Review of the ETL CVT Cooler

galarianash

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Hello Everyone!!!
I have a 2017 Honda Civic Hatchback (CVT)
Mod List so far:
Greddy DD exhaust non resonated
PRL cobra CAI
ETL cooler
(waiting for my sirimoto flex fuel kit, on backorder with no estimated ship date)
Removed weight, took out back seats, carpeting back there, and spare tire

I recently got the CVT trans cooler by ETL performance.
Link: https://etlperformanceproducts.com/products/transmission-oil-cooler-kit-honda-civic-cvt
First things first, this is a BITCH to install, mainly the part that links directly to the cvt filter.
It took me 3ish hours to get it right without leaks. For the performance overall, I notice a decrease in temps. I haven't done pulls with it yet, but that's because I'm waiting for more HCF-2 fluid since it drained me 4 times when I powered on the ignition, drained all of that cvt fluid, luckily only had a few quarts in there, then just added 1 just to make sure it wasn't leaking. I had to adjust it 3 times. The reason it's a pain is because, the engine bay is already cramped especially in that area.
After finally getting it so there's no leaks, I went out on a drive for around 1 hour on the highway, sometimes my temp got at around 215-225 during spirited driving. With this I didn't even cross the 200 mark.
One bit of advice, when installing this, don't use the method they show which is mounting it in the wheel well if you have the PRL CAI. I couldn't fit it there, so I mounted it in front of the radiator, right on that black bar when you take the bumper cover off. I ran the hoses through, over the CAI and through that little opening to the cooler. I will post an update on this once I fill her back up to the 3.9 quarts that are required so I can do a few big pulls and report my temps here. But so far a very very noticeable difference which can help prolong your transmission's life!

Future plans: waiting for sirimoto flex fuel kit
some NRG 800 series seats
MAP DP and FP
W1 Turbo
Custom tune
Sponsored

 

@that_1redcivic

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ahh I wouldn’t be driving at all with low CVT fluid your gonna mess something up man.
 

@that_1redcivic

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Hello Everyone!!!
I have a 2017 Honda Civic Hatchback (CVT)
Mod List so far:
Greddy DD exhaust non resonated
PRL cobra CAI
ETL cooler
(waiting for my sirimoto flex fuel kit, on backorder with no estimated ship date)
Removed weight, took out back seats, carpeting back there, and spare tire

I recently got the CVT trans cooler by ETL performance.
Link: https://etlperformanceproducts.com/products/transmission-oil-cooler-kit-honda-civic-cvt
First things first, this is a BITCH to install, mainly the part that links directly to the cvt filter.
It took me 3ish hours to get it right without leaks. For the performance overall, I notice a decrease in temps. I haven't done pulls with it yet, but that's because I'm waiting for more HCF-2 fluid since it drained me 4 times when I powered on the ignition, drained all of that cvt fluid, luckily only had a few quarts in there, then just added 1 just to make sure it wasn't leaking. I had to adjust it 3 times. The reason it's a pain is because, the engine bay is already cramped especially in that area.
After finally getting it so there's no leaks, I went out on a drive for around 1 hour on the highway, sometimes my temp got at around 215-225 during spirited driving. With this I didn't even cross the 200 mark.
One bit of advice, when installing this, don't use the method they show which is mounting it in the wheel well if you have the PRL CAI. I couldn't fit it there, so I mounted it in front of the radiator, right on that black bar when you take the bumper cover off. I ran the hoses through, over the CAI and through that little opening to the cooler. I will post an update on this once I fill her back up to the 3.9 quarts that are required so I can do a few big pulls and report my temps here. But so far a very very noticeable difference which can help prolong your transmission's life!

Future plans: waiting for sirimoto flex fuel kit
some NRG 800 series seats
MAP DP and FP
W1 Turbo
Custom tune
good to hear someone give a detailed review on the install and how it was leaking 👍🏼
it’s not super low, like 3ish quarts, but i agree!
haha anyway I was just looking at one of these today but that was my fear that it would leak also in the winter time I need that heater in there anyway
 

Bootleg Bill

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By any chance so you have photos of the installing or mounting place? I also been wanting to install this cvt cooler for a while.
 


