The car part known as the automatic transmission cooling hose retainer is a clip that holds the cooling hose in place. It's an important part of your auto transmission system in its own right because the hose should be placed in such a way that doesn't pinch or cause a jam.
When the hose gets tangled because the retainer is loose, the transmission won't get its fair share of coolant. The retainer is specifically responsible for holding the hose down beside the turbocharger cooling hose and the radiator to ensure leakage-free and maximum cooling action.
Over time, the retainer becomes defective through aging and wear-and-tear, thus necessitating replacement. Read on to find out how to shop for a new automatic transmission cooling hose retainer.
Things to Remember When Shopping for a Retainer
- Look for Perfect-Fit Snap-Lock Retainers: The preferred choice for retainer is snap-lock retainers that have perfect fitment with your specific automatic transmission cooling hose. This type of retainer is also used for turbocharger cooling hoses or any hose that needs clamps and steady placement to prevent misalignment or leakage from underneath the hood. This hose clip also serves to retain the fluid line within the oil cooler to ensure quick connect fittings.
- Number of Hose Retainers Required: You should also be aware of the number of hose retainers that need replacement. It's because these clips are either sold as a set or individually. It typically requires four pieces to keep the hose in perfect place if you have a non-turbocharged and naturally aspirated kind of vehicle with auto transmission. However, for turbocharged vehicles, two retainer pieces is enough. If any one of them is missing, you might as well buy a set to ensure you have spares.
- How to Get OEM or OE-Standard Retainers: Get the product number or brand SKU number of your retainer then match it up to any available ones at your local shop or online. Barring that, get the make, model, and year of your vehicle to acquire the right retainer for your specific vehicle. When shopping online for parts, you should scope our the appearance, user reviews, ratings, dimensions, and product weight of the retainer in question to ensure you're getting high-quality offerings.
- Aftermarket Solutions Require Compatibility Considerations: You should check if the product fits your car before buying an aftermarket clamp. Ill-fitting clamps that are the wrong size are an obvious waste of money. There are generic or universal fit retainers that can fit a whole swathe of vehicles, but usually it's better to get a clamp that's specific to your vehicle. You can also get retainers from your dealership in case your car is still in warranty.