GU Auto Questions

[lhurley]

Hi all, i have recently had my auto reco'd and it drives great, just a few questions.

I have a temp gauge installed and am not sure what are "safe" operating temps. On my way home from work, 30km trip, 20km highway and 10km city with hills, the temp gets about 100 deg. I have a larger cooler fitted and i can see the temps drop when cruising, what is normal? I get that 33's will make it hotter as well.

Im curious about TC lockup systems. I understand how they work, i just dont understand when to use it. Does the auto lock up normally by itself? When its locked is 100% of the engine power going to the box??
when sitting on the highway at 100km/h on the flat its in 4th but there is no power to accelerate, 3rd there is a bit more power but never enough, the auto will drop to 2nd when i want to accelerate or even to get up hills at speed. Will a tc lockup give me more power to the wheels in higher gears??

Thanks in advance

Lachlan

[twisty]

Temp sounds okay :-)

The TC is basically a big shock absorber between the engine and gearbox so, when locked, all available power transferred. I rarely use 4th gear (overdrive) anymore except above 100kmh. Like you say, no guts in 4th. 33s won't be helping either (I run 31s). And I've scared myself on occasion when I've given some right boot on the highway and redlined in 2nd.

The TC auto lockup happens (for me) when engine revs are above ~2200 rpm or OD (4th) is selected and cruising. When I stomp on the go pedal the TC must unlock before selecting a lower gear. Also happens when manually changing gears.

Hope this helps.

[lhurley]

Thanks for the reply mate, was just concerned that the temp was bad for the new box.

When i give it some boot and the revs hit about 2200rpm it feels like the car has a turbo, not a great deal of power at first, then once in the rev range starts to "rocket". I always thought that was happening as it was getting into a sweet spot of rev range.

As i do a fair bit of highway driving, if i was to get a lockup kit, and locked it once hit 100, in theory it should give me slightly more useable power?? ie could use 4th to get up a slight hill.

Apologizes if thats what your trying to say, im just trying to get my head around it for my own situation. Again thanks mate.

[threedogs]

my rule of thumb is half guage if normal, or it was on my last 4x4, how does that sit with yours???

[lhurley]

Ive got the VDO gauge. the Kit that you get from wholesale autos. It has temp readings not just hot or cold. short round town stuff it wont get much more then 70 deg, but to and from work is about 100 deg, mainly due to the amount of hills at either end.

http://www.automatictransmission.com.au/release.asp?NewsId=42067

[june]

i have a heavy duty valve body temp gauge and a manual lock up to torque convertor fitted to mine and tow a 3 tonne van. once switch is activated you have no slip in your tc. it is good to use when decending down hills and up hills. the only disadvantage is if you forget to turn off switch the engine will stall. my temps when towing range between 75 and 100. i have no extra oil cooler.

[twisty]

the only disadvantage is if you forget to turn off switch the engine will stall.

G'day june. Some also wire up to park/neutral and brake to disengage TC lock (just in case). I'd make the brake switch temporary.

Does your auto change gear when the TC is locked?

[june]

twisty, i wired mine up using diagrams from Wholesale auto(where i purchased it from) and what ever gear you select to turn switch on in, that is the gear it will stay in.