Oil Level & Temp on an SC?

vesnyder · vesnyder's Garage

I have an '83 SC. The oil level rarely gets off the lowest part of the gauge?? Correspondingly, the temp rarely gets above the fist indicator line. It has not been real hot in NE Ohio, but I am concerned I do not have enough oil? Is this normal?

GB83SC · 05-26-2002, 04:43 AM

Dont worry about the inside guage at all, just make sure that you check your oil when it reaches 180 degrees, the dipstick should be at the halfway mark. The inside gauge on my 83SC does the same thing hardly moves from the lower area.
Good luck.

Doug Zielke · 05-26-2002, 06:59 AM

A cool running SC is a good thing, Martha!
The hottest the Blue Bomber has ever been is about 2 needle widths above the lower box (in a Seattle traffic jam on a 85 degree day). Most of the time it's just as you describe yours. Just fine.

Joeaksa · 05-26-2002, 07:11 AM

Come to Arizona and you will excercise your temp gauge! Just drove from Phoenix to Tucson yesterday and once on the highway and running at 80-85 my temps were running 215-220 the whole way!

After the oil is at normal temp and you let the car come to a stop and idle for a bit the oil level needle should start moving, but I would still use the dipstick to confirm that oil is at the correct level.

Will be in Middletown Ohio in two weeks (not with the Pcar) and hope its still cool there!

Joe

JMPRO · JMPRO's Garage

Joe, maybe you should try the Compact Cooler from pelicanparts.com
Jerry

JMPRO · JMPRO's Garage

This time i will post the pic
Jerry

Leland Pate · 05-31-2002, 06:35 AM

I'm starting to get pissed!

I've rebuilt my engine, I've timed the ignition, I've adjusted my CO mixture, I've replaced my crushed oil lines, I've added a Carrera cooler.... hell I've even thrown a Cool Collar on my oil filter and my damn oil temps are still just under half way on the temp gauge! That is at highway cruising speeds on a warm day...

What else can I do???

makaio · 05-31-2002, 06:59 AM

Lee,
Mine was the same way untill I put a numerical gauge and sender in. I thought it was running way hotter than it really was.

The hottest my car has ever seen since I've owned it was 240-250. That was on a 105 degree day, running at Thunderhill. Normally in that kind of temp, I see 210 going down the freeway.

juanbenae · juanbenae's Garage

i have owned my 78sc since nov of this past year and am just beginning to drive in hot weather. all my oil related gauges work well and seem very accurate. when you guys speak of specific oil temp how is it calabrated with the oil temp gauge? i mean, at running temp, about 3/16" into the "warm but not too hot zone" what temp can i figure that to be? then say about the time it hits the "really dam hot" red area what temp might that be? if im very much in the middle of the "happy place" while running what can i figure that to be? i guess im asking how to i calbrate the gauge to actual temp?

not hot yet

Chuck Moreland · 07:34 AM

Leland

What temperature does "just under half way on the temp gauge" translate to? At steady highway speeds with a carrera cooler you should around 185-190 f. No more, unless it is a really hot day (95+).

I'd pitch my finned oil lines, but you don't need them. If you are running hot at steady state with a carrera cooler then something is not right and you need to fix the root of problem. I assume you have confirmed the lines to carrera cooler are getting hot.

Have you checked the operation of your internal thermostat? When these puppies fail the engine will run 20-30 degrees hotter.

Test by getting the engine to temp, then reach under and feel the bottom of the internal oil cooler. If it feels warm and you don't burn yourself then it is NOT working. It should be HOT, ouch!

Chuck Moreland · 05-31-2002, 07:18 AM

Most oil temp guages without numbers on the face actually have them. They are very small and printed way over to the left.

You need to look through the guage lens at an angle and you may need a flashight. Wear your specs, the numbers are real small and in degrees C.

dickster · 05-31-2002, 07:22 AM

lee

are the pipes getting hot to the front cooler? just a thought

makaio took the words out of my mind! do you know that you are getting an accurate reading? thats the first thing i would check.

hilandscott · hilandscott's Garage

My '78 SC was just rebuilt, and the mechanic mentioned the gauge (non-numeric) should read just under halfway, what he called "8:30 position" of the needle. That is, a horizontal needle on the older gauges is 9 o'clock. The engine stayed at this point even under extended high speed highway driving.

In comparison, I just installed the numeric gauge and sender kit from Pelican, and the 8:30 position I just described is in the 180-190 range on the updated face.

So... my car seemed to be running hotter than others, based on the anecotes of folks on the board, when in actuality it was right on.

BTW -- I have the old brass style row oil cooler, and a bunch of crushed and crimped front lines to the cooler. I'm glad I didn't have to spend for new oil lines to see good temps. I did pay for a new thermostat at the rebuild though, due to too many years of wear on the aluminum threads...

Kahuna · 05-31-2002, 08:00 AM

Another possibility besides those mentioned, is debris blocking the flow of cooling air through the engine mounted cooler and/or over the cylinders. Mice, among other rodents, love to build nests uder the shroud.

Todd Simpson · 05-31-2002, 08:25 AM

My SC went to 250 in traffic with the AC on and above at the track even with the turbatrol cooler in the front. I drilled out the back of the headlight bucket and built a duct to replace the headlight that helped bring it down about 20 degrees. I then went to a different valence with a huge hole in it, that helped too. (Have that for sale if anyone wants it.) SC's tend to run hotter than other 911's and a replacement for the loop cooler will only help if you can get lots of air to it.

Todd

Chuck Moreland · 05-31-2002, 08:46 AM

Hiland

I'd take a real hard look at your crushed lines. A little bruising is okay, but if they are significantly dented and limiting flow then you want to replace them.

The external tstat has a bypass valve that opens up when the oil won't flow through the external cooler. This prevents oil starvation. Partially crushed lines can allow some oil to pass and some oil to go through the bypass valve.

If this is happening you aren't getting the full cooling capacity of your cooler.

Worse still, overcoming the crusshed line restriction and spring of the bypass valve creates back pressure for the scavenge side of the oil pump that makes it work harder and reduces its life expectancy.

pbs911 · pbs911's Garage

The oil guage on my 78SC at its hottest only reached a tick below the 9:00 position. This is without the recent installation of my new Carrera fender cooler. Sinc ethen it does not go above the 8:30 position. I am a little conserned at running hard at the track, however.

I need to install a fan on the fender cooler. What size fans are you guys/gals running on the Carrera oil cooler? Are you running the push or pull through type? It seems that two 5" fans may work.

Leland Pate · 05-31-2002, 09:20 AM

Well my biggest concern is that it's running up there (where described) and it hasn't really even gotten hot out yet.

I need one of those numbered gauge faces... the sender is only a year or two old.

I guess I could do some more work around the cooler itself. I need a new seal around the shroud and I need to wire the fan.

But, JEEZ I'm just so paranoid!

The oil lines were just replaced, and I am even running 20W 50.

I'll check the engine mounted T-Stat today. But it was checked a few years ago.

Thanks for the advice guys,