Trucks tranny cooler has developed a pretty bad leak, so naturally I'm gonna pull the cooler, pressure test it and then try my luck at sealing the hole with JB Weld. Unfortunately, my trucks gonna be out of commission quite some time while 1) I drain the ATF from the cooler, 2) Pressure test it to find the hole, 3) Clean and prep it so the JB Weld bonds well and then 4) Wait 24hrs for the JB Weld to fully cure. Since my trucks my only means of transportation to and from work, I was wondering if I would be hurting anything if I were to loop the trans cooler pressure line/hose right back to the trans cooler return line??? After studying the shop manual I noticed these trucks are also equipped with a water cooled trany fluid cooler... so one would think the missing trans cooler and the looped trans cooler line shouldn't cause any issues as long as I'm not driving at highway speeds or hauling anything heavy.

Anyone see a problem if I drive this way for a couple days???

 

JB weld is a short term temporary fix, at best. Bypass the cooler for a few days, have it welded up, and re-install. Do it once and be done with it.

 

Totally agree but curious as hell to know if $5 bucks worth of the stuff could seal the hole permanently? The company sure talks a good game and the properties of the product seems capable of surviving long term on a transmission cooler...

Properties
Tensile Strength: 3960 psi
Adhesion: 1800 psi
Flex Strength: 7320 psi
Tensile Lap Shear: 1040 psi
Shrinkage: 0.0%
Resistant to: 500° F

(For safe, reliable, permanent repairs in engine compartments and heated environments up to 500° F. It's strong as steel and impervious to water, gasoline, chemicals, and acids)

 

I'v used JB weld for a number of vehicle repairs over the years. It works for a while. But you have to plan on doing a permanent fix when you can.

 

find a tranny cooler in a wrecking yard, do the swap and only be down a few hours. jb weld is jethro bodine fix

 

Mine had a dribble for a while, after the goerend was installed it didnt take long to go from a dribble the an all out leak. A new one ran me $185 with tax, after i sweet talked the parts girl into what she says is her employee discount.

 

Thats exactly how mine started out... odd light mist all over the side of the air filter box and fan shroud... months later drips started to collect at the bottom corners of the radiator and then the puddles started showing up on the ground wherever I parked. Called a few radiator repair shops and after mentioning I had a trans cooler in need of patching...most said, "let me guess, it's off a Dodge truck!" For those of you in the same boat, the average cost of patching a leaky trans cooler was $50-$60 bucks, which hardly seems worthwhile since non of the shops I called provide a warranty since aluminum coolers tend to pit after awhile in areas that use road salt in the winter...apparently there's no way to guarantee it wouldn't spring a leak somewhere else. I wonder if just the ends could be redipped (where the thin alum channels enter into the alum tubes)...unfortunately I have yet to find anyone that provides such a service. Too bad too since the cooler is in relatively good condition! Might take dieseloutlaw1's advice and try my luck at the local salvage yard, though a quick google search showed some aftermarkets starting at $40.... now if I can find one with a decent fit and the same cooling capacity I can avoid the $600 OEM from the s*t*e*a*l*e*r*s*h*i*p!

 

Wanted to clarify/retract my comment from above... My trucks OEM Trans Cooler (52028915AE) costs apprx $220 NOT $600. My original source was incorrect.

 

Your dealer should fix that for free on the 03 and 04 models heres the recall.
http://dodgeram.info/tsb/recalls/C44.htm

 

I bet if you order this cooler kit from dodge it will be a lot cheaper than the factory part number . Transmission Cooler
Part Number Description
CBLAC442