CSF worked closely with development partner, sponsored race team, and premier local CSF Dealer Studio RSR as well as Time Attack Teams such as Art of Attack and Velocity Performance on the ZF8 Automatic Transmission Oil Cooler. Their insight, experience, and testing feedback provided invaluable insight into designing the best cooler possible.
Design, Development, and Testing
While the OEM Transmission Cooler is adequate for the G8X in stock form, it starts to come up a bit short on modified/tuned vehicles. Specifically ones that see heavy track/competition use. Transmission oil temperatures have a major impact on the shifting performance of your automatic transmission. If the fluid passes optimal temperatures you will start to see some delays in shifting. Sluggish shifting can be quite frustrating, but the real concern is the damage that can be done to the transmission when temperatures get too high. There are often cases where drivers don't notice the change in shifting performance due to the gradual onset, but the damage is still being done slowly on a very expensive and important component.
Dual-Core Advantage
By changing from the OEM single core design to a dual core, CSF was able to increase the overall volume by 194%. This design offers a drastic improvement in heat dissipation and increases the fluid capacity of the coolers by ~94%. Utilizing CSF's AC Condenser Technology, a 1-Row Super-High Pressure 22mm 9-Channel Microtube design optimizes oil flow and offers maximum surface area contact. These features combine to offer the best possible heat dissipation from the system.
Rock Guard
CSF knows the kind of punishment the front of a car can take on or off the track. The wrong bit of debris flying through the front grille can quickly punch a hole in a cooler. Because the Transmission cooler sits at the very front of the center cooling stack, it is quite vulnerable to damage. In addition, "open face" race style grilles have become quite popular on the G8X. These grilles can add to the risk of debris passing through.
The factory grille is the only form of protection for the OEM transmission cooler. However, this still isn't the level of protection many race teams and enthusiasts are comfortable with. To address this concern, CSF has incorporated a replaceable rock guard to keep your cooler safe and your G8X running strong in the event of debris making it through the front grille.
OEM vs CSF
| Feature |
OEM |
CSF |
| Core & Tank Dimensions |
553mm (W) x 155mm (H) x 28mm (D) |
555mm (W) x 191mm (H) x 44mm (D) |
| Tubes & Rows |
13 Tubes & 14 Rows |
15 Tubes & 16 Rows |
| Fin Height |
8mm |
8mm |
| Design |
Single Core
Single Pass w/ Feed Pipe |
Dual Core
Dual Pass (front to back) |
The CSF Transmission Cooler features a unique dual pass design. You can see in the diagram below how the OEM Cooler's single pass design works by flowing across the core and back through a feed pipe. While perfectly functional, this gives some extra height to work with if you can eliminate the feed pipe.
The engineers at CSF came up with this unique design to take advantage of the extra vertical space while adding extra capacity and a dual pass system. This design essentially doubles the cooling capacity while still fitting perfectly in the OEM position with no modifications necessary.
Testing & Feedback
Studio RSR tested the new Transmission Oil Cooler on their G80 M3 Time Attack car during several events. The team competes in Global Time Attack events year round. In addition, their G80 M3 spends many weekends at the track to test new setups and modifications. Their experience and feedback on the real world performance of CSF products has been key in the development of all the new G8X cooling products.
There was a noticeable reduction in transmission temperatures on track. The combination of the transmission temps being in check and the new rock guard gave us extra peace of mind while on both the track and road.
Studio RSR
Velocity Performance has also been running the Transmission Oil Cooler along with the Front Mount Heat Exchanger (CSF #8215) on their G82 M4 track car. They have been very pleased with the performance of both.
Thank you CSF and their team for always coming out with the best cooling products in the market. Not only do we mainly offer CSF to our customers at Velocity Performance — we also tested the new Heat-Exchanger and also the Transmission Cooler from CSF on our G82 AWD M4 Time Attack Car. We immediately shaved 2 seconds effortlessly on just a practice set of tires!! Can't wait for the drop on all the other parts. Thank you for always making the leading products in the automotive industry!
Velocity Performance
Features
- Dual-Core Design
- 194% Increase in Core & Tank Volume
- 94% Increase in Fluid Capacity Compared to OEM (CSF 1700ml vs. OEM 875ml)
- Two 22mm Stacked Cores = 44mm Core Thickness vs. OEM 28mm Core Thickness
- Rear Cooler: 16 Rows vs. OEM 14 Rows (191mm Overall Height vs. OEM 155mm)
- Front Cooler: Additional 16 Rows
- Made with CSF's AC Condenser Technology Using a 1-Row Super-High Pressure 16mm 9-Channel Microtube for Optimal Oil Flow and Maximum Surface Area Contact
- Utilizes OEM Top/Bottom Rubber Seals for Optimal Airflow
- OEM Style "Quick Connect" Inlet/Outlet Connections
- Drop-in Fit Requires No Modifications to Install
- Can be Installed With CSF's High-Performance Heat Exchanger (CSF #8215) or with the OEM Cooling System
- 2-Year Limited Warranty
- Ideal for Road Racing, Drag Racing, and Vehicles With Increased Performance and/or Transmission Tuning
