KEEPIN IT COOL : MOBY'S New MoTECH Modifications

wayoflife

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As some of you may know, Cindy and I have been working hard to get Moby ready for the final JKX and soon after we picked him up from Off Road Evolution, we took him out to Motech where we had asked Robbie to try something a little different.
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For the most part, Moby ran fine with Camaro fan we had installed a while back but he still ran a bit hotter than we would have preferred and struggled to keep his trans temp down after a long slower climb up a steep grade. By the time we'd get to the top, the fan would be working hard to cool off the engine and it did but once it did, the trans would be left to keep cooking. Even at that, it wasn't too big of a deal if we could just sit around and let things cool off but being that we're taking him on the JKX and knowing how things go on it, sitting around wasn't going to be an option. So.... this is what we asked him to do.
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Yup, what you're looking at is the very first JL Wrangler fan installed on a JK with an LS!
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It was a tight fit and some trimming of the shroud was needed but Robbie was able to get it in and his initial tests showed it to work well!

But, for good measure and to help address our transmission temps, Robbie recommended that we add an additional cooler and had a nifty solution for it.
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As you can see, it's tucked up in between the frame rail and rocker guard and should be protected well. And, even if it gets hit, the fins may grind down or break but the cooler should still be okay. At least, it's something we thought would work out well and are eager to give a try.
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In fact, we're so confident that this new cooler will help, Robbie installed another on the driver side and with the plan of making it an oil cooler.
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Unfortunately, we ran out of time and needed to get back home and so, we left that for another visit.

So, how'd everything work out? Well, when we left Motech, it was 104 out and the climb up to Indian Springs is typically a hard one. Essentially, there are 3 long grades you have to climb and with little time for your engine to cool off in between them and by the time you reach the third one, Moby typically ran pretty hot. In the past, we always had to make this climb with the AC off and even at that, we'd typically see a coolant temp in the 240 range and a trans temp at over 220. Not quite over heating but not good.

With the new JL Wrangler fan, Moby's coolant ran at a nice 221 the whole way up AND with the AC on the whole time!! Thanks to the new transmission cooler, it's temp never broke 170. :wings:
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The rest of the drive home was only in the 90's and our engine was averaging a nice cool 208 or less. The further north we got and with the sun going down, the cooler it got and our temps really settled in at a nice 197 on coolant and 154 on trans.
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So, I should note that before we left Vegas and while it was still in the triple digits, Cindy and I did some testing to purposefully get Moby's temps up. A lot of hard abrupt throttling and then coming to a stop and doing it again. Basically, making his engine work really hard and not give him a chance to cool off. This did get his coolant temp to climb up to 230 but the JL Wrangler fan kept it there. Trans never broke 200. This was a HUGE improvement over what we were seeing in the past.

Oh, one other side note, we had Robbie remove the speed limiter on Moby too. Before, we'd get up to 95 MPH and he'd top out. On the way home, I got him up and over 100 MPH :thumb:
 
Sounds like Moby is much better off with that JL fan. Very nice!

When I first looked at this shot I have to admit I couldn’t figure out how you’d get this fan to work on the trail. [emoji23]

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Glad to hear nothing is holding Moby back now too! [emoji1303]
 
Very cool.... not that it matters, but will Moby now have that loud fan noise on the trail like Jet does... or is that just a JL computer thing?
 
Very cool.... not that it matters, but will Moby now have that loud fan noise on the trail like Jet does... or is that just a JL computer thing?

In theory, yes but so far, I haven't heard it get as bad as it can get on the JL. For the most part, it's pretty quite and when it does need to work harder, we've only been seeing it get up to 69%. I think the only time it got loud is when I was really pushing things and got the engine to 230 but that didn't last long. I think as a whole, the JL run hotter and that's why the fan on it is always screaming.
 
Glad to hear that Moby is cooler than ever!

Thanks! This was without question, one of the best updates we've made to date. Fortunately, Robbie is always good about listening to me and being open to try new things. Of course, his cooler idea and placement of them was awesome :yup:
 
Wow. That's awesome. Can you provide some info on that trans cooler? I've been planning on getting an extra one and that design is sleek.
 
