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DIY SST Trans Temp Gauge

7K views 44 replies 18 participants last post by  Martin Donnon 
#1 ·
Just completed putting a permanent system in our SST EVO X today rather than having temporary thermcouples mounted in the car. If anyone wants to know how to do it themselves reasonably cheaply we will be more than happy to supply all the photos etc :)
 
#3 ·
I think everyone with an MR would like to know how.

You should write up a How-To and see if you can't get some free EvoXForums gear. If you don't want the free gear write it up send it to me and I'll make it into a How-To and see if I can get the free gear. :dancebanana:
 
#4 ·
Write it up.
 
#9 ·
As promised here is our DIY guide to installing a transmission temp gauge in your SST equipped
Mitsubishi. First up you need to select the right gauge for your application. We picked a VDO oil
temperature gauge with a 150C sweep. Gauge plus sensor plus mounting pod came to $90 in
total.

Get the car in a nice safe working enviroment so you can get under it. We are fortunate enough to
have a lift/hoist in our development area, so thats quite a simple job

Next up drain the transmission fluid. As you can see our heavily tracked WR35TMX comes out
just as clean and oxidation free as it went in.

With the sumpl plugs removed you can see its impossible to fit the temp sensor for the gauge, as
the plugs are 'allen head' leaving you nothing to tighten the plug with if you fit the sensor

Measuring the size of the factory sump plug shows it to be an M16

Using an off the shelf steel M16 bolt we turned the head down and then drilled a hole through the
centre of it

Finally we tapped the 1/8th NPT fitting into the plug and it was ready for winding back into the
transmission underside. A quick touch of paint makes it look all new again

Wiring the gauge is fairly simple, it requires Power, Ground, and a signal line from the sensor
itself. Not too hard!

Mounting the gauge in the pod needs to be carried out before you fit it to the car as the pod
needs to be modified for the wiring to run through

Our fitting location required removal of the shifter centre surround which is quite straightforward
with only a couple of screws (at the back) and clips to pull the whole lot out. The Power and
Ground for the gauge came directly from the 12V power socket located there

The sender line was then run through the firewall with the existing PCM wiring. There is plenty of
room there. Finally it was covered in protective sheathing

The sender line then simply clips into the sender unit itself and with the addition of a few cable
ties to keep the wiring secure and safe the whole shooting match is ready to go again. Oh BTW
dont forget a fresh fill of WR35TMX Transmission Fluid!

Here is the finished result. Neat, functional and able to be read while driving the car without being
too intrusive. An SST temperature gauge will teach you all sorts of things about your transmission
- the most important being that heat isnt as big an issue as you might have been told..... :)
 
#19 ·
Too much conflicting information going around....

Gunzo says it will happen and Willall says it wont

:tumbleweed:
 
#20 ·
There are way way too many variables here, the track, speeds, gearbox, mod, etc etc

Fluid on it's own will never be a cure, it's just not possible. The transmission creates heat and on those variables it'll be more of less and have more or less spikes in that heat. He might have 400 laps, from what I can tell it's on the same track so maybe that track has what the SST needs, but not every track is the same, nor is every driver.

I'm not saying the fluid isn't a step in the right direction, but it's not a cure. I agree with Gunzo, I know ppl that have the fluid, and the fluid might keep temps more stable, but it does heat up faster as I'd expect something more dense to do. Also the denser it is the harder it is the shed temp. That is the big reason I've stayed with SSTF, it'll have less heat capacity but with proper coolers I can have it shed more heat faster, and the point of these transmissions is that you need to shed the heat it produces as fast as you can, cause you can't stop the heat, so controlling it best.

But as far as gear wear goes, that is a different story, so it depends on your goals and what you want to spend on a fix. I agree the upgraded fluids are good, but them alone won't solve slowdowns, it'll just change the variables on when and how.
 
#21 ·
The reality is that what we say is correct (from testing) and what Gunzo says may also well be correct. We can only report on what we see. The most important factor in building heat in any transmission is heat input versus heat rejection. Get that out of balance and problems will follow. The most common cause we have seen for the SST to reduce its ability to reject heat is the factory cooler becoming blocked/dirty which reduces its efficiency markedly. Clean it often and thats a step in the right direction! :)

As you say TheSin, wear is another story altogether.
 
