 11:51 am
What I really will do first is figure out an easy oil temp sensor coming out the tranny. What avg temp do you guys see? My needle never reaches center.
That's one thing there's no easy out for on an R51. The tranny fittings are banjoes, so there's noplace to put a threaded tee fitting on the pump outlet. The TCM is inside the tranny, so there's no external temperature signal to steal with a gauge-matcher. So rigging up a brass NPT tee with a pair of barb fittings is about the only way to mount a sensor. Protecting that from vibration and fatigue may require some forethought.
What about one of those plug in ECU readers I heard about? Could a ATF Temp gauge be mounted that reads a plug in from under the dash just for that?

Or am I not rembering it correctly.

Re: Desert Run Arizona Excesive Heat

Posted: Mon Jun 13, 2022 7:26 pm
by VStar650CL
The trans temp signal is there on the CANbus but I have no idea whether it's OBD compliant or Nissan proprietary. Only the Combination Meter and the Transfer Controller use the signal. The ECM doesn't look at it. So the only question is, can the plug-in can read it?

Re: Desert Run Arizona Excesive Heat

Posted: Thu Jun 16, 2022 10:51 am
by palmerwmd
VStar650CL wrote:
Mon Jun 13, 2022 7:26 pm
The trans temp signal is there on the CANbus but I have no idea whether it's OBD compliant or Nissan proprietary. Only the Combination Meter and the Transfer Controller use the signal. The ECM doesn't look at it. So the only question is, can the plug-in can read it?
How does the Armada feed the ATF temperature display in the dash?
The Armada is a fellow Nissan F platform...

Re: Desert Run Arizona Excesive Heat

Posted: Thu Jun 16, 2022 11:27 am
by VStar650CL
palmerwmd wrote:
Thu Jun 16, 2022 10:51 am
How does the Armada feed the ATF temperature display in the dash?
The Armada is a fellow Nissan F platform...
Same setup. TCM is inside the tranny and the data comes out on CAN.

Re: Desert Run Arizona Excesive Heat

Posted: Thu Jun 16, 2022 12:03 pm
by Thupertrooper