Wait, do I have AC?

As far as I know my '87 truck doesn't have AC (which is surprising since it's the Sport trim, which I thought it meant it had all the good stuff, but maybe AC was an option). The spot where the AC button goes on the temperature controls is a blank.
But, I was just poking around the front grille looking for something else and noticed this thing that looks like a tiny radiator, in front of the regular radiator, this:
Attachment 21735Attachment 21736

I looked up the Haynes manual and it says that the AC systems "consists of a condenser mounted in front of the radiator", an evaporator, a compressor, etc...
I haven't looked for the other pieces, as I need to do some research on what they look like so I know what I'm looking for, but is this thing in the photos the condenser?... If not that, what else can it be?

If this is the AC condenser, what do the other parts look like? anyone have any photos of what the evaporator and compressor look like?

If your truck is an auto it could be an aftermarket trans cooler. The compressor will be located on the front of the engine and will have a seperate belt for it i believe. It i remember correctly the compressor and power steering are one v belt and the alternator is another. If your truck had ac at one point it will have a push button that says ac on the temp controller in the middle if it didnt it will have a black rectangle plug in its place.

The easiest thing to do, follow the lines. I suspect t97 is spot on with trans cooler. I've also seen them used for engine oil or power steering.

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Originally Posted by t97

If your truck is an auto it could be an aftermarket trans cooler. The compressor will be located on the front of the engine and will have a seperate belt for it i believe. It i remember correctly the compressor and power steering are one v belt and the alternator is another. If your truck had ac at one point it will have a push button that says ac on the temp controller in the middle if it didnt it will have a black rectangle plug in its place.

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It has the black rectangle plug on the controller, that's why I figured it didn't have ac.
It is an auto, that's an interesting theory about the transmission cooler. Why would something like that need to be added?
When you say the compressor, you mean the ac compressor, as in IF it had ac them the compressor would be be driven of the same belt as the power steering?
Thank you

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Originally Posted by Giovanni89

The easiest thing to do, follow the lines. I suspect t97 is spot on with trans cooler. I've also seen them used for engine oil or power steering.

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Good point, I'll follow the lines in the morning. Too damn cold right now...
Thoughts on why would something like that need to be added? (assuming this is not stock)

If the truck was ever used for any hauling or any work at all it would have been a good addition. The truck has a transcooler in the radiator stock so the could have bypassed it or just added a second one for that added protection. Heat and nasty fluid are an automatic transmissions worst nightmare so theres really no downside to there being another one on your truck. They could have not been able to find the correct radiator and had to add that auxiliary one in its place. Look at the bottom of your radiator if it has 2 extra ports then its the correct rad.

Correct if it has an ac compressor it would be ran on the accessory drive belt with the power steering pump.

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Originally Posted by t97

If the truck was ever used for any hauling or any work at all it would have been a good addition. The truck has a transcooler in the radiator stock so the could have bypassed it or just added a second one for that added protection. Heat and nasty fluid are an automatic transmissions worst nightmare so theres really no downside to there being another one on your truck. They could have not been able to find the correct radiator and had to add that auxiliary one in its place. Look at the bottom of your radiator if it has 2 extra ports then its the correct rad.

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So having the extra transmission cooler ensures that the transmission fluid wont get overheated under harsh conditions?
This truck had a front end collision before me, so it's possible that the radiator had to be replaced, and like you said, they couldn't find the right one so they had to improvise with the extra cooler. I'll check the bottom in the morning.

Thats the concept. Im sure under heavy load ut could still get overheater or if you had a clog somewhere but under normal conditions it will keep the trans running at a lower temperature for longer. Theres nothing wrong with having that cooler instead of the one in the radiator as long as its the right size.

The trans cooler does a couple of things. Increases the volume of transmission oil in the system (a good thing) and also reduces the transmissions' operating temperature independently of the engine cooling system (2 good things) Heat is the #1 cause of transmission failure next to overloading it's towing capacity.

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Originally Posted by t97

If the truck was ever used for any hauling or any work at all it would have been a good addition. The truck has a transcooler in the radiator stock so the could have bypassed it or just added a second one for that added protection. Heat and nasty fluid are an automatic transmissions worst nightmare so theres really no downside to there being another one on your truck. They could have not been able to find the correct radiator and had to add that auxiliary one in its place. Look at the bottom of your radiator if it has 2 extra ports then its the correct rad.