Wow. That's awesome. Can you provide some info on that trans cooler? I've been planning on getting an extra one and that design is sleek.

I should note that what you're looking at is a secondary cooler. We still have the 8x11 B&M plate style cooler up front. That being said, this is an inline cooler and they can be bought in different lengths and sizes. Amazon has a few https://amzn.to/2H14RgH but you can also find some at Summit.
 
Dang, that is awesome. Great idea with the JL fan, they are monsters. Pretty cool idea for the trans cooler and while I think it will hold up well too, I hope it does. Glad to see moby getting all this love, one bad ass Jeep!

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Big brother taking a page from little brother. Awesome. And why am I not surprised you guys pushed him over 100mph. But I just say, the fact that you were able to safely drive at that speed is a testament to the work that ORE does and the quality of their designs. Super cool.
 
I should note that what you're looking at is a secondary cooler. We still have the 8x11 B&M plate style cooler up front. That being said, this is an inline cooler and they can be bought in different lengths and sizes. Amazon has a few https://amzn.to/2H14RgH but you can also find some at Summit.

Sweet. Thanks. Very affordable too. I have another Winter project now.
I have 2 OEM coolers as well but going uphill in the summer with gear/tools, larger tires, etc, I can feel a ton heat from the tunnel that I didn't used to.
 
Nice with the 37s I’m having to turn off AC on long climbs now . Do you have recommendations or links to what you used to run for trans cooler ? Would buy off that if it would help the forum . Also what is that temp gauge ? I hate how the favorite Gauge is fake and doesn’t move until its already hot and jumps straight to 3/4 . Any other tips to keep things cooler ?


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Nice with the 37s I’m having to turn off AC on long climbs now . Do you have recommendations or links to what you used to run for trans cooler ? Would buy off that if it would help the forum . Also what is that temp gauge ? I hate how the favorite Gauge is fake and doesn’t move until its already hot and jumps straight to 3/4 . Any other tips to keep things cooler ?


Sent from my iPhone using WAYALIFE mobile app

That gauge is the Aeroforce gauge. I love mine and keep it set the same way Eddie does with trans and oil temps. It makes you a bit OCD always checking them, but it’s good to know exactly how it’s preforming. For oil on a 90+ day on the highway, I’ll run around 220-230 up long grades and hold around 210 flat. Trans will run around 198-210 on grades and usually holds at 192. That’s doing 75 for sustained periods of time with the AC on. On cool days it’s usually 176 trans and 204 oil. Great little tool. It’s interesting, with the top and AC off and the numbers are the same. A lot more drag with it opened up. On the trail at slow speeds it usually holds at 167 and 201.


2015 JKUR AEV JK350
1985 CJ8 Scrambler
 
That’s outstanding! Is the JL fan a lot louder than the Camero fan? My dads JL 2.0 L fan sounds like a small plane taking off when it ramps up.


2015 JKUR AEV JK350
1985 CJ8 Scrambler
 
Trans cooler makes a big difference in fluid temps...wait until you get that oil cooler hooked up...your coolant temps should lower also.

I’ve got fans on large oil & trans coolers on my JK6...I’ve never seen coolant temps over 212 or trans temps over 190...but I also don’t have ac (there was no room for it in the engine bay...

Can’t wait to see pics from the last JKX run...good luck!
 
Eddie, thanks for posting this and thanks that you [inadvertently] helped me make huge strides in all the issues I’m having with my build.

I have two threads on here about some overheating issues I had on my trip to Moab last month as well as some performance issues with the LS. Because Moby was at Motech at the same time as mine and had a similar build (similar, not exact...we covered this) Robbie was able to do some side by side testing. The result was him acknowledging that there is in fact something going on with it. He loaded your tune in mine and Moby is noticeably quicker/more responsive.

Anyway, glad this helped the cooling issues and looking forward to getting mine back with similar updates. Also hoping they find the issue that is causing the sluggishness but confident they will.
 
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