So is there no way for the DIYer to check ATF temperature other than feeling how hot the gearbox case is ?

Idea : I do have two accurate temperature controller with temp readout (that I use to control my greenhouse heaters to stop plants freezing) I'm going to tape the temp sensor to the ATF cooler pipes and see how it correlates with the coolant temp on the Torque Pro Jules

The data is broadcast on the CAN bus, so with the right tools and knowledge of the address, you can find the temperatures. But an ELM based adapter isn't going to be up to the job unfortunately.

Yeah, I was looking for a custom PID for the Torque and there is something I am going to try out this week.