Oil cooler
 

Hello all:) I noticed a oil leak coming from my oil cooler lines. I believe its the lowest hose closest to the rack an pinion steering. the plastic cover that sits on below the radiator is covered in oil. Its not dripping alot but it is dripping every minute or so. I want to replace this but I am not sure where to find a hose replacement and what procedures I need to follow in order to do it right. Any input on this would be greatly appreciated. thanks in advance ----Ren

uhh...what year car is it? My guess its an FC. The cooler lines could be cracked, which is usually the care with a leaky oil cooler. Get OEM lines from a dealership or better yet for some bucks more go with aftermarket places for this like Mazdatrix and Racing Beat.

oops sorry, its an 88 gxl

Like racerx7fb said, you can find them at these sites: www.racingbeat.com
www.mazdatrix.com

A good book to have a Haynes manual.

I just changed my Oil Cooler line from my GSL-SE known to leak oil. I purchaced a Racing Beat SS Oil Cooler line with 10AN fitting, I also purchased 3 16mm and 1 18mm fittings for GSL-SE, but for an 88 gxl, its 4 18mm.

First make sure all the oil is out.

TOOLS
a set of big Millimeter wrenches preferrably an open end one. ( 24mm-26mm)
A Torque wrench, you wanna adjust to specific Torque
Teflon sealant
Teflon tape
a brush and Oil Degreaser or Simple Green
A good Welder's phone # just in case.
NEW crush washers

Steps

First you need to remove in order from bottom to top Oil Cooler Line(duh). The bottom Oil Line is fastened by a clamp just above the linkage or just below the p/s gear. Get that off and then remove the Oil line.(Be careful when dealing on the oil cooler end, you can easily crack the Cooler, I had 3 cracks on mine)

You'll need to remove the Fan and the Fan Shroud and a couple of belt to get to the other connection in front of the Engine(Be careful again, I smashed my finger on the radiator to loosen the bolt).

Clean up the caked on Oil.

Check the Oil Cooler for any cracks, if theirs a crack, get it welded. Brand new oil cooler = $700, used = $30,but could be cracked too. weld = ~$40-$80. It cost me $50 to get my cooler welded.

Apply Teflon sealant on the fitting end that inserts into the oil cooler and the engine. Wrap the outside thread with Teflon Tape; the one that connects to the Oil Cooler Line. Tighten about 30 pounds per foot or 360 pounds per inch.

Use the same Routing and make sure before you start the her up, make sure the oil nut is on and tight, also make sure you put oil in it.

Check for leaks(their shouldn't be any if everything is done correctly). I still have a minor oil leak on the oil pan, its cracked where the nut goes in(Its not too bad).

I had to replace my Line a couple weeks ago(Success). This is only if you're putting in a RACING BEAT STAINLESS STEEL OIL COOLER LINE 10AN fitting, the line is really from EARL'S, it even says it on the line.

he said rack and pinion steering, that rules out 1st gen.

Just added Mazdatrix SS lines this past weekend and can't say that I met with as much success. Turns out I also have a crack in the Oil Cooler mounting bung which is allowing a drip...........drip at idle. I've found that this is only leaking when cold, however, as it appears that the thermal bypass in the bottom of the OC is being hit with high pressure oil from the engine block and this exacerbates the leak. Once hot, the OC mount doesn't appear to be leaking, but will need to be welded in the near future.

I have another OC that was damaged in a curb strike by the last owner that I'll probably have welded up at the same time - for a rainy day.

Hope this is a one-time fix - sure is frustrating to spend your New Year's Day working to fix a problem only to have it continue to leak when you get done.

Also, if you're going this route, I'd suggest leaving the lines at the OC somewhat loose (w/teflon tape in place), start the engine, and then tighten just enough to stop all leaks - I think this would have prevented me cracking the bung on the mount for mine, and save me another day to take it out and have a welder work on it...

HTH,