Gearbox heat

[Chops]

Hi guys,
Just wondering if anyone has any issues with transmission heat whilst towing, and what you may have done to combat the situation.
I'm intending on putting some heat sheild between the box and the floor at some point, but just wondering what others have done, if at all, or if you just put up with it.
I have toyed with the idea of an external pump/cooler, but this could prove to be very expensive.

Cheers

[Pacemaker]

I fully insulated the seat boxes inside and out, floor and fire wall with 10mm closed cell foam. The foam has a sticky back on one side and aluminium on the other. On the floor and bottom half of the fire wall i also used dynamat under the closed cell foam. Lastly i cut a hole in the middle of a foam block, slid it over the gear sticks and jammed it in the gap between the gear box and hole in the tunnel so no heat comes through the gear stick hole.

All of this made a fair difference to heat and sound but i thought it could still be better so i bought some cheap nylon carpet that has a rubber back. The rubber is a few mm thick. I cut it all to shape to match the original rubber flooring and placed it over the top of the rubber flooring on the floors, fire wall and tunnel. Then i used cheap rubber floor mats from Autobarn to go over the carpet on the floors.

My 130 is now good on the highway with aggressive mud tyres. I can speak on the phone while doing 110 and the heat coming through the floor has halved.

About a month ago i cut a large hole in the LHF 1/4 guard and put mesh in it. This was to help create airflow through the radiator but it made a bit of difference to the floor temp on the passenger side as well. I run a 3 inch dump pipe and exhaust which is really close to the floor on the passenger side so it used to get very hot on the highway.

Cheers
Michael.

[jimr1]

Hi you don't say what gear box you have ? The R380 does have an oil cooler pipe that runs in a loop . This can be extended though a cooler that will help when towing , other than that , as been mentioned insulation to keep the heat out !!.. good luck Jim ..

[AndyG]

And i have the exhaust wrap at home, waiting for one day, to install :angel:
Probably the cheapest way to start reducing temps. And a TM4 to monitor the temp.

and / or

http://www.ashcroft-transmissions.co.uk/miscellaneous/r380-oil-cooler-kit/r380-oil-cooler-kit.html

[simmo]

Wrapping the exhaust pipe in fiberglass tape and covering with aluminium tape makes a difference. Thanks Mike for your ideas, I might be able to incorporate them when I do the T-Case.

http://www.aulro.com/afvb/90-110-130-defender-county/200875-vnt-turbo-fitted-photos-2.html. ( not sure how to provide the link properly to another post)

"About a month ago I cut a large hole in the LHF 1/4 guard and put mesh in it. This was to help create airflow through the radiator but it made a bit of difference to the floor temp on the passenger side as well. I run a 3 inch dump pipe and exhaust which is really close to the floor on the passenger side so it used to get very hot "

Michael, Could you send a photo of that hole? I'd be worried about getting a lot of mud through a hole like that. IMV most of the heat comes from the big hot un insulated exhaust, the floor and seat box on the passenger side always seems to be hotter than the drivers side. Mine used to get so hot on that side it was uncomfortable to put you feet on the floor mats. cheers simmo

[Pacemaker]

This is the cut out.
Forgot to add that the dump pipe is wrapped from the turbo to roughly the transfer case.

Cheers
Michael.

[Pacemaker]

Whooops
The pic came out sideways???

Cheers
Michael.

[simmo]

Hi Michael,, now I can see what you mean, clever, would I be right in thinking the plastic grill for the cabin ventilation will fit over that hole? if so it would look like a factory job. cheers:)

[Chops]

G'day guys,
Its a Puma, 6 speed, so I believe the gearbox is an MT82 (?).

[Plutei]

I fully insulated the seat boxes inside and out, floor and fire wall with 10mm closed cell foam. The foam has a sticky back on one side and aluminium on the other. On the floor and bottom half of the fire wall i also used dynamat under the closed cell foam.

Hi Michael, where did you get the 10mm foam and dynamat from?

[Pacemaker]

Hey Simmo
The hole is a bit bigger than the plastic bit your referring too. However that is what I based the template off. I just made it wider and longer.

Plutei
I bought the foam from a rubber supplier in Burleigh Heads. They are the suppliers for the rubber shops like Clarkes. The difference is they charge nearly half the price.
What area are you in?

Cheers
Michael.

[POD]

Marcus, I put some metal heat shield under the floor, the stuff is the same as the moulded heat shield over your turbocharger. Supercheap have it in sheets about 300x500mm or thereabouts, not cheap at about $50 a sheet, I bought 3 sheets and used most of it. Made up cardboard templates then cut out the heat shield with tinsnips and stuck it on under the floor with globs of sikaflex, there was a thread on here a while back where someone has done this and I copied them. I had to do a fair bit of scrubbing of the underside before glueing, got soaked in the process, not a cold day job!
Seems to have made a difference, but I don't really do much towing these days.

2 other things I have found help a lot with footwell temps; I retrofitted the late model door bottom seals, there's a huge amount of hot air comes in past those useless older type 'seals'; the other thing is keeping the aircon directed onto your feet.

[Chops]

Hey Pete, do you remember how much of a gap you have between the sheets and the floor?
I'm happy to make up some tabs and rivet them in place to stand it out a bit, but I'm not sure how much of a gap I should have. I'm thinking between 15-20mm. That should give it enough airflow to keep the heat off, but I'm thinking I might not have that much room in some sections (?).
Cheers

[Plutei]

I bought the foam from a rubber supplier in Burleigh Heads. They are the suppliers for the rubber shops like Clarkes. The difference is they charge nearly half the price.
What area are you in?

I'm in Sydney, so I think the Gold coast may be a little far to drive, but I'll look into a rubber supply shop.

Cheers

[POD]

Hey Pete, do you remember how much of a gap you have between the sheets and the floor?
I'm happy to make up some tabs and rivet them in place to stand it out a bit, but I'm not sure how much of a gap I should have. I'm thinking between 15-20mm. That should give it enough airflow to keep the heat off, but I'm thinking I might not have that much room in some sections (?).
Cheers

I think it's a little tight over the top of the gearbox to get much of an air gap, at the sides would probably be okay. I just stuck it straight to the underside of the floor, used globs of sikaflex rather than a bead, wasn't really thinking about air flow but more to prevent water and mud trapping. What you're proposing would probably be much better.