Firetiger262

hey guys, im working on my first project car, a 83 GS, i recently swapped in a S5 13B N/A engine, this ting is, is that engine did not come with the Oil cooler, and the Oil cooler from my car is the top mount water cooled cooler, from what I heard the front mount air cooled ones are much better, and on top of that the steel Oil pipe from my cooler is too short, now i just went out to a wrecking yard and got a oil cooler from a GSL model RX7 (I don't know the year) but when I took it to my local radiator repair shop they refused to work on it, but they did agree to test it for leaks, and it leaked at 20 PSI. Now I don't have a lot of cash to play with, there is a Mazda specific wrecking yard near me that has a couple tubs full of front mount coolers, but only 2 really look like they came from the FB, and on top of that they can't guaranty that they wont leak and they want $175. the owner of the Mazda yard said I can take to cooler to any place near by to have them tested, but the radiator shop I tested the first one can only test it up to 20 PSI. I don't have a huge amount of money to play with so I am wondering if there is a better alternative to either testing these things, or maybe there is a place where I can buy one that will guaranty that the cooler wont leak. Thanks and sorry for the long post

mhr650

If you are starting from scratch I would just get a second gen cooler. It will take a little work to mount it and 90 degree hose ends, but you don't have the problem of the fittings cracking, and they are way more available. Those coolers show up on eBay all the time for way less than $175. Another option in that price range is a Chinese cooler from eBay, be careful though, the $90 coolers on eBay look right but they appear to have both fittings on the same tank without a divider which pretty much means the oil will go in one port and out the other without ever going through the cooling media.

DriveFast7

iTrader: (1)

I have an oil cooler from a 12a Rx7 that has been professionally ultrasonically cleaned and pressure tested I can sell but I'd want $125 plus shipping. The cooler's thermostat has been removed and the bypass plugged, so it'll take longer to warm up to normal temperature, but one less thing to fail.

Jeff20B

iTrader: (13)

You can stretch the steel tube 20mm to fit the longer 13B if you do it carefully. It must be kepted aligned perfectly! Otherwise good luck getting to go on the front cover.

I've done it several times for various projects where an air oil cooler didn't or wouldn't fit. Then the stock air cooled oil cooler in my GSL-SE cracked and needed a quick fix. Yep. I stretched another one and installed it. Works great and keeps the oil at a decent temp even with an S5 turbo. So if it's good enough for my somewhat hotter running setup, you know the answer.

Oh here's another story. A local guy named PercentSevenC got a GSL with a 12A in it. An S4 NA got swapped in. There was no air oil cooler available so it got a water cooled one. It fits perfectly with the stock S4 NA intake manifolding. I can't say the same for an S5.

On second thought, if it won't clear the stock bulky S5 intake manifolding, you're better off spending some money to get an air oil cooler. I just got a spare S5 NA intake manifold from Percent today, but I don't have any spare water oil coolers that have been stretched for a 13B lying around. Otherwise I could tell you.