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Confirmed that this is a transmission cooler, followed the lines and it checks out. The radiator has the 2 extra ports on the bottom, and it looks like the transmission fluid is passing through the radiator first, and then though the additional cooler before going back to the transmission (or vice versa, not sure which direction the fluid is travelling).

In any case, thanks for the education. Now I know, and glad to have the extra cooling.

Does the truck have a trailer hitch?

Great avatar, by the way :)

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Originally Posted by royster

Does the truck have a trailer hitch?

Great avatar, by the way :)

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It has the bumper with the hole for the hitch, but it doesn't look like there was ever a ball installed on it. Maybe the truck was used to carry heavy loads... when it showed up at the auction the bed was full of topsoil, and that's not light...

Thanks:thumbup:

I think the tow rating is pretty conservative on these things. As I understand it, the aw372 is the same transmission used in the much larger, heavier volvo 740 sedans of the same era. I don't have a trans temp gage, but I've towed at an all in weight of about 6k pounds without feeling totally overworked. I just did my trans filter at 252k, last time 217k, and there was barely any friction material in the pan

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Originally Posted by Giovanni89

I think the tow rating is pretty conservative on these things. As I understand it, the aw372 is the same transmission used in the much larger, heavier volvo 740 sedans of the same era. I don't have a trans temp gage, but I've towed at an all in weight of about 6k pounds without feeling totally overworked. I just did my trans filter at 252k, last time 217k, and there was barely any friction material in the pan

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Good to know that it can handle some decent weight.

This question probably belongs in a different thread, but since I have the attention of the experts here, I might as well ask...

I have the bumper with the hole for the hitch ball, but I'd like to be sure that it was installed properly to be able to pull the weight. Can you tell from this pictures if the bumper is properly attached for towing:
Attachment 21742Attachment 21743

And, are these plugs hanging behind the bumper for connecting the lights on a trailer? Or are they just the original leftover connections for the license plate lights, from before the bumper (which has lights built into it) was put on?

Attachment 21744

Thanks for the input, guys!

That's definitely a home brew bumper mount. I don't like the lack of lateral support on the piece connected to the frame. The factory mount has curved edges so that the whole mount is essentially a channel section. Not sure if the factory mount uses 2 or 3 bolts, but 2 bolts form a line, not a plane, and you don't get much strength from that. I'll try to remember to take a pic of my factory mounts. I wouldn't load that bumper up personally

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Originally Posted by Giovanni89

That's definitely a home brew bumper mount. I don't like the lack of lateral support on the piece connected to the frame. The factory mount has curved edges so that the whole mount is essentially a channel section. Not sure if the factory mount uses 2 or 3 bolts, but 2 bolts form a line, not a plane, and you don't get much strength from that. I'll try to remember to take a pic of my factory mounts. I wouldn't load that bumper up personally

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Ha ha, yeah.... I had a feeling that was the case. I've installed 1.25" trailer hitches for a bike rack that were sturdier than this.
What about he plugs? do you know if they are there for a trailer, or just leftover?

Love the Truck!!!
Late to the thread, a couple of thoughts.
1) That Auxiliary trans cooler is a 'Bar and Plate' design, the benchmark of efficient cooling
and Factory installed!!!( banjo fittings).
2) Someone fab'd that bumper--- not a bad thing--- from the 2 photos looks like 1/4" plate
was the mounting material of choice??? plenty strong.
However,
Pretty sure the 2'nd gen has 4 holes in the rear frame horns to mount bumper brackets.
One more mount bolt per side, good to go !

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Originally Posted by claych

Love the Truck!!!
Late to the thread, a couple of thoughts.
1) That Auxiliary trans cooler is a 'Bar and Plate' design, the benchmark of efficient cooling
and Factory installed!!!( banjo fittings).
2) Someone fab'd that bumper--- not a bad thing--- from the 2 photos looks like 1/4" plate
was the mounting material of choice??? plenty strong.
However,
Pretty sure the 2'nd gen has 4 holes in the rear frame horns to mount bumper brackets.
One more mount bolt per side, good to go !

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Thanks! Check out my thread on the member introduction section for some background on it.

