How To: 4th Gen V6 Radiator Replacement/Tranny Cooler Install

This is a how to replace the stock radiator in a 4th gen (2004 specifically) 4runner, V6, and also how to add an external transmission cooler.

Parts List
Radiator, I used this;
Spectra Premium OEM complete radiator- $134.27 as of 9/30/14
http://www.amazon.com/Spectra-Premi...1-2282-116-1-0&sr=1-8&ymm=2004:toyota:4runner

Transmission Cooler;
Hayden Automotive 512 High Performance Transmission Cooler- $38.63 as of 9/30/14
http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B000C3DDEA/ref=oh_aui_detailpage_o02_s00?ie=UTF8&psc=1
NOTE: The supplied hose is not enough, I purchased the Hayden hose, but any similar hose will work
http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B000HE6H3S/ref=oh_aui_detailpage_o02_s00?ie=UTF8&psc=1

The process is relatively simple and intuitive, only tools needed are basic metric wrenches, largest i believe is 17mm, pliers for hose clamps, and buckets/catch pans for the fluids

1. I started by popping the hood, removing the plastic trim from on top of the radiator/ac condenser, its plastic rivets that are very easy to remove
2. To make it easier to access, i took my from bumper off. this isn't necessary by any means, but made the job FAR easier.

3. Next, i got underneath the drivers side, at the bottom of the radiator, and put the catch pan underneath and drained the fluid out of the radiator. be patient, it takes some time to all come out
4. while its draining, you can take off the overflow tank. 3 bolts secure it, and the fluid can stay in it, just keep it upright. the hose that connects it to the radiator will leak fluid out, plug it with a rag and it'll be fine.
5. take off the radiator cap and put it somewhere you'll remember, you will need it for the new radiator.
6. on the drivers side of the radiator, for v6 only, are the two transmission lines that run to the radiator for cooling, they can be removed now, it takes some effort as they are on tight.
Note; if you're debating adding an external tranny cooler, keep this in mind. the transmission fluid temperature before it enters the radiator is actually LESS than the coolant temperature, so by cycling tranny fluid through the side of the radiator, it is actually being partially heated when it is sent back to the transmission
7. keep the tranny lines upright, it will prevent any fluid loss.
8. once the radiator is fully drained and the overflow tank and tranny lines are disconnected, you can unbolt it from the front frame. there are 4 bolts with nuts, washers, and rubber washers, if you want to do this with any efficiency, an extra set of hands helps.
9. if you haven't already, unbolt the fan shroud from the radiator. there are two bolts on the top, and it sits in channels on the bottom. it can't be taken out until the radiator is removed though, so rest it on the fan.
10. after some wiggling free, the radiator should lift right out. there will still be fluid in it, so have a catch pan or bucket ready, tilt it on its side, and then drain the rest out. you should end up with this;

note; my radiator leaked from the drivers side bottom, which is apparently common for 4th gen v6's
11. after removing the fan shroud, my engine bay looked like this

12. the next step to do is install the tranny cooler, theres lots of room and that makes it easy.
13. i first mounted the cooler to the condenser, its 4 zip tie like mounts, very easy to use.
14. i then measured my hose, attached it to the supply and return tranny lines, and made sure my supply line was going to the top of the cooler.
15. secure everything with the supplied hose clamps, then secure the rest of the hose with zip ties so they aren't moving around.
16. end product mounted

17. now you can put in the new radiator, but make sure you put the fan shroud back in first, or you'll have to remove the radiator again. this is how mine was shipped and what it looked like

18. reattach the 4 bolts that hold the radiator in, and i left the plastic caps that covered the holes for stock tranny lines on to keep crap out, 7k later and they haven't melted or moved, so its fine to do.
19.put the fan shroud back on, and reattach all the coolant hoses, and the overflow tank.
20. make sure the plug is in the radiator, then open the cap up and fill the radiator first.
21. if there is any room in the overflow tank, fill it, that way if the radiator isn't full it will pull from the overflow and you won't run it dry.
22. add transmission fluid before starting, then once the motor is running. monitor the level for a couple days to make sure it is correct. overfilling/underfilling are both bad
23. put the plastic trim cover back on the top of the radiator and condenser, monitor the levels, and you're done!

