Daily Driving an aircooled 911?

[awdbandito]

I currently daily drive a '88 911. I work a sales territory and sometimes put 800+miles per week on the car. In the summer I rarely run into stop and go traffic and have to pull over on the shoulder and wait for things to clear due to heat.

Do 993s do any better with this? Are there any air cooled 911s that can handle a 4 hour back up on the interstate in the summer without getting hot?

I've thought about sprayers on the oil cooler, bigger oil coolers, etc....

It's the black one in the pic below.

For those wondering......Yes, you can have an older air cooled car as a primary driver. I don't hesitate to hop in this car at 4AM, drive 300 miles, visit some folks and then drive 300 miles home. Summer heat and interstate accidents may be an issue. Carry a cooler of beer and feel free to pull over to the shoulder and cool off with your car.

[Reiver]

I drive an '83 sc in 100 degree heat in the summer and it does not overheat....you have a problem that needs a fix.

[monkeyodeath]

Probably obvious, but have you checked the cooler temp switch, fan, thermostat, etc? I have an '86 that I've spent some time in hot traffic with and haven't had temp issues.

I seem to recall reading that you can replace the '87+ oil cooler fan switch with one that'll turn on at a lower temperature. Might help.

[SilberUrS6]

And install a manual switch in the cockpit so that you can switch on the oil cooler fan when the mood strikes, if it's not already on.

[awdbandito]

It only starts to get hot after an hour of stop and go traffic in 90 degree weather. And by stop and go I mean never getting over 20 mph.
I can do track days and not worry about heat but the above conditions cause it to creep up.

[awdbandito]

I consider hot anything over 220 or so.

[RedCoupe]

I had my 964 in 118 degree heat in Phoenix rush hour in August, 2011. Oil temp stayed right at mid gauge, and oil pressure was normal. The oil cooler fan cycled on and off, but everything stayed fine as I crept along in the heat!

[sleepy911]

I daily drove my 356 for 3 years just 10 years ago on my commute to work. Didnt matter if it was hot or cold I was a badass and that 2 mile commute was a killer!

[fanaudical]

+1 on something not being quite right. Crushed or restricted oil line? External thermostat working correctly? Are the oil lines to the front cooler getting hot?

[kjchristopher]

Originally Posted by reiver

i drive an '83 sc in 100 degree heat in the summer and it does not overheat....you have a problem that needs a fix.

+1

[Bear911]

I had an internal thermostat go bad and the car could no longer do traffic.

It is my understanding that the internal and external coolers run on seperate circuits. So even though the external cooler lines were getting warm, the car was not enjoying the benefit of the internal cooler.

[diverdan]

Not a worry except...I try to avoid short trips that don't allow the engine to reach operating temperatures which is largely dependent upon the ambient temps. In the intense heat of Dubai summers there was never a problem. Much depends on your oil and in those conditions I used a top grade 20W-50 synthetic.

Workshop managers said the 911 air cooled engines were virtually trouble free even in the extremely hot weather.

Diverdan

[IROC]

I'd like to focus on fixing the interstate backups. You can't drive from here to Chattanooga without sitting stopped in traffic for 45 minutes.

+1 one something amiss. I drive mine back and forth to work (but not every day) and on the occasion I've been stuck on 40, the temps never go about 190F or so. Having said that, I have a pretty big cooler mounted in the front bumper, so different setup.

[Jesse16]

I do the exact same thing and job that you do without issue, my 87 with a well functioning oil cooler fan has never let me down. I simply try to not sit in traffic out of hatred for too many people and my clutch leg getting antsy but not out of car maint. fear.

[tirwin]

Originally Posted by awdbandito

It only starts to get hot after an hour of stop and go traffic in 90 degree weather. And by stop and go I mean never getting over 20 mph.
I can do track days and not worry about heat but the above conditions cause it to creep up.

I live in Atlanta so stop and go is a fairly commonplace thing. The previous owner installed a Mocal oil cooler with a fan and the switch is wired to switch for the (non-existent) rear wiper. I don't need it that often but it keeps the temps down. Other people have claimed success with the finned oil lines.

[Reiver]

a Carrera oil cooler with a switched fan would keep you at 200/205 idling forever. Nice upfix.

[Josh D]

I'm another who daily drives in rediculous AZ summer temps. Even running A/C in traffic it doesn't exceed 230*

And 220* is not considered hot for these cars. That would be merely considered warm in relation to normal running temps.

[86 911 Targa]

Originally Posted by monkeyodeath

Probably obvious, but have you checked the cooler temp switch, fan, thermostat, etc? I have an '86 that I've spent some time in hot traffic with and haven't had temp issues.

I seem to recall reading that you can replace the '87+ oil cooler fan switch with one that'll turn on at a lower temperature. Might help.

Here's what I use.

210f-Fan on.

197f-Fan off.





Or, try the BMW switch.

Good luck,

Gerry

[awdbandito]

Thanks for the input folks. I'll give the cooling system a once over just to verify it's all working right. It isn't something that happens often, but I have had to pull over twice due to creeping upwards toward 250. Maybe I'm just paranoid when the needle starts creeping up.

[awdbandito]

Ohh,once was in Pigeon Forge, the other was an accident on 40 that shut the interstate down. Both days were 90F plus.