Originally Posted by tpthaler

I appreciate that these directions were posted, and they were very helpful in my install, I agree with everything in this post except for the whole bracket mounting recommendation. Due to the advice all over this thread, I started with the whole brackets are way better mis-conception. So I bought some black spray primer and paint and spent the first half of the day priming and painting the brackets and bolts black. After the paint dried, I started mounting them in my 08' Sahara Unlimited. First off the mounting holes on the top part of the jeep were very difficult to access and the holes were too small. I took out my drill and made the holes a bit bigger. Then I had to cut two of the bolts down about 1/4" shorter with my sawzall and vice as they were to long and wouldn't fit otherwise. After about 45 minutes of struggling I got the two top brackets mounted only too find that I couldn't quite get the cooler level, and the fact that my radiator is at a slight angle and I couldn't get the spacing quite right. And it looked TERRIBLE. I then came the realization that the zip straps that came with this thing are SUPER heavy duty, and the cooler weighs next to nothing. Plus the zip straps are plastic and won't rust, and I can put it anywhere on the radiator and get it to align up perfectly. But you say, there is no air gap, so it won't work well. That's where I came up with my own mod... Even though it comes with four 1/4" spacers, I wanted a full 1" of spacing. I made the trip to my local hardware store and found the steel spacer bin. I bought four 1/4" diameter by 1" long spacers. I brought these home and painted them black (I wanted to by nylon spaces, but they didn't have any at my hardware store but I have seen them before). Next, I placed the cooler where I wanted it on my radiator (flush), I worked the four zip straps to the other side of the radiator. I then removed the straps and pushed them through again (but sideways) to make the holes a little bigger. Now this is where it get's a bit tricky... One by one you need to go from the inside of the hood out to the front with the straps and the radiator fan tends to be in the way for one or two of the straps. No big deal, still 100% easier than the steel brackets and it looks 10x better... Once all four straps are on the other side, place one spacer on each strap and then put the cooler on and then fasten the straps down with the plastic strap nuts and cut off excess strap after tight. It's more secure than you would ever need and looks great (I will upload pictures soon, but I didn't finish until after dark). Other than that I highly recommend everything else on this thread, especially getting the 3/8"x3/8" hose barbs as there is very little space and they work perfectly. Also the amount of hose that comes with the cooler is perfect. I even had an extra 4" of tube left over!

One other thing, no need to buy Mopar brand ATF+4 Synthetic Oil. I got a quart of Valvoline brand (what Mopar uses) at my local auto shop for way cheaper than the dealership!

Originally Posted by kflash

How about posting a picture of your install - mounted to the radiator.

Originally Posted by kflash

If this is such an issue, why isn't there a factory option specifically designed for these vehicles?

I am wondering if there is any issue with evacuating air from the system or does the transmission simply push fluid through the cooler once you start up the Jeep?