Good to know it's not a crappy cooler :) How can you tell it was factory installed? Didn't realize that was an option offered. Maybe it was some kind of "Towing package", but I guess then the mounting of the bumper would've been done properly.....hmmmm

Yes, I think it is 1/4" plate. The piece that connects the bumper (it's welded to it) with the piece with the bolts is an "L" shape bar. You can see better on this picture
Attachment 21745

Are you suggesting that if there was a third bolt on that vertical plate it could handle a tow?

It appears they only left the factory with two bolts. You can see that the stock bumper bracket is flanged top and bottom. This adds a good deal of strength. That plate coming down off the frame does look pretty thick. Just double check with a loaded up trailer that it doesn't wiggle all over. Those plugs are probably for license plate lights. My truck has 4. 2 on the roll pan and 2 on the bumper.
Some of my larger tows
Attachment 21746Attachment 21747Attachment 21748Attachment 21749

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Originally Posted by Giovanni89

It appears they only left the factory with two bolts. You can see that the stock bumper bracket is flanged top and bottom. This adds a good deal of strength. That plate coming down off the frame does look pretty thick. Just double check with a loaded up trailer that it doesn't wiggle all over. Those plugs are probably for license plate lights. My truck has 4. 2 on the roll pan and 2 on the bumper.
Some of my larger tows
Attachment 21746Attachment 21747Attachment 21748Attachment 21749

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I see what you mean. The one on mine is an L shaped, so that's probably pretty strong, but I guess the weak points is where that bracket meets the vertical plate and the bumper (welded).
Did you rig a wire for the trailer tail lights?

Nice truck by the way.

.....;)

Thanks, she's got some rot in the body. Theres some painted tape covering holes around the wheel well and some dubious patches to the floors/rockers. But the frame is pretty solid.
Yes, I put in the trailer wiring. I used a trailer converter, which you wire into the factory light wires. Because the standard trailer lighting is a combination tail/brake/turn light, not a tail/brake plus amber turn that we have on our trucks.
If you look in the bumper bracket photo, you will see a piece of angle iron running across the back of the frame holding up the exhaust. In the middle of that is a gray box. I ran a heavy power line back to that box, and used relays triggered by the trailer converter. This keeps the load of the trailer lights from being put on the factory wiring. The power line feeding the rear comes from an auxiliary marine fuse panel I have under the hood. That fuse panel is fed straight from the battery through a 100A continuous duty solenoid that is triggered by the original ignition wire. The panel feeds my trailer lights, fog lights(which are just on with the key), ignition, auxiliary gauges, fuel pump, and electric choke on the weber.
It's a bit complicated, but it keeps a healthy voltage supply to the big watt suckers.

Quote:

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Originally Posted by Giovanni89

Thanks, she's got some rot in the body. Theres some painted tape covering holes around the wheel well and some dubious patches to the floors/rockers. But the frame is pretty solid.
Yes, I put in the trailer wiring. I used a trailer converter, which you wire into the factory light wires. Because the standard trailer lighting is a combination tail/brake/turn light, not a tail/brake plus amber turn that we have on our trucks.
If you look in the bumper bracket photo, you will see a piece of angle iron running across the back of the frame holding up the exhaust. In the middle of that is a gray box. I ran a heavy power line back to that box, and used relays triggered by the trailer converter. This keeps the load of the trailer lights from being put on the factory wiring. The power line feeding the rear comes from an auxiliary marine fuse panel I have under the hood. That fuse panel is fed straight from the battery through a 100A continuous duty solenoid that is triggered by the original ignition wire. The panel feeds my trailer lights, fog lights(which are just on with the key), ignition, auxiliary gauges, fuel pump, and electric choke on the weber.
It's a bit complicated, but it keeps a healthy voltage supply to the big watt suckers.

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Thanks for the synopsis on the wiring, I might have a question or tow by the time I get around to doing this...:)

Ona different note, do I see two exhaust pipes coming out of the muffler? And are they both coming straight out of the back? Was that factory, or a mod you did? Mine is same year as yours, and it has only one exhaust pipe, and it comes out right behind the right rear tire.

I separated the downpipe and ran true duals. I"ll have to do a little write up on my rig. I haven't done one yet. Sounds big and burbly at idle, and kind of like a pissed off tractor at speed haha