Front oil cooler 87 Carrera

[Dublinoh]

Ok I am a fairly new owner of a 1987 Carrera (since November 2011). I have suspected I had a cooling problem because I was running at about 210 on 75 degree days. Today I checked the oil lines in the passenger rear wheel well after a drive and they were hot, but the lines in the passenger front were cool to the touch.

Q1 where is the valve that opens when the oil is sufficiently warm?

Q2 does this sound like a crushed oil line?

Thanks for your help

Joe

[twistoffat]

Could be a crushed pipe if so it runs along the bottom of the Passenger side. Did you notice if the Fan on the front oil cooler was operating. The Oil Thermostat as far as I´m aware is underneath the rear right hand wheel arch. If the lines at the front are cold I´d assume they are getting no oil flow at all which could as you suspect mean a crushed line or the Thermostat. The crushed line is an easy one as you just need to get under her and physically check the lines

[Oh Haha]

+1 to what twistoffat posted and..

210 is not too hot but it won't hurt to check the oil supply lines out.

[Dublinoh]

Originally Posted by twistoffat

Could be a crushed pipe if so it runs along the bottom of the Passenger side. Did you notice if the Fan on the front oil cooler was operating. The Oil Thermostat as far as I´m aware is underneath the rear right hand wheel arch. If the lines at the front are cold I´d assume they are getting no oil flow at all which could as you suspect mean a crushed line or the Thermostat. The crushed line is an easy one as you just need to get under her and physically check the lines

Thanks for your reply, I found a couple dents by the front jacking point, but nothing that would stop the flow. I have never noticed the front fan operating, how hot does the oil have to be to trigger the fan? seems I read 250 degrees somewhere.. I did find the valve and it was down line from where I felt heat...so valve is still a "suspect".

[twistoffat]

The Fan turns on at about 230° but I may be wrong. Its controlled by a Thermostat on top of the Cooler itself. If the pipes coming from the rear are cold as you say and the dents are not too bad then I´d say you have narrowed it down.Let us know how you get on

[bigel]

There must be a valve that opens at a set temp, no? Or is the oil path open to the front oil cooler at all times? Maybe the fan temp sensor is the only 'logic' involved with the system.

I'll look into the part list when I get a chance and post what I find out.

[Dublinoh]

Thanks all. I will be driving in 93 degree ambient today so I should be able to confirm a non working or working valve (it was cool this morning and I want to be sure I exceed 180 degrees). Later I will look into the fan. For anyone else with this issue here is a good link to repairing the valve or removing it.

External Thermostat Repair In Situ?

Thermostat Valve Opening Test....

[Dublinoh]

220 degrees on the drive home, 95 degrees and some stop and go...dropped to 210 when moving and the front oil lines got hot so I guess I'm good. Don't think it is hot enough to start the fan. Thanks for your help all.

[Ronnie's.930]

210-220 range is right where you want it!

[Ned, NYNA11]

Joe,
There are a few options regarding the temperature at which the fan runs. I ran a few wires to the relay along with a with a switch and I run the fan when I feel like it. You can also dig around, do a search and find a lower temperature thermo switch.

Isn't 87 a good year?

[Dublinoh]

Originally Posted by Ned, NYNA11

Joe,
There are a few options regarding the temperature at which the fan runs. I ran a few wires to the relay along with a with a switch and I run the fan when I feel like it. You can also dig around, do a search and find a lower temperature thermo switch.

Isn't 87 a good year?

I'm loving 87...thanks for the tips I'll use the search

[Joe Bob]

IF he has a fan...not all do, they kick in at 250+

The t-stat is in the rear passenger wheel well. It opens at 190F. You can tell when it does on your temp gauge, it typically rises over the mid mark and then drops a bit as cool oil comes back from the front lines and cooler.

A hand held pyrometer is a good tool to measure temps.

There are threads on how to repair partially crushed oil lines. If they are irreparable, there are used used ones in the classifieds or Elephant Racing sells a nice upgraded set.

[boyt911sc]

Originally Posted by Dublinoh

220 degrees on the drive home, 95 degrees and some stop and go...dropped to 210 when moving and the front oil lines got hot so I guess I'm good. Don't think it is hot enough to start the fan. Thanks for your help all.

Dublinoh,

Depending what thermoswitch is installed on your oil cooler would determine the operating temperature of the fan. The stock thermoswitch is about 250°F and that's too high for me. I changed my thermoswitch to a much lower operating temperature. Pelican sells the BMW version of these thermoswitch at different temp. settings. I installed a 200°F thermoswitch and couldn't make the fan to run except in the track. Even without the fan, a good Carrera cooler is sufficient to cool your 3.0 or 3.2 engines.

For peace of mind, I always check both the engine and auxiliary thermostats when the engine exhibits abnormally high temperature. Since I installed a Carrera cooler in my SC, I couldn't get the temperature above 200°F during street driving.

Tony

[Dublinoh]

Thanks for the follow up info...found this thread for DIY thermostat and switch.

oil cooler fan t'stat and switch installation