Oil coolers on your KA-T

[koukiKA240]

I was thinking about installing one in line between the block and the turbo. A couple companies sell just the cores and i figure i could plumb it with some earls lines. I live in Houston and the temp here right now is 100+ with 80% humidity. I want to make sure my oil stays within temp. i know with my stock radiator that the coolant temps are running a lil hot even cruising down the highway but its nothing turning on the heater cant fix for now.

As for mounting i was thinking maybe a Vee mount behind one of the small openings in the front bumper under the turn signal.thanks,~Sam

[WDRacing]

Won't work without a pump. The oil needs to gravity retuned to the pan with no restrictions or you ruin the oil seals.

[Import_Ant]

I have been thinking about this recently. I think I'm going to buy an oil filter relocation kit and plumb my oil cooler in there, seperately from the turbo oiling system. I'll let you guys know how that works. as far as placement, I'll probably mount the core in the passenger side of my bumper

[MarkEmark]

I've got an oil cooler, probably the best (and most affordable) upgrade I've made. Does a great job at keeping the temps down. Mine was mounted right up in the front of the bumper (before the radiator), but when I intercooled it, it was blocked by the intercooler...still gets plenty of air flow though.

WD...Not sure what you're referring to with an oil pump? All that you need is a sandwich adaptor to go between the block and the oil filter, a thermostat to control when the oil goes in the cooler, and feed/return lines going to the oil cooler, the thermostat, and the sandwich adaptor. I don't have any extra pump....I have pics of my setup if anyone's interested....

[Nismo_Freak]

He was wanting to install it after the turbo, which is a no-no because you will get a back-up of oil and a resulting oil seal failure.

[koukiKA240]

i was refering to the sending side, of between the block and the turbo.

The thermostat, is a good idea, i was just going to run it through the cooler all the time, but cold oil is is bad the same way boiling oil is.

I would like to see pics. If you are on aim find me im koukika240sx, if you wouldnt mind i would like to talk to you about your setup.~Sam

[MarkEmark]

The blue thing on the top is the oil filter. Those two brass nipples are the return/feed lines for the oil cooler. The sensor to the right is what the turbo gets its oil from. Below is the motor mount on the intake side of the engine.



You can kinda see the sandwich adaptor behind the oil filter here....



Another picture of the oil cooler and its return/feed lines, wedged between the AC condensor and the intercooler.



These are the two oil lines coming from the front bumper area through a hole in the battery tray (battery is in trunk).

Hope the pics help.

[eddiec]

i'm currently working to get a cooler plumb'd in.

i'd give up on the idea of cooling the oil before the turbo, too much hassle. however cooling all the oil is a good idea. i thank nissan for putting piston squirters in the block. those and an oil cooler go a long way towards reducing temps.

heres a few pics of the hardware i got. one is the block adaptor. other is for the remote mount. i have a cooler from an old volve 240 (ironic eh) but the fittings are giving me problems. so i may but a new unit with the right fittings. http://nissaninfiniticlub.net/...133&=

[koukiKA240]

what made you give up? MarkEMark was able to pull it off.~Sam

[WDRacing]

Mark, don't make come up to CT and choke you...

[Import_Ant]

I just ordered this kit from Jegs if anyone is interested I'll post pics and a review when I install it.



Link

I'll probably end up mounting it in front of my Radiator since I don't have an A/C condensor. depending on how I'm feeling I might make the extra effort to mount it by itself on the passenger side of the bumper.

I also ordered the Oil filter sandwich adapter from PDM racing (before I found the kit) I'll probably use PDM's sandwich adapter in place of the generic one.

[DRIFTEADOR]

i'm guessing eddiec's giving up on the volvo cooler cause it has fittings instead of barb nipples or, AN fittings in his case.

i'd like to hear more about the thermostat is setup.

[MarkEmark]

what made you give up? MarkEMark was able to pull it off.~Sam

There's nothing special about my setup...my setup cools all the oil in the engine, so the oil going to the turbo is cooled too technically, but it's not set up any special way just to get the oil cool for the turbo.

Also, eddiec..good luck with those fittings...you may have clearance issues/they may not work at all. If you look at the second pic I posted, my fittings are short 90 degree elbows, otherwise they (or the oil lines) would have run right into the motor mount/its mounting bracket. Especially with long, straight aeroquip fittings and inflexible stainless aeroquip hose, I don't know how much success you're going to have fitting it there...I'd use elbows if I were you.

I'm AMAZED how few people have oil coolers with their KA-Ts...it was the first thing on my list before I turbocharged anything...it just makes so much sense.

[Jookmasta]

my question is how long did it take to install markemark? also how much did all of this run? I know from personal experience that one good boost pull on my car in this south florida heat around mid day and thats it from the car. Its like an instant ten hp out the window once the oil heats up . lol. so is this entire system done by a pump or does the engine do all the work? also any need to add more oil to the engine than the normal amount?

[MarkEmark]

It didn't take long, and it didn't cost much. I did it almost 2 years ago though so I don't know the exact prices off the top of my head. The biggest PITA was finding a place to mount the thing securely and sourcing HIGH pressure HIGH temperature oil hose...There is no separate pump for the oil cooler/lines. ANd yes, you will need to add a little bit more oil because a good amount of oil can fill the lines, thermostat, oil cooler, turbo feed and drain line, and the turbo itself.

[eddiec]

i haven't given up on the project, just that volvo cooler in particular. i have my eye on a trusty b&m unit with the 1/2 NPT i/o ports i want.

i have a bad habit of getting sidetracked when i start something with this car. as an example, the current idea of a oil cooler/filter relocation has also led to the relocation of the battery to the hatch area to make space for the relocated filter. while cleaning up the hatch area (removed all the tar sound crap) i also took the time to do some "strengthening" of the shock tower area. also painted everything nice and pretty. so one thing leads to the next and i have too many things going on at once. i'll post pics once i have everything sorted.

[DRIFTEADOR]

is this what you're using?

http://www.racerpartswholesale.com/mocal.htm

[MarkEmark]

Not that brand exactly, but it looks similar...mine has female ports. I sure as hell didn't pay $90 for it though...I got mine from some Alfa Romeo performance catalog that was also selling the oil cooler...Forgot how much it was, definitely not more than $30-40

[DRIFTEADOR]

actually i was looking at the second one down. its a sandwich adapter w/ thermostat in one piece (the one for $79). if thats what you were talking about, where do I get one for $30-40? also what are your cruising/hard driving temps?

[koukiKA240]

i haven't given up on the project, just that volvo cooler in particular. i have my eye on a trusty b&m unit with the 1/2 NPT i/o ports i want.

I was also looking at the B&M unit.

with the use of that sandwitch adapter and thermostat the oil leaves one side and enters back at the other right? This cools all the oil in the motor and would need no more mods as far as on the block side?~Sam

[koukiKA240]

bump

kinda wanna know what the entire setup costs