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High oil/coolant temps help

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Old 07-08-09, 07:42 PM
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High oil/coolant temps help

I did search and couldnt find anything. I have had a problem ever sence the motor popped.

Here are the problems with the car. I had the motor rebuilt about 8K miles. It was rebuilt and set up for a single turbo setup. The shop put in a horrible oil thermal pallet and that caused the motor to pop. Blew a rotor seal and was letting compression out of the main rotor.

Another shop rebuilt the motor again. Ever scene the motor popped the oil temp is going up to 220. Water is going up to 210 or 103-104 on the power fc.

I have replaced the oil coolers with setreb 25 row oil coolers, a new thermostat on the oil system, and drained the oil system.

Here is what is on the car

Fresh rebuilt motor
garret t04s turbo
ron davis radiator
2Xsetreb series 6 25 row oil coolers
feed front bumper
fmic greddy
all the supporting mods.

before the motor popped I had duel B&M oil coolers and the car ran fine. I dont know what is causing the car to run hotter. car would run fine up the mountains and the oil temp never got over 200 and the water temp never got over 195. Now I cant go up any grades in the car or the car will run even hotter
Old 07-08-09, 08:01 PM
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Have you had the car tuned?
What coolant/water ratio are you running?
Have you checked that the fans operate properly at all speeds?
What about the coolant T-stat?
Why did you change oil coolers when the B & M were sufficient before?


I understand that your saying you didn't have this problem before, but your FMIC isn't helping anything.
Have you taken it back to the builder and asked them?
Old 07-08-09, 09:05 PM
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running water wetter no coolant and no t-stat. car isnt tuned because its not broken in yet. fans start at around 190 i think and run very good. I thought the oil coolers had stuff in them and wanted to run the best oil coolers and not have to worry about them again. I can see the oil temp rise causing the water temp to rise. the over heating is due to the oil temp.
Old 07-09-09, 05:50 AM
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Oil temp will naturally rise first and is usually higher than coolant.
Running with no t-stat allows some coolant to bypass the radiator, so I'd put one back in.
Do you have all three fan speeds?
Old 07-09-09, 07:34 AM
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Is EVERYTHING ducted properly so that no air is escaping around the radiator, oil coolers, etc.?

If it is not, then that would easily explain your cooling problems.
Old 07-09-09, 09:10 AM
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Originally Posted by Sgtblue
Oil temp will naturally rise first and is usually higher than coolant.
Running with no t-stat allows some coolant to bypass the radiator, so I'd put one back in.
Do you have all three fan speeds?
I dont know if i have three fan speeds? how do i check? I will look into getting a new t-stat. Can i get a lower temp one? if so where do i get one? mazda? Thanks for the help
Old 07-09-09, 09:12 AM
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Originally Posted by DaveW
Is EVERYTHING ducted properly so that no air is escaping around the radiator, oil coolers, etc.?

If it is not, then that would easily explain your cooling problems.
I will install all the correct ducts and trays. I have an undertray and oil cooler ducting that i didnt install. I was getting tired of putting them on and taking them off. I am also going to remove the oil t-stat and see if that is messing up the oil system. I am so tired of trying to figure it out.
Old 07-09-09, 09:12 AM
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What are the ambient temps in Tuscon these days?

The temps you listed are not overheating, especially if its 110 degrees out. Recheck your fans. I set mine (on pfc) to come on at 85c.
Old 07-09-09, 09:59 AM
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Originally Posted by adam c
What are the ambient temps in Tuscon these days?

The temps you listed are not overheating, especially if its 110 degrees out. Recheck your fans. I set mine (on pfc) to come on at 85c.
I am in las vegas now and the temps outside are hot. My temps were real low and never fluxed before the motor went. My oil temps sat at 180 and water at 175-185. Now i cant go over 70mph before the temps start to rise and will continue to rise until I stop. My oil temp would go up to 260 before it would level out and stop climbing. That was before the rebuild. I dont like the oil temps that high and shouldnt be that high if i have two oil coolers. Also I run the car with the heat on high all the time. That is the only way to drive the car. I cant boost the car very much and if i do boost then it is for a short time. Basically the car acts like it only has 1/2 an oil cooler.

I dont know what the fans are set to but i think it is 180? I know that the shop wants to keep the temps low because it is vegas and was meant to be a daily for me. I bought everything to have it be one. The shop doesnt like the temps either but they are stumped on what is causing it.

If it is the water that is causing the over heating will the oil absorb the heat? If my water pump or radiator are not working will it cause the oil temp to rise?
Old 07-09-09, 10:17 AM
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Sounds like you still have air in the coolant system. That usual symptom is getting hotter as speeds increase - assuming you aren't beating on the car.

YOur water pump might also be slipping. I'm assuming you aren't running an air pump with the single turbo kit.

Do install a new thermostat, rebleed the coolant system. There are a few companies that make 180* tstats - Pettit and Mazmart.

Stock fans engage at around 200*F. Check that both are engaging. Whatever you are using for engine management should allow you to configure the engagement temps.

