That's what I suspect...but, hey, figure might as well experiment. I was very surprised to find not intermediate price point for one of these shift handles. Used amazon and ebay.


Ever since I bought this thing, I have been tinkering with one thing or another. This forum along with the elcova forum have been very informative and useful. Decided to be a guinea pig for present and future H2 owners. When I was considering the purchase of a high mileage H2, I found several threads via google, but not many that addressed the small stuff. Hoping my experience will help some else.

 

I also sprayed some WD-40 into the button shaft on the shifter handle and applied dielectric grease to the shifter shaft near the bottom where the plastic mechanism is pushed down to allow the shifter to move.


As of this morning, the movement was a bit more fluid. Truthfully, I didn't screw in all of the screws I removed in case my temporary fix doesn't really work. Time will tell, and I will update.

 

Regarding the cranked up torsion keys....ride is stiffer...maybe 10 to 20%. Granted, I have fabtech shocks up front and extended spindles since I have a 6" lift. I mention this b/c I read so many threads/reviews about this procedure that I counted just as many "for it" as "against it." My front shocks have less travel now, but they still absorb bumps and the like. Definitely leveled out the front rake. Didn't completely remove it, but I the stance is worth the ride adjustment. I still have a few more turns on the adjustment screws. I plan to decide my final position on the stock keys and then get an alignment. I drive 10 miles on a daily basis roundtrip.


I considered buy aftermarket torson keys b/c they might be indexed differently and therefore provide "more lift" without as "much tension." Have no idea if this is true....don't care for now. It's an experiment I would like to complete, but not in the near future.


Also, the tool you can rent from AutoZone or wherever is AWESOME!!! I ended up removing the torsion bars and mount when I dropped the transmission and transfer case. That tool make the procedure super easy. It's essentially a heavy-duty/reinforced C-Clamp. Took pounding from a 1/2 impact gun with no problem.

 

Doing some additional searching yielded:


Tranny cooler installation - Hummer Forums by Elcova




Hummer X Club


Yes, old is removed.

 

This afternoon I installed a new tranny cooler and bypassed the radiator.

I used this schematic:



and this thread

https://www.hummerforums.com/forum/h...rection-37080/

To figure out the flow of transmission oil.
Bottom line leads out from transmission into bottom connector on passenger side radiator. Fluid does its thing inside of radiator and then comes out of radiator at the top connector on passenger side. This top connector has a black metal tube that carries the transmission fluid to the OEM tranny cooler. This black metal tube connects to a fitting on the OEM cooler on the passenger side. Fluid does its thing inside OEM cooler than comes out of a fitting/line on the drivers side of OEM cooler. This line goes to the top connector on the transmission.

I realize this has been mentioned ad nauseam, but wanted to share my experience to keep track of what I have done and potentially help someone else.

I ended up disconnecting the bottom and top lines on the passenger side of the radiator utilizing the quick "dis/connect" feature. My plan is to plug these holes. Tried to places today, both failed. Will try to locate tomorrow again. I am trying to avoid using a hose from the top to bottom.

I used a pipe cutter to cut the line going to the OEM cooler on the driver's side only. This was the only line I cut. After disconnecting the top line at the radiator and cutting this line, I was able to finagle the top line and remove the OEM cooler. Disclaimer: doing this poured tranny fluid all over the place and I had to bend the line to get the OEM cooler out.

At this point, the line I cut was hanging out. I placed the cooler to get an idea of where to mount it and determined the line needed to be cut shorter. Instead of cutting the line, I traced it back and found the black metal line had a quick "dis/connect" fitting. I removed the locking pin and removed the black line. The quick "dis/connector" was attached to this black metal line and left a silver line that has a flange/raised section. This silver line goes back to the top connector on the transmission. I ended up connecting a the hose to this line and to the top connector of the aftermarket tranny cooler. I connected the bottom connector on the aftermarket cooler to the bottom line I disconnected from the radiator.

I also used this video as reference.
I bought my transmission cooler off of eBay.

HAYDEN TRANSAVER OIL COOLER 1405 (Transmission Cooler) (OC-1405) | eBay

I chose this cooler b/c of the GVW rating.....26,000lbs. Also, price was very good. Most of the reviews I read were positive. Don't plan on towing, but definitely wanted to bypass the radiator to avoid future tranny failure.

 

A few more things, I drilled out the rivets on the OEM cooler housing and used the zips ties that came with the aftermarket cooler to attached the cooler to the housing. Perfect fit. Didn't have to make any adjustments of any kind in order to close hood.

 

After a brief test drive:
1. no leaks at any of the connections!
2. engine ran much quieter
3. transmission shifted quicker
4. transmission shifted smoother

I have no idea about my tranny temps since I don't have a digital reading and my instrument cluster is jacked and I haven't fixed the broken stepper motors...on the to-do list.

Anyone else experience the aforementioned benefits after installing an aftermarket transmission cooler and bypassing the radiator?

I also added a little bit of dexron VI tranny fluid.

 

Today's install was a great way to knock out several issues.
1. bypass radiator
2. get actual, reliable cooling for tranny
3. Fix a leak. The bottom connector on the radiator that accepts the bottom transmission cooling line was leaking sporadically. Sometimes a lot, other times not so much. This developed after I replaced the top and bottom connectors on the drivers side of the radiator.

 

Day before I changed out the burned out H3, 55 watt bulbs.

4Pcs H3 6000K Xenon Gas Halogen Headlight White Light Lamp Bulbs 55W 12V HS | eBay

Of course, the new bulbs are a different color than the other two. Since I bought 4 in anticipation of this, I just changed out the other two. Now, I have 4 mostly white/partially light blue PIAA lights. Buying the replacement lenses is next. Need 2.

 

Also identified my power steering pump is on its last leg. Whining like no other, plan to replace it but don't really want to deal with it yet. Found this youtube video


Doesn't seem terribly difficult, just a pain. I will try the replacement without taking the hood off. Plan to buy the pump from autozone. Will update once I do this.