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Oil Cooler Shutoff Valve

6.6K views 33 replies 15 participants last post by  FFR5452  
#1 ·
So, my oil cooler works too efficiently and I'd like to have a shutoff valve. But is it that simple?

I currently have Earl's pancake oil thermostat (something like this: Earl's 502, Earl's Temp-A-Cure Oil Thermostats | Earl's).

However, I've heard that even when the oil is "cold," there is still a tiny flow of oil that is circulated to the oil cooler. This is to keep the oil in the oil cooler and lines somewhat warm and to prevent a big burst of cold oil entering the engine when the thermostat does finally open.

My problem is that even that little bit that is traveling through the cooler is too much and prevents the oil temperature gage from even registering a temperature while moving in 40 degree weather. While idling, the oil temp goes to normal (the fan even turns on), but when I start moving again, it goes right back down.

So, can I install a single valve in one of the oil cooler lines and shut it off during cold weather? My concern would be that when the thermostat opens when the oil temp gets high, the thermostat would not allow oil to bypass the cooler within the pancake. And, if the oil doesn't circulate within the pancake, and the valve going to the oil cooler is shut, then there wouldn't be any oil flow at all (or there would be severely restricted flow). I think we all know that wouldn't be a good situation.

I emailed the Earl people, and they didn't really give me an answer.

I guess the real question is: if the Earl thermostat is at temperature (i.e., allowing oil to go to the cooler), and the line going to the cooler is blocked, will I get any oil flow in the engine? If so, is the flow restricted at all?

Is there another solution to this problem? I'd like it to be simple to operate (like turning the handle of a single valve) and still allow a functional oil cooler.
 
#2 ·
The simplest solution is an oil/water heat exchanger and disconnect the air unit.. The water will keep your oil at optimum temperature at all times and provide more cooling capacity than most cars will ever need. No need for a thermostat, valves, or anything else to fail. The water lines connect to the heater circuit if you have one, just to the water pump and manifold if you don't. There is a reason these are used in OE installations.

Here is what they look like

EDIT: This is also the cheapest solution. Available at salvage yards.


Image
 
#3 ·
I didn't even know these existed. This would definitely be the most practical solution, but if I understand correctly, I think it would make my oil cooler completely cosmetic. I want to keep it functional.
 
#7 ·
well in winter I have to block part of radiator on my diesel. what about doing that to restrict cold air flow thru cooler.
I like this idea a lot better than messing with the oil system. It could be as easy as a clamp on sheet of metal on the back of the oil cooler.
 
#8 ·
I used an 8-AN nitros ball valve from Jegs to control my oil and water to the heater. Turning off hot water to heater lets me run my heater fans on high during warm days.
 
#25 ·
Maybe like stang killer said and block the airflow. You could do something fairly robust on the back side where it can't be seen.
This is what I did. I made a bracket to hold a piece of 0.040" aluminum on the backside of the oil cooler. It's removable if I need more cooling.

With the plate installed, I get oil temps up where they should be. Before, I rarely got over 180*F in street driving.

David
 
#15 ·
Check the bottle, but I'm pretty sure it's 10W30. You will have a very hard time building up any heat with that weight oil in conjunction with an oil cooler. Especially so in view of the fact that you're in WI where the temp right now is what, 15°? Unless you're running the crap out of the engine at high RPM's the oil temp will never come up as 10W30 sheds heat too quickly. For right now do what Pete suggests, block off the cooler with something solid that wont pass air. Once you thaw out or do your first oil change whichever comes first, switch to a 15W40 commercial grade oil (aka Diesel) like Shell Rotella. This oil retains heat a little better for the street with an oil cooler but still stays well within the safe range when you're pushing it hard. Do not use 10W40. HTH
Frank
 
#16 ·
Oh, yeah, I'm not driving car now. Not with all the snow, ice, water, salt, etc. on the roads. I'm waiting until the spring. My point here is that I don't want to have to wait until it's in the 50s or 60s in the spring, I'd like to get the car out when it's in the 40s and keep the engine cool.
 
#18 ·
Agreed, the oil cooler is unneeded for normal street driving. It is quite useful on high speed tracks but I block it off for the streets with cardboard.
Look in the archives for clever ways of blocking off from behind, but PITA if u remove frequently.
I've actually bought a really nice Aeromotive oil/water heat exchanger, but haven't installed yet because of its bulk. Might try again in the future.
 
