Defective Carrera front coolers

Grady Clay · 06:49 PM

Defective Carrera front coolers

The top reservoir of the cooler has a divider welded (soldered, brazed, whatever) in place to separate the inlet chamber from the outlet chamber. Some of those dividers are not properly attached. So much so that when you put a light down one port you can see it from the other port. You can even fish a wire from one side to the other.

Guess what?
The oil bypasses the cooler leaving it about as effective as a trombone.

A test is to see if the top of the cooler is hot and the bottom is cold.

The difficulty is in finding if there is only a small leak between the chambers. This would dramatically reduce the effectiveness of the cooler while feeling hot everywhere. Can anyone think of a test to detect a small leak from one chamber to the other?

I thought that removing the cooler, cleaning it, and inspecting the welds with a bore scope might be effective – but expensive. An even more expensive solution is to cut apart the top reservoir and make it two totally separate tanks with a small air space in between.

No one I’ve talked to knows if this is a single batch problem or one of long standing. No one knows if there is a wide range of the degree of leakage.

Since this seemed to be the best current Factory cooler for a 911, it’s a big deal.

Does anyone have a broken cooler (crash damage) that I can cut apart? I’ll pay shipping.

Best,
Grady

edit for typos

RickM · RickM's Garage

Grady,

Any data on wether it's on true factory coolers, aftermarket or the Chinese knock-off Behr units?

Chuck Moreland · 12-14-2005, 06:28 PM

Grady is talking about the front fender mounted carrera style coolers only.

And more specifically those that are being sold today. Regardless of who you buy the cooler from, they all come from the same factory.

I've taken to testing everyone that passes through my hands, using the flashlight test. I've found a number of faulty coolers. As Grady says, it is not clear if this is a QC problem peculiar to a single batch or if it is a longer term issue that has gone undetected.

Anyone who has installed one would do well to do the hand on top/bottom test. And if you have suspicion, pull the cooler out and do the flashlight test.

Anyone buying a cooler should do the flashlight test before installing.

Grady Clay · 12-14-2005, 06:41 PM

We had a silly-session today speculating the reason for the installation of the electric fan was to compensate for the leak between the sections. HeHe.

Best,
Grady

Mad Mike · 12-14-2005, 06:52 PM

Is there a difference between a Euro oil cooler and a US version?

I recently purchased a Euro car, the PO mentioned that the Euro is better than what was standard on a 1982 SC.

I have a built 3.2 liter and have never had an issue, then again I remove my right front indicator light for additional cooling and simply place the light back in when the track time is over.

Works for now as the temp has never been higher than 210 (ish) in 70 ambient temps.

Thanks for the input,

Mike

ianc · 12-14-2005, 07:24 PM

Quote:

And more specifically those that are being sold today

Factory OEM parts installed on period cars, or just replacement parts available today?

ianc

rnln · 12-14-2005, 07:39 PM

Very good to know. I am in the market of searching for one now.
Thank very much.

code7rpd · 12-14-2005, 08:14 PM

This post is a sigh of relief for me - kind of. I have a Carrera Cooler in the fender and a Setrab nose cooler for my 3.6 conversion. The car never ran past 180 to 190 degrees in the past but a few months ago, even when it was 50 degree weather, the temp would ride up to the 210 range. I checked everything to include pulling the intake off to check for mice or debris to changing the wheel well thermostat but nothing seems to help. I did notice that the top of the cooler is usually hot but the bottom is cold. I have less than 3000 miles on it to boot! I guess I have to pull it off to do the flashlight test. If it is bad I wonder if the merchant will warranty it.

randywebb · 12-14-2005, 08:38 PM

Damn - so this is not just the ones we thought were fake & being made somewhere with cheap labor...?

Drdogface · Drdogface's Garage

Chuck,
When did you first start looking into these. I did buy one from Elephant about four months ago. It seemed to immdiately solve my over heating problem but the installer (Jimmy Deering) also found a few other things that could have caused the overheating and corrected them at the same time.

Joeaksa · 12-14-2005, 09:40 PM

Interesting find and if this is true could be a large problem for the supplier. Can anyone say "class action lawsuit" due to damage to people's engine overheating?

Need to check mine now!

JoeA

Wil Ferch · 06:34 AM

Here's a possible non-invasive test

Find out the full-liquid pressure drop vs flow characteristics from the manufacturer or Porsche.

If we can't find that data.... do a beta test for yourself. On a "good unit"...rig it up to a test stand so that it flows "X" GPM and note the entry and discharge connection pressure with gauges. This establishes the "baseline".

Then, whatever new cooler comes along...test in an identical manner. If the delta-P is noticeably less ( maybe even flow too ?)...there is then evidence of an internal-to-unit leak.

Possible to do?...yes.

Difficult to the point of not being done ?...unfortunately , this is also likely to be the case.....

- Wil

EDIT:
If the top chamber is divided...and both connections are found "on top"...then the bottom chamber ( by definition) would *not* be divided. So the flow path is "U" shaped. To be clear , Grady, a large internal leak would then show as hot on top and cold on bottom...and a "small" leak would be hot on top and *still* somewhat hot on the bottom..hence the problem of not knowing exactly if there is a problem or not.... sucky.