Quote:
Originally Posted by The Flash
I just found your thread.
It is very insightful. For one I did not know that trick which you explained to crank the LS3 engine without pulling fuses.
I also learned that the Oil Temp Gauge does not provides an actual mesure of the temperature but instead gives out an “estimate” based on algorithms from the manufacturer.
While it is disappointing , it finally provided an explanation as to why I have encountered occasional discrepancies between the “gear/mechanical” temp gauge, the engine temp indicator and the oil temp gauge, the oil temp being the one that was in discrepancy with the others or making less sense to the driving I was doing at the time.
In my neck of the wood the temperatures are high, summer or winter, which as made me an advocate of any and all mods which improve engine/transmission and brakes cooling and a zealot of “heat mitigating practices”.
I often credit these two factors in allowing my PONTIAC FIREBIRD to reach 20 yrs this past march in pretty top shape.
So initially I would be all for doing this mod to my 2SS.
However, the mod you effected is not only challenging from an execution point of view but also is relatively expensive.
Hence, I would like to ask you, what was the main reason behind your decision to replace the OEM oil cooler?
Also I would like to ask if you did any sort of measurements before and after this mod and what were your results, in other words, would this mod be worth it for a regular Joe who does not autocrosses or drag races his LS3 but indulges in spirited driving sessions at least twice a month?
Your comments will be much, much appreciated.
Best regards,
The Flash
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It's great that my posts were useful!
I'll just write down my thoughts, and leave it to you to decide what to use out of
It's true that the OEM system is challenged when it comes to shedding enough heat off of the oil system, but it actually already has, say, 70% of the cooling capacity needed for the job. In other words, we're not starting from scratch when it comes to cooling the engine temps. The problem is, however, it's very hard to improve the OEM system. You can run 70% water, and also replace the radiator with the larger unit, but it seems the heat exhanger (by the oil pan) is limited in capacity. Fortunately, we have the Z/28 heat exchanger available as an OEM replacement, but that part by itself is more than $400, and the supplemental larger radiator is another $550. When you add up, it becomes the same cost as the kit I created. There are also a few tricks I've seen in the C7 Z06 world like heat-shielding the exhanger from the cats, but I doubt they would be enough if you don't use the Z/28 unit.
Using the kit, you also end up removing the oil cooling job from the radiator. This is actually very important, since coolant temps usually determine the ignition timing your engine decides to stay at, which directly impacts your power figures during your drive or event.
There is an alternative: you can add an additional oil cooler by adding a sandwich to the oil filter. There are two main issues with this: your oil filter will get too close to the bottom of the car, so you should consider relocating it to the higher ground before adding the sandwich. The other is added back pressure. The OEM unit already adds a quite significant amount of back pressure despite its small size (check type of exchangers at Mocal's info site), and we're adding yet another. For this reason, you should choose a unit with as many rows as possible to reduce the pressure drop, which means $500 if you choose Setrab Series 1 72 rows core, for instance. That's quite a bit of money. However, I still think this is an alternative worth looking into, and it's what I did on my supercharged Miata. I actually created a kit for this to try it on my brother's 1LE, but he now wants to sell his car, so I might never get to compare results. The parts are currently dusting in his garage :(
Another benefit of this hybrid is that your engine oil will warm up about twice as fast, aided by the coolant, while it will be only cooled down by the secondary cooler when its thermostat opens up at high temps.
I hope this helps. Long story short, there is no one ultimate way to solve this, and we should keep gathering data. Unfortunately, it's very hard to compare different members' numbers due to changes in the test environment, so modding and driving my brother's car at the same track day and comparing was going to be perfect if only he chose to play!
Note: I don't think this car needs extensive cooling mods for the street and mountain driving. I'd just replace the rad with a larger unit, and use 70% water, which would help every part of the system, even if in limited amount.