I was looking at buying an aftermarket transmission pan so I could get one that had a drain plug. However, I got to talking to a friend at the shop and he said that the existing transmission pan is thick enough somewhere that you can actually drill and tap it for a plug or that there is something out there on the market that would allow me to do something similar to my existing pan that would enable me to have a drain plug on it.

I just am not sure I want to part with $200 some odd bucks for a pan that has a drain plug. Any suggestions would be great.

 

Yea Ive heard you can add a plug to the factory pan. I mean, you could have a bung welded to it. But you still have stock capacity, and no cooling fins. Now, I dont have a clue to how much cooling fins ACTUALLY cool the fluid or not, but the aftermarket pans are stronger than factory and can hold more fluid. More fluid= cooler fluid. And when I put my trans in, I used the Mag HyTech pan to jack it up into position. It was a b**ch under there, but thats another story.

My opinion is get a Mag HyTech or PML pan...

 

Just courious, how does more fluid mean cooler fluid? Eventually, it's still going to get to the same temperture, it's just going to take longer? Unless the cast in cooling fins actually do make a difference, I don't see how just adding more fluid is going to keep the fluid cooler.

 

i went with a maghytech double deep, my temp went from an average of 180 down to aan average of 150-160, my vote also goes with the after market pan.

 

I agree with all the others there is a lot more to an aftermarket drain pan than just the drain plug. The life expectancy of an auto is directly proportionate to the fluid temp. If you buy a mag hytec double deep you will understand why they cost 260.00 when you get it in your hands. I saw a reduction of between 10-20 degrees after installing the double deep pan.

 

Yes, true. Thats basically what I meant. It will eventually get up to temp, but does take longer. I actually do think the fins help; Ive been sitting in a drive-thru, and glanced at my trans temp. Pushing 195. Thats a little warm for me. And itll start climbing; slowly, but you can sit there and watch the needle move. Ive put it in neutral, to take the load off it, and itll SLOWLY creep down. By the time I get my food, its still aweful toasty. After driving 2 blocks its definately going down. Especially when I hit the interstate. In cold weather, driving I80, temps typically drop to around 130. Perfect....

So I do think the fins help quit a bit