 

This may help others on this topic (at least who choose the B&M products)

 

Hey guys,

I have a 99 4rnr limited with 280k miles. Im about to install a new radiator, thermostat and came across this post. Is it advised to install a trans cooler since im already in thus far? I dont offroad or tow but trying to hit 500k miles and want to preserve neway possible...


Also, any tips to completely flush and clean engine before i run a new radiator?

 

if i had it all torn apart, id definitely think about it, it isn't hard and is good preventative maintenance.

 

Makes sense!
Any tips for thorough engine flush?

After all this is sorted, my next mod will be blacking the rims and painting everything black. Plastidip?

 

only way to truly flush it would be to pull the water pump, thermostat, etc. i think you'd be fine letting gravity drain out the radiator and by emptying the hoses and much as possible. plastidip is your best choice for easy blacking out for sure

 

Just watched a vid on pulling the water pump and what a PITA. My only concern is I dont want to push anything from the engine into my brand new rad I will be installing along with the external trans cooler.

 

i understand the concern, I'm not sure how big an issue it will be. you could always look into a coolant filtration kit

 

Awsome will do.

Also, did you happen to install an inline filter on your ext trans cooler?

 

i did not, theres a filter inside the trans

 

Just finished my new radiator and thermostat install. Just a quick tip for anyone, I used locking pliers to stop my tranny lines from leaking too much and unfortunately it was too tight and now I have a huge puddle of tranny fluid on my driveway. just fyi. other than that, pretty straight forward install. After 280k miles, things are a little more difficult and fragile but other than that, smooth sailing

 

Nice write up @wnelax04sr5 My rad leaked on drivers side lower corner which is apparently common, also from the petcock. Got it out fairly easily, now waiting on the rad to arrive. Tranny lines don't leak much, keep it up right which is easy. Maybe lost an ounce or two.

 

Useful stuff. A few notes though.
1. I installed a large trans cooler a couple of years after I had purchased my '04 SR5 new and immediately upon purchasing 2018 TRD Off Road without removal of anything at all except the top plastic cover in front of the radiator.
2. Last summer, replaced radiator and AC condenser on 2004 without - again - removal of anything at all except the top panel.
3. When buying replacement parts, don't buy aftermarket - I got burnt a few times with junk. Instead, go with Denso (http://densoautoparts.com/). This site is NOT Denso but it sells exact same OEM Denso stuff as stealership but MUCH cheaper. I think I paid about $117 for the radiator (stealer wanted over $300).

 

I'm still on a 15 year old OEM radiator on SR5 2005 4runner with 150,000 miles, and if it ain't broke, don't fix it. My rad coolant is always OTM (full) - no leaks.

I replaced the AC compressor last year after the OEM quit. Mechanic tested for leak and said replace ACC. Cools great again with just $186 new AC Compressor ordered from Amazon.

 

I noticed a seep at about 200,000 miles when AC quit and I started looking for a leak (and found it at condenser) so you should be good to go for some time.

 

I know this is old but, just thinking out loud. Wouldn't it be better to route the tranny cooling lines into and out if the radiator and then into and out of the tranny cooler? That way you'd have two coolers in series rather than just one. Might be a little more work but it would definitely keep the fluid cool.

 

Yes, that is the correct way to route an aux cooler. The rad cooler first to cool the hot fluid (& heat it up when too cold) then the aux cooler to do the final extra cooling. & when at idle or low speeds an aux cooler does almost nothing since it needs air flow to work.

 

I have 150,000 miles on my 2005 4runner - purchased from new. It's all OEM tranny and engine. Runs like new still.

I've had several new cars other than Toyotas.

IMO fooling around like proposed here could void your warranty and if you are not a good mechanic could ruin your engine/car.

Just leave it alone until you run into a problem - like overheat or alarm/warning. These 4runners can go to 500,000 miles plus with just oil changes.

Good luck anyway!

 

Thanks for letting us know how many miles you have on your 4runner & that you've had several new cars other than toyotas. What does any of that have to do with this thread?? Maybe you can post a pic of a fish too?

& What warranty does any 4th gen 4runner have? Can't void an expired warranty.