#24 ·
Martin, you need to get a real shift knob for that car. That is a good idea though, I'll give you that, and if a person is careful, they probly could do it with a drill, or at the very least a drill press.
 
#25 ·
Everyone I have talked to that shifts manually in SS (or any mode for that matter) never gets the "slowdown" message. This is also the case for me, never overheats or gives me the "slowdown" message in manual SS mode. Martin never uses Auto, and therefore never overheats or gets this message. There is something too this folks...

Anyone ever overheat or get the "slowdown" in manual mode?
 
#26 ·
Everyone I have talked to that shifts manually in SS (or any mode for that matter) never gets the "slowdown" message. This is also the case for me, never overheats or gives me the "slowdown" message in manual SS mode. Martin never uses Auto, and therefore never overheats or gets this message. There is something too this folks...
Anyone ever overheat or get the "slowdown" in manual mode?
I cant think of any good reason to use the auto mode unless you are a complete novice. Its good, but it has no concept of balancing the chassis mid-corner etc. on any tracks I have tried it on. The best part of the SST is shifting it manually....and now by installing this gauge you will see that the temperature remains the same - although the slow downs may not - no matter how you shift the transmission :shades:
 
#27 ·
Manual shifting ftw, I use it 100% of the time. :godance:
 
#29 ·
Manual shift only if you want to be involved in driving and enjoy the drive..

you want to be faster leave it in auto .. you will NEVER be better than auto in SSport mode on track .. it is tested and proven .. :shades:

You actually heat up the gearbox by doing more frequent shiftings ..
 
#30 ·
I have gotten the overheat condition in manual mode several times. I also get it more in super sport mode than sport mode as the rpms stay in a higher rate for longer.

I have tried to beat my auto mode times in manual at the track and have never succeeded and it is not because I don't know how to shift. The factory box does quite a good job in auto, especially in super sport that I find no reason to manually shift as every corner at the track ends up in the proper gear and I would not pick a different gear than the auto box did. The only place I would find it better to use manual is on the street where you cannot predict reliably what you will encounter around the next corner and the manual selection of the proper gear will be a better choice than dealing with the delay or downshift hessitation and temporary gear selection pause or clutch slip that happens in auto where you can't use an immediate power direction change to get out of harms way.
 
#31 ·
I have gotten the overheat condition in manual mode several times. I also get it more in super sport mode than sport mode as the rpms stay in a higher rate for longer.

I have tried to beat my auto mode times in manual at the track and have never succeeded and it is not because I don't know how to shift. The factory box does quite a good job in auto, especially in super sport that I find no reason to manually shift as every corner at the track ends up in the proper gear and I would not pick a different gear than the auto box did. The only place I would find it better to use manual is on the street where you cannot predict reliably what you will encounter around the next corner and the manual selection of the proper gear will be a better choice than dealing with the delay or downshift hessitation and temporary gear selection pause or clutch slip that happens in auto where you can't use an immediate power direction change to get out of harms way.
Good to know the overheat is possible in manual mode too. You are the first one to answer this question and I have been asking it for almost two years now. Thanks man!
 
#35 ·
Honestly, who cares which is better; auto or manual for lap times and such. It really depends on the driver more than anything.

All that really matters is how do we stop the SST from overheating. Does auto vs. manual have some bearing. Is it a fluid thing, is it a cooler thing, is it both, is it none of the above? No one knows for sure and no one has a 100% accurate answer.

All I can say is I am going to start cheap and work my way up until I can cool the SST adequately to support my driving style (crappy as it may be) on the track. I already removed my fog lights. Next I will add a fan and try one of these:

http://boostanddestroy.com/mishimoto-universal-transmission-cooler-p-3033.html
 
#36 ·
Be careful adding a fan...it will help you when the car is going very slow and at a stop...at high speed when the transmission load is the greatest the fan actually acts as an airflow restriction and will increase transmission heat. This is why race cars rarely use fans on their cooling systems :)
 
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