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galarianash

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Hey Bootleg Bill! I'll attach some here, I already put on the front bumper so I don't have pics of the mounting points, but i just dead centered them on the black beam. The black beam is under the weather stripping for the front, and to mount it there, all I did was put it in front of the radiator. The second one is a pic of the cvt cooler in the mounting spot, I just need to straighten out the fins a bit.

Honda Civic 10th gen Review of the ETL CVT Cooler F74D209B-3DC8-4C21-A189-06FEE47EF58C


Honda Civic 10th gen Review of the ETL CVT Cooler D86CC9FB-6C44-4A16-88BD-A96BCE5AE84B
 
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galarianash

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If you do get any leaks, you can just add a tiny bit of thread sealant around it, and I learned torque it down a LOT to prevent the leaks.
 

Bootleg Bill

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If you do get any leaks, you can just add a tiny bit of thread sealant around it, and I learned torque it down a LOT to prevent the leaks.
Thanks for the reply this will help greatly do you remember the torque amount you used?
 

Civii

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Hey Bootleg Bill! I'll attach some here, I already put on the front bumper so I don't have pics of the mounting points, but i just dead centered them on the black beam. The black beam is under the weather stripping for the front, and to mount it there, all I did was put it in front of the radiator. The second one is a pic of the cvt cooler in the mounting spot, I just need to straighten out the fins a bit.

F74D209B-3DC8-4C21-A189-06FEE47EF58C.jpeg


D86CC9FB-6C44-4A16-88BD-A96BCE5AE84B.jpeg
The hoses the cooler came with can reach? Also, did you use the mounting hardware it came with? Maybe show a photo of the front grill that shows the placement of the radiator (CVT)?
 
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galarianash

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the hoses were actually too long i trimmed them with scissors to fit. i’ll get the pics here in a day or two, iust gotta take my bumper off to show you.
 


Edaw

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Two questions here
1) How did you mount it in front of the radiator?
2) I've read that there's somewhat of a 280ish lb-ft torque limit or else the CVT fluid heats and expands very quickly causing either your transmission to explode in some instances or other premature failures. Does this transmission cooler raise the performance possibility ceiling for the car at all? Or is this just an insurance measure to keep your transmission living longer with what we can already work with as far as performance increase?

Also thank you for making this thread in the first place, there's little information on these coolers :)
 
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galarianash

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The CVT torque limits aren't necessarily known. The whole 250 torque isn't true from what i've read, there is someone here that makes like 260 or 270. I would imagine that the CVT cooler doesn't improve performance until you're about to overheat. I can do many more pulls on the highway compared to before. I was very skeptical about the ETL at first because there were no in depth reviews. One of them literally just said something like it includes all the parts needed, I haven't installed it yet, and rated it 5 stars. Like how the hell can you rate it without using it? And of course it has all the parts to install.
Eventually I do want to test the actual torque limits. I have a spare CVT trans on hand as a failsafe. I want to test 300-350 lb/ft
 

chmst

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Honda Civic 10th gen Review of the ETL CVT Cooler PXL_20220517_193525099.MP
For anyone wondering, it still can be mounted with the PRL CAI. Just gotta have a few spare parts on hand.

e40 custom tune from IMW (27PSI)
RV6 r365 turbo
PRL turbo inlet
Race MAF
Skunk 2 intake manifold
Mishimoto FMIC full kit
3" catless downpipe
3" front pipe.
Forge BPV
Oil cooler
Etc

This cooler is a massive improvement, keeping my transmission temps reasonable even under extreme driving conditions. The cooler provided could be better, but that can be easily changed for something larger and more effective.
 
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galarianash

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PXL_20220517_193525099.MP.jpg
For anyone wondering, it still can be mounted with the PRL CAI. Just gotta have a few spare parts on hand.

e40 custom tune from IMW (27PSI)
RV6 r365 turbo
PRL turbo inlet
Race MAF
Skunk 2 intake manifold
Mishimoto FMIC full kit
3" catless downpipe
3" front pipe.
Forge BPV
Oil cooler
Etc

This cooler is a massive improvement, keeping my transmission temps reasonable even under extreme driving conditions. The cooler provided could be better, but that can be easily changed for something larger and more effective.
How much hp are you making currently?
 


 


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