How is preventative maint "fooling around" or adding a aux trans cooler going to cause any harm to the engine/car? Looks like he did a pretty good job & will avoid an overheat from a failing radiator or trans damage from towing or off roading with an added trans cooler... you know, like toyota uses on the V8's.

To anyone reading this in the future, DO NOT take captn's advice & just wait until you have a problem, inspect parts on your vehicle & do preventative maint before you have a problem.

 

Toy Yoda garbage. Move along.

He'll probably have more to blab about here. AH!

 

"Garbage"= FACTS! Can't even address the statements huh? That's ok captn aka F150, typical nonsense from you as usual.

 

Hello there. When I did this work, the 4runner had 115k on it. I sold it at 188K in 2017, and I drove by it on the highway a few months ago. If it has a new transmission in it, I highly doubt it was because I added a cooler. Your definition of fooling around and mine are quite different it seems...

 

Just reread the OP and thought I'd pass along some advice. Take it for what it's worth, it's just my opinion. I clicked the link for the cooler provided in the OP. It says the cooler is for full size vehicles towing up to 2500 lbs. The OP bypassed the cooler in the radiator and is only cooling his ATF with the added one. In my opinion this has likely REDUCED the cooling ability from what it was with the cooler in the radiator. As I said in my earlier response, the better way would be to route the fluid through the factory cooler, then through the new cooler and back to the tranny. I'd hate for anyone to do a lot of heavy towing, thinking the OP's setup is protecting their tranny. Again, this is just my (somewhat educated) opinion.
On a different note: I'm gonna be changing out my ATF soon, using the method described on another site where you let the internal pump in the tranny pump out the old fluid in stages. I think when I do that I'll go ahead and install one of these on mine. And lastly, I have a question for anyone who knows. It appears to me that when this cooler is mounted it will be up against the condenser. I'm wondering if over time the vibration between the cooler and the condenser might rub a hole in one or the other, or both. Anyone have an opinion this? I think I might try to sandwich some small pieces of rubber in a few places between the two parts to avoid this. What do you guys think about that? Thanks

 

Hes a troll who posts nonsense then when called out or asked to back up his statements just calls you names or posts pics of a boat or fish or how much money he has. He got banned from another 4runner forum for the constant misinfo & attacks.

Yes that is the correct way to route the aux cooler, i posted a diagram showing that above. All makers of these aux coolers sugest doing it that way for a street driven car, for all out racing applications you can get away with bypassing the rad cooler since they do very little sitting still or stop & go traffic, these aux coolers need air flow to work.

Aux coolers come with rubber pads that go in between the condensor & cooler to protect from vibration & to keep the cooler off the condensor or radiator for non a/c cars.

 

I know who you're referring to here and I totally agree. But he wasn't the OP of the thread. Just don't want to disparage the OP who I think meant well, just gave out some bad info.

So they supply the rubber pads. That's what I needed to know. I looked at a few on Amazon but I didn't see the pads. Thanks for your help.

 

Sorry for any confusion, I wasnt referring to the OP, it was replying to the post above yours about the "fooling around" & voiding a non existent warranty etc etc...

Yes the rubber isolator pads are included as part of the installation hardware, you can see them in the pic here, little square pads.

https://www.summitracing.com/parts/...MIvarwrNqo8AIV4R-tBh241gKYEAQYBCABEgLlc_D_BwE

 

After looking at tranny coolers on Amazon for a few days and not being able to decide which one I liked best I had an idea. Why not get one that will bolt right up. For about $60-$80 I can get an aftermarket replacement for a V8. It will bolt right up and look factory. Rock Auto has several different ones from $55 to $100. I think I'm going to order the one made by TYC. I'd rather get a genuine Toyota but they run from $350 to $486 depending on where you look. And if I bought a universal one it would be aftermarket anyway. At least this will be easier to install and will look factory.

 

To follow-up on my previous post, I decided to check into getting a used OEM cooler. Locally they wanted $125. I found one that looks good on eBay that was originally listed at $99 but they had it on a 24 hour sale for 40% off or $59.95. They had the "make an offer" option so I offered $50 and they took it. Works out good for me. I get used OEM for about 15% of the cost of a new one. I'll flush it out good and it should be good to go. And it'll be so much easier to install than the aftermarket ones.

 

good deal. please update this when you install it.

 

I sure will. I'll try to remember to take a few pics.