Transmission lines

[Quadromaniac]

The radiator started leaking in my 54 Kaiser Early Special with the Hydromatic transmission. When I went to remove it I noticed there are no cooling lines. Is this correct? The radiator shop said they had never heard of an automatic with out cooling lines.

[joefrazer]

KF hydramatics were not externally cooled so there are no lines. That fact, together with the heavy cast iron case didn't help with service life.

I seem to recall seeing Kaiser that was fitted with an external cooler at a meet not too long ago. Can anyone confirm?

[DTort96646]

I have never seen an external oil cooler for any Kaiser Frazer hydramatic transmission. I don't know if there is a lube pressure port on the hydramatic  transmission case, but I never looked. If the is a lube pressure port on the case you could install an external cooler. A lube pressure port would have about 10 to 15 psi coming out of the transmission. You would only need a return port into the case that would open into the case above the oil pan. The early hydramatic and automatic transmissions used air flow over the torque convertor by the shape of the lower cover to direct air flow into the bellhousing area. Early AMC used a baffle on the torque convertor to cool the fluid. If my memory is correct there is an opening in the hydramatic torque convertor lower cover. When these cars were made folks usually didn't drive 25 miles stop and go to work. Trips were short, heat is generated in an automatic mainly from torque convertor slippage. Kaiser Frazer hydramatics also used a dual stage torque convertor. Heat was generally not a major problem in early hydramatics, so an external cooler is not really needed unless pulling a trailer up hills, and that type of use.

[Quadromaniac]

Thanks for the information.

[rialto]

The early GM 4 speed Hydramatic uses a fluid coupling not a torque converter. It only transmits power with a small amount of slippage. It doesn't multiply torque. That's why it needs four speeds.  The fluid coupling doesn't generate a lot of heat. A torque converter has lot of slippage under certain circumstances and gets hot. No transmission cooler was needed in a Kaiser

[DTort96646]

In the service literature the torque convertor is called a fluid coupling. It is more like a torque convertor than the fluid coupling used by Chrysler or Hudson of the same time period. The only parts missing in the Hydramatic fluid coupling is a stator and a sprag clutch. There is a driven torus and a driving torus, and are inside an outer shell. The Chrysler and Hudson fluid couplings needed an external release mechanism ie. clutch pedal so the vehicle could stop and change direction. All can be described as fluid couplings. This is a bit beyond the forum, but good trivia and helps explain why a cooler isn't necessary.