Friday, Oct 11, 2013 at 01:19
Dodger -
Ross has nailed all the points
well. All automatics should be fitted with an oil cooler for towing, particularly long distance towing, or towing in hilly country.
I understand the current Mazda BT-50 6 speed auto transmission is the Ford 6R80 model transmission, as fitted to the current model Ford
Ranger and the F150 in the U.S. - and the Americans manufacture an aftermarket transmission oil pan for the 6R80 that is cast alloy, and which holds another 2.8L.
Both the extra oil capacity and the cast alloy pan help greatly with heat dissipation.
An automatic tranny shouldn't exceed a temperature of more than 250 deg F or 121 deg C, or you will find seals becoming hardened and leaks starting.
On these electronic transmissions, overheating will melt the plastic insulation on the solenoids and wiring, resulting in solenoid failure.
One U.S. transmission repairer recommends a maximum of 200 deg F (93 deg C) for the 6R80 - and claims that every extra 20 deg F (over 200 deg F) in operating temperature, reduces transmission life by a factor of 2.
http://etereman.com/blog/ford-f-series/potential-problems-to-look-out-for-with-the-6r80-transmission/
All OEM designs utilise the minimum amount of oil that the engineers reckon is good enough for average operating conditions, with a small portion of extreme operating conditions included.
Towing a big van a substantial distance on a hot day, is called constant extreme operating conditions - and this is operating conditions way outside Mazda engineers calculations.
Cheers - Ron.
FollowupID:
799665