The leak seems to be on ON THE OPPOSITE side of where the lines come in . are there any aftermarket oil coolers ? The OEM ones cost about 800$ , half of what a engines rebuild kit cost

 

Look in repuguy build thread- he went thru same thing. His solution was to go aftermarket,the aftermarket units don't have an integral thermostat like oem.

 

You can also use a second gen oil cooler mounted to the round cross bar using U clamps. You'll need to make your own lines.

I have the setup from this car for sale. Send me a PM if interested.

Check out how to do it here:

https://www.rx7club.com/1st-gen-arch...p-pics-478521/

 

​​​​​​What's an integral thermostat ?
​​​​​​​

 

An integral thermostat is basically a valve that open in the oil cooler after it reaches a certain temperature. This allows the oil to warm up faster before it starts being cooled.

 

I live in California son !

 

180* operating oil temp is a good ways away from the hottest ambient temps on earth. Temp regulation will make your engine last much longer.

But I don't have one hehe

 

Turns out the radiator hose had a small leak, it would fall on top of the oil cooler and then seep down to the pan. The car had sponges on both sides of the oil cooler, which was filthy. The liquid LOOKED like oil, but upon removing the sponges and putting a white napkin, it became quite evident it was coolant. thank god.

 

Good to hear it was just a coolant leak. Its very rare to get an oil
cooler leak at that end, its almost always the bungs that crack where
the hoses attach.

Don't forget to put that spongy stuff back in or replace it. It seals the
gap between the radiator and the oil cooler so air has to go through
both instead of between them.

 

Way better news than leaking oil cooler,+1 on replacing bellypan sealing foam. You can use weatherstrip foam used to seal up a/c window units,can get at any hardware store.

 

When I cleaned the belly pan it had a strip of orange plastic running under the oil cooler. I scraped it all off and I removed the nasty sponge from the sides. I probably do that tomorrow as im also going to clean the underside of the car with GUNK and respray bare areas with a rust converter before any serious rust develops. Do you guys recommend I leave the belly pan virgin metal or should I paint it with rust converter/silver gloss coat?

 

Is the bellypan rusted?

 

The belly pan will rust really easy. If you don't want to spend to much time with it buy some cheap wal-mart primer and paint and paint it.

I have the engine in my 1979 out right now so I power washed the engine bay and belly pan. I'll be powder coating mine.

 

It has small areas with mild surface rust . I could probably knock it off by hand with a wire brush .

 

Yes - that will work. You can also use a wire wheel on a drill but be warned, the little pieces of metal from the wheel can fly everywhere. You have to wear eye protection and the wires will stick to your cloths.

 

I media blasted my belly pan, then used the cold galvanizing rattle can paint to
make it kind of look like it did new. Been years since I did this and it still looks fine.