Derale Performance is one of those companies that has made a name for itself specializing in a specific area: cooling. From cooling fans for the radiator, to auxiliary coolers for fluids, Derale has been keeping things cool under the hood, as well as under the car. Keeping fluids cooler not only keeps things running smoother, but it also extends the life of the engine or transmission.

One product that takes on a unique approach to cooling is their line of Transmission Cooling Pans. The typical automatic transmission fluid cooler takes fluid from the transmission and pumps it up to a tube-style cooler that is mounted towards the front of the vehicle. This cooler generally has fins that help direct air over the tubes, thus cooling the fluid passing inside the tubes. That’s good for keeping the fluid cooler, and it helps prolong the transmission.

Derale’s cooling pans work on a similar principle of passing air over tubes to help cool transmission fluid. But instead of passing the air on the outside of the tube, like an auxiliary cooler, they’ve run the cooling tubes through the transmission oil pan, allowing the air to pass through the tubes and cool the fluid inside the transmission pan.

The way this works is by mounting the tubes front to rear inside of the pan, and air passing under the vehicle is collected by the tubes, which channel the air through the tube and out the back of the pan. Inside the tubes are “splitters” that create a cyclone effect on the air passing through, which helps pull the air through the tubes.

In addition to the tubes running through the fluid stored in the pan, the pan is also deeper than the factory transmission pan, allowing for up to five quarts more capacity. The pans are made of heavy-gauge stamped steel and are coated with a black, two-stage coating that also helps to dissipate the heat. The combination of the increased fluid capacity and the cooling tubes can decrease fluid temperatures 20-50 degrees, depending on the application.

If you’ve been contemplating a deep transmission pan to add some fluid capacity for your automatic transmission, consider adding a Derale Transmission Cooling Pan with the additional, patented tubulator cooling tubes. Derale has also added 1/8-inch NPT bung for a temperature sender for those who want to monitor transmission fluid temps. Check out the Derale website for more information and for specific applications, including popular Chevrolet, Ford, and Mopar transmissions.