Oil and coolant temps are very influenced by each other.
Old 07-09-09, 10:22 AM
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Originally Posted by spr258
I will install all the correct ducts and trays. I have an undertray and oil cooler ducting that i didnt install. I was getting tired of putting them on and taking them off. I am also going to remove the oil t-stat and see if that is messing up the oil system. I am so tired of trying to figure it out.
I would bet $ that this alone will cure the temperature problems. Getting hot at higher speeds without a lot of load on the engine is a definitive symptom of either a blockage in the cooling system, or air not flowing through the coolers. At higher speeds, most of the cooling is done by high-speed air forced through the coolers, not drawn through by the fans. IMO, if the fans are needed at high speeds, there is something wrong with the cooling system. Most racecars do not use fans at all. Air follows the path of least resistance, and if the ducts are not there, that path will be around, not through, the coolers.
Old 07-09-09, 10:29 AM
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^good catch. I didn't notice that comment.
Old 07-09-09, 10:36 AM
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Originally Posted by DaveW
I would bet $ that this alone will cure the temperature problems. Getting hot at higher speeds without a lot of load on the engine is a definitive symptom of either a blockage in the cooling system, or air not flowing through the coolers. At higher speeds, most of the cooling is done by high-speed air forced through the coolers, not drawn through by the fans. Air follows the path of least resistance, and if the ducts are not there, that path will be around, not through, the coolers.
I dont know it this matters but the oil coolers are installed right behind the bumper. i dont think i would need a duct and if so they are behind the coolers. here is a pic of where they are mounted circled in red. as far forward as they can be.
Attached Thumbnails High oil/coolant temps help-poop1.jpg  
Old 07-09-09, 11:25 AM
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Originally Posted by spr258
I dont know it this matters but the oil coolers are installed right behind the bumper. i dont think i would need a duct and if so they are behind the coolers. here is a pic of where they are mounted circled in red. as far forward as they can be.
Close only counts in horseshoes...

Unless my eyes are playing tricks (the photo is pretty dark), I can see pretty large gaps between the bumper cover and the oil coolers. IMO, these gaps are large enough so they will allow most of the air to bypass the coolers. Believe me, it doesn't take much of a gap to screw things up. Ducting is much more important on the high-pressure side, compared to ducting on the outlet, where the air has already been slowed down by the cooler and is not at as high a pressure.

I've seen cases where just a 1/2" wide gap at the rear edge of a 2-ft long angle-mounted radiator was enough to cause overheating that was eliminated when the gap was plugged.

Dave
Old 07-09-09, 03:56 PM
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Originally Posted by DaveW
I would bet $ that this alone will cure the temperature problems.
^Agreed. I would have thought the need for an undertray was obvious. Especially if one is concerned about overheating. Guess not.

As far as a lower temp t-stat, just use the OEM one. One thing you could do however, is get a 89-91 FC thermoswitch to replace the stock one. That will lower fan threshold temps from 108 C. to (IIRC) 95 C.
Old 07-09-09, 05:02 PM
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Originally Posted by spr258
I dont know it this matters but the oil coolers are installed right behind the bumper. i dont think i would need a duct and if so they are behind the coolers. here is a pic of where they are mounted circled in red. as far forward as they can be.
BTW, by coolers I mean oil coolers and radiator... Sorry if this was not clear.

Dave
Old 07-09-09, 06:10 PM
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Originally Posted by DaveW
Close only counts in horseshoes...

Unless my eyes are playing tricks (the photo is pretty dark), I can see pretty large gaps between the bumper cover and the oil coolers. IMO, these gaps are large enough so they will allow most of the air to bypass the coolers. Believe me, it doesn't take much of a gap to screw things up. Ducting is much more important on the high-pressure side, compared to ducting on the outlet, where the air has already been slowed down by the cooler and is not at as high a pressure.

I've seen cases where just a 1/2" wide gap at the rear edge of a 2-ft long angle-mounted radiator was enough to cause overheating that was eliminated when the gap was plugged.

Dave
By close i mean i have rubbed some of the bumper off. There is less than a 1/4 inch gap.
Old 07-09-09, 06:25 PM
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Originally Posted by Sgtblue
^Agreed. I would have thought the need for an undertray was obvious. Especially if one is concerned about overheating. Guess not.

As far as a lower temp t-stat, just use the OEM one. One thing you could do however, is get a 89-91 FC thermoswitch to replace the stock one. That will lower fan threshold temps from 108 C. to (IIRC) 95 C.
I have a power FC and set the fans to come on at around 85. I had an undertray on and the temp raised a little bit. I dont know if it is because the fmic is pressed tight on the bumper as well
Old 07-09-09, 06:33 PM
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BTW thanks for all the help. my water belt was a little loss and was slipping. tightened it up and made the car run better.
Old 07-10-09, 01:43 PM
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You should be using an idler pulley for more contact of the water-pump pulley.
Old 07-10-09, 01:45 PM
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Originally Posted by 1Revvin7
You should be using an idler pulley for more contact of the water-pump pulley.
I just ordered one. I cant wait to put it on and see if it fixes the problem.
Old 07-10-09, 01:56 PM
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As stated earlier, cooling will not work properly with no undertray.
Old 07-10-09, 03:11 PM
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Originally Posted by adam c
As stated earlier, cooling will not work properly with no undertray.
+1 for this. Witnessed this first hand a few years ago when I took a test drive without the undertray on. Had +20 temps almost compared to with it installed.

Also, As others have already said, if you really want to get the most out of your expensive new coolers (oil and coolant) they need to be 100% sealed and ducted to the nose of the car. You will notice dramatic changes in the effieiency of the coolers. This will cause no need to run things such as no t stat, which pretty much just makes the car warm up slower.
Old 07-11-09, 09:55 AM
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Originally Posted by spr258
I just ordered one. I cant wait to put it on and see if it fixes the problem.
Your kit shipped out yesterday, hope it helps with your problem.

Dan
Old 07-11-09, 02:25 PM
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spell coolant right in your subject line
not bc i'm nitpciking
but for those who may search for coolant problems later use the "Search" button

There's a lot of good advice/help in this thread


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