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SST Trans Temp Gauge w/OEM Pan

40K views 49 replies 24 participants last post by  Strider327 
#1 ·
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..... :)
 
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#24 ·
I love being apart of a forum community. I have had the DEFI Pro-Racer Gauges sitting at home in a box waiting to get them installed in my X. Will be doing this in when I get back in January. Thanks for the information and the link to the part!
 
#26 ·
How did your installation go? Is your temp gauge the Defi DF067? If so, did you use the sensor that was included? Where and how did you tap the sensor?

Thanks man. I'm considering the same gauge.
 
#25 ·
Great write-up! I'm planning to do a cooler along with fuild and filter change in a few weeks. A gauge would be icing for me.

Question:
What is normal operating temperature range for the SST or any given Automatic trans? OP opted for a VDO sensor with 150 sweep. What did you all use? What temperature is considered CALIENTE!? 150?
 
#32 ·
Great post by the OP!

Question:
What is normal operating temperature range for the SST or any given Automatic trans? OP opted for a VDO sensor with 150 sweep. What did you all use? What temperature is considered CALIENTE!? 150?
Teh OP's temp gauge is in Celsius and he mentioned his temp never goes above 120*C, which converts to 248*F. 150*C sweep = 300*F sweep. :D

Sorry to thread necro... I am using the AEM Trans Temp gauge which has a 1/8 NPT sensor what type of adapter would I have to use for this sensor so I don't attempt to thread something that isn't NPT into something that is... or vice versa. I am not sure but I am willing to be a M16 bolt comes in more then one thread type. What thread type is the SST tranny drain plug? NPT? is the drain plug the same thread and type as the fill plug? I was thinking of using the fill plug as a temporary solution so I don't have to drain my fluid. I realize it won't be as accurate using the fill plug. just a temporary solution so I can run my temp sensor while I wait for my SSP deep dish pan.
The drain plug is a M16x1.5mm, 1/8 NPT is 1/8 inch "National Pipe Thread", a very common size. I don't see how installing the sensor on the fill plug is a good solution. Just wait till you get the SSP pan and do it right the first time.
 
#30 ·
alternative android solution

An alternative solution, not as good as a real gauge, but easier. If you have an android phone, try the “torque” application with a Bluetooth OBD II key. Let’s you monitor the SST temperatures (among other things such as video with gage overlay etc). You can create a custom gauge cluster then use your phone as the display.
 
#31 ·
Sorry to thread necro... I am using the AEM Trans Temp gauge which has a 1/8 NPT sensor what type of adapter would I have to use for this sensor so I don't attempt to thread something that isn't NPT into something that is... or vice versa. I am not sure but I am willing to be a M16 bolt comes in more then one thread type. What thread type is the SST tranny drain plug? NPT? is the drain plug the same thread and type as the fill plug? I was thinking of using the fill plug as a temporary solution so I don't have to drain my fluid. I realize it wont be as accurate using the fill plug. just a temporary solution so I can run my temp sensor while I wait for my SSP deep dish pan.
 
#37 ·
Yes, that data is indeed transmitted over the ODB2 bus. But it's NOT a part of the ECU data stream; rather it's part of the TCU data.

EVOScan and MUT3 will read it from the OBD2 data streams.
The torque app shows a tranny temp. This temp is identical to coolant temp at all times. Torque app supports custom PID's. Does anyone know the correct PID for tranny temp?????? Or do I have to run Evoscan or hardwire a gauge for accurate tranny temp?
 
#39 ·
Nobody knows the actual PID for the tranny.
Maybe, maybe not.

Here is the code line that collects TC-SST temp in EVOSCAN:

<DataListItem DataLog="N" Color="" Display="SST Raw Temp 38BC" LogReference="SST_Temp_38BC" RequestID="23808744" Eval="x" Unit="" MetricEval="" MetricUnit="" ResponseBytes="2" GaugeMin="0" GaugeMax="1000" ChartMin="0" ChartMax="1000" ScalingFactor="1" Notes="" Priority="5" Visible="False" LogHide="false" />
 
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