It all started after reading some not so good reviews on the 42RLE 4-speed Overdrive Automatic Transmission used from 2003 to present Jeep Wrangler and realizing heat is responsible for 90% of all transmission failures also compounded by larger tires. I picked up a Flex-a-Lite (made in USA) Heavy Duty Transmission Cooler off Ebay for $20 and did some Google search's for anyone running an aftermarket trans cooler on a TJ but not much was found online for this job so I spent a few weeks thinking about the mounting and finally decided a couple pieces of cold rolled steel mounted horizontally across the front V support was my best choice. Remember if you use the plastic tie mount things which come with the trans cooler you risk damaging your condenser and/or radiator because the constant bouncing when off-road will eventually damage the thin fins and core so it needs to be hard mounted. The fittings which came with the cooler did not fit my 2006 Wrangler factory cooler lines so I opted to just cut the lines and use hose couplings from Lowe's to connect to the short rubber flex lines. After removing the Fan, Shroud, coolant, Radiator, and loosening the AC Condenser, I was finally able to remove the V support so I could work on the mounting. As I removed the V support water poured out of the ends when I flipped it over so I drilled several small drain holes to prevent trapped water from rusting it out. Turns out the cooler built into the radiator is so tiny and cheap I just completely left it out of the loop which makes things much easier because you don't need to figure out which line is the cooler return, if your leaving the stock cooler in line the upper line on the trans is the cooler return. The 42RLE Series transmissions should only use AFT+4 Full Synthetic fluid at $5 a quart is now readily available in auto parts stores and much cheaper than dealerships. If you decide to change the trans fluid while your at it the factory specs call out 2 capacities for 42RLE, a dry fill of 8.8 Quarts or 8.3 Liters and service fill of 4 Quarts or 3.8 Liters, both capacities will vary depending on type and size of trans cooler used.

Parts
Flex-a-Lite TransLife Part #4120-20,000 GVW
4 10X24 X 1" Allen head bolts
4 10X24 X 1 1\4" Allen head bolts
3/8 Hose (included with cooler)
2 Hose couplers 3\8 Brass or steel
4 Adel Clamps #6 (Rubber Lined)
6 Hose Clamps (4 included with cooler)
2 Steel Pieces Cold Rolled 1\8 X 3\4 X 3 ft.
1 Gal. Prestone Dex-Cool (Extended Life Formula)

Optional
5 Quarts Valvoline ATF+4 (Full Synthetic)
1 Trans filter TF175 (42RLE)

Mark,
Nice job on the install, very well thought out.

Not bad for $20 bucks, although it was a lot of work I took my time and enjoyed the work.

Mark, any suggestions on where to mount this trans cooler on the Jeepspeed??

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Nice trans cooler, who made it? Can it mount behind the front grill somehow?

Perma Cool brand, I bought it used off NAXJA. Was on a Super Duty truck. Sold new for about $140. It is tight in front of the Radiators on the cherokees. Was a good deal for $40 bucks. I want it to be protected and the best place would be in the rear cargo area. Yhen there would be a heat issue and Im not sure if Im ready to loose the hatch lol What do u guys think??????????

Eric, I have seen them mounted under the hood on a fender, would that work if you moved a couple things?

hot rodders mount them in trunks all the time, but with the hatch style it'll be too noisy. will it tuck up anywhere under the body? or like mark suggested in the engine bay somewhere

There is room where my stock air box was or when i move the battery to the rear there will be more room. Thanks for the help guys.