#19 · (Edited)
C&R Oil diverter / bypass may work well for your needs. Its fully proportional so you can dial in the amount of cooling or close it off all together. I use one on my car and it works very well. I've got 2 lines on the outlet side of my remote filter. One routes to the oil cooler and then into this valve, the other straight to this valve. I can easily adjust how much flow routes thru the cooler.

http://www.crracing.com/oil-cooler-bypass-valve


C R Inline Oil Diverter Bypass An 12 Fittings w Mount NASCAR Arca IMCA Scca | eBay
 
#20 ·
You're correct. When the oil is cold, the thermostat allows about 10% of the oil to flow through the cooler. That allows all of the oil to warm up at the same rate, rather than opening a valve and allowing a big slug of cold oil to enter the engine.

As the oil warms up, that percentage gradually increases. When the oil is hot, the thermostat allows about 10% of the oil to bypass the cooler, and go right back to the engine. That helps to preserve oil flow and pressure.

With that thought in mind, you can see that on a cold day, the oil never gets to operating temp. And that's a bad thing. I tried blocking it off with cardboard and duct tape, but it still struggled to get warm enough to work well.

The pancake thermostat completely re-routes the oil path. You can't simply put a shut off valve before the cooler, as that will shut off all oil flow to the engine. You'll need to create an "H" with two valves - one in the center of the H, and another one near the entrance of the cooler, past the center of the "H".

At one time, there was a valve available from Beaumont Metal Works. But I havn't seen them in years. Beaumont Cooler Bypass Valve and Block Adapter - Club Cobra
 
#23 ·
I picked one of these up when I thought my oil cooler was running the engine too cold.

Mocal Remote Oil Cooler Thermostat, High Temp A0T2-XXHT

I never actually ended up needing to install it, as it turned out that my previous owner had run the lines for the automatic transmission to the oil cooler opening, and NOT the engine oil. The oil temp gauge was also wired to the transmission. A simple mistake of me not asking the previous owner if the oil temp gauge was for the transmission or the engine oil! :icon18:

If you're interested in going this route, PM and we can work out a deal. It was too late for me to return it, as I didn't realize my error until I actually had time to get under there and trace out all the lines. :001_rolleyes:

Mark
 
#26 ·
So, as recommended, I put a piece of cardboard in front of the oil cooler yesterday and went for a drive. While moving, the oil temp gauge never registered a temp. When I stopped, the temp did creep up.

So, I'm finally convinced to get rid of the oil cooler.

I'm now interested in a oil/water heat exchanger. Are there any exchangers that can be located in the oil cooler opening at the nose? All I can find are ones that are mounted inside the engine bay. I'd like to fill that hole with something.
 
#27 ·
You could fit a mocal laminar flow in there, but I think it would look pretty weird. I'm using the opening for ram air, but for most I think leaving in the air oil cooler but capping it off is the best choice.

For the oil/water heat exchanger there are three basic choices. The OE Ford ones are cheap, available in salvage yards, and go directly on the oil filter mount. There are a few box type on the market that are mostly custom fabricated, and then there is the laminar flow like the mocal unit. I'm using the laminar, but my money is still on the Ford unit being best bang for the buck on a wet sump motor.
 
#30 ·
You really don;t need an oil cooler at all. Oil is heated by high rpm's. if you're road racing, oil will get hot enough to be a problem. Otherwise, it will never get that hot for that long to be an issue.

The advantage to a heat exchanger is that it will warm the oil up on a cold day. That's a nice thing when it's bitter cold out. But you won't be driving it then, sooooo.......

I have essentially the same engine you do, making about the same power. On the street, I never need an oil cooler.

To fill the hole, leave the plate cooler in place and loop the lines around behind or above the radiator. lots of people do that.
 
#32 ·
The oil cooler is plumbed into the heater circuit, not the radiator hose. This allows oil temp to be brought up by the water bypassing the tstat and will result in very warm oil long before the tstat opens. Essentially the tstat will then be regulating both the water and oil temps. Plumbing into the radiator circuit results in inconsistent oil cooling and heating with a range of negative side effects.

Edit: Plumbing into the radiator hose can work very well in a race application where there are much narrower operating conditions. Not a great idea on a street car.
 
#34 ·
Or, you could simply modