Oil Cooler installation

[Langsam]

Right I've been searching all over the net for a good guide to installing a oil cooler kit.

Im just wondering if any of you could help?

I've bought a mocal kit with thermostatic control oil sandwhich plate.

Ive read that I should use PTFE tape on all the fittings, but whats got me stumped is should i fill the cooler body with oil and also the lines when finally fitting it? And also where should position it? Ive been told to position the cooler body right in front of the radiator, but wouldnt that just heat up the oil already in the cooler body before the thermostat opens?

Cheers

[Puncharado]

I'd fill the oil cooler before final fitting, as it will help avoid trapped air and also stop the sump level dropping when the stat opens for the first time. But how easy or practical this is depends on how it's fitted.

When placed in front of the rad it's the hot air coming of the oil cooler which has an effect on the coolant temp, as it's no longer cool air hitting the rad. In order to avoid this heat transfer a lot of people fit it on the passenger side behind the fog light hole, which is cut out to allow airflow, obviously this is not possible if you have fog lights. If running a front mount intercooler it may be possible to fit it where the original intercooler fits, but the space available depends on the size of both the oil cooler and intercooler and the pipework for both.

If you have the standard intercooler and fog lights, in front of the rad may be the only option.

[xandyx]

what if you fit above std intercooler? between charger and front grill..

[Langsam]

Right ok, its only a 13row body so not massive.

[Jezza-7]

I'd fill the oil cooler before final fitting, as it will help avoid trapped air and also stop the sump level dropping when the stat opens for the first time. But how easy or practical this is depends on how it's fitted.

When placed in front of the rad it's the hot air coming of the oil cooler which has an effect on the coolant temp, as it's no longer cool air hitting the rad. In order to avoid this heat transfer a lot of people fit it on the passenger side behind the fog light hole, which is cut out to allow airflow, obviously this is not possible if you have fog lights. If running a front mount intercooler it may be possible to fit it where the original intercooler fits, but the space available depends on the size of both the oil cooler and intercooler and the pipework for both.

If you have the standard intercooler and fog lights, in front of the rad may be the only option.

I wouldnt worry about fitting it in front of the rad. How small the oil rad is compared to the water rad will make no difference and its only a little part of the radiator. The water radiator will be around 80 and the stat opens for the oil around the same depending on what its set to. So it wont have an affect. I never have. I will go take a pic of mine and show you. The oil cooler dropped my temps down to around 80 degrees on the water temp.

[cheys03]

Do you have a thermostatic sandwich plate for the oil cooler Jezza?

[Jezza-7]

Yeah i do. Just about to put some pics on.

[Jezza-7]

This is where its mounted.









With grille on

[cheys03]

cool, cheers for the pics. I'm at the point now where I have to choose...Hella grille or decent cooling..!

[grungeisdead]

i fitted the oil cooler on my G-ladered mk2 in the drivers side wing, inbetween the wing and the arch liner, lines run along the subframe up to the sammich plate.

fitted on the turbo mk2 where the horn used to fit, which has now been relocated.

the g mk2s oil cooler was originally fitted by the fog light blank on the passenger side on the mk3 with a few holes drilled out of the bumper!

an oil cooler is probably one of the wisest investments on even a standard G40

[Lost_Cause]

I've a mk1 GTi oil cooler to go in at some stage but one thing I did notice is the positioning.
I mounted it up in the lower left (as you look straight at it) of the 'mouth' of the bumper.
Was pretty happy with the positioning but I had a lot ripped out of the car at the time.
Once the intercooler was replaced, room to run the oil lines between rad & intercooler disappeared.
Was thinking of running them below but afraid of the lines becoming damaged/split.
How safe would it be to drill a slot in the lower front cross member to allow the lines through without altering the strength of the cross member?
Ill probably end up whipping out the carbon cannister & putting there though.

Also, any recommendations on where to get a cheap but decent thermostatic sandwich plate?

[cheys03]

Apparently some Vauxhalls have a suitable sandwich plate fitted as standard. Scrappy search perhaps?

[grungeisdead]

mocal sammich plates arent majorly expensive, but its correct you can use GM oil coolers, the adaptor/thread extender for the filter, can be had seperately at places like merlin motorsport or ebay!

got some spare mk1 gti lines if you want them for cost of postage and a couple of bevvies!

[Etches]

Chris keep the hella grill, it looks mint! Just find somewhere else for the cooler

[cheys03]

Haha! Cheers mate! The cooler's currently mounted behind the nearside foglight cut-out. I was hoping it could help the water temps if I moved it somewhere better, but tbh oil temps are fine really. Coolant temps run (fairly) high during summer. Time to 'adjust' the bumper and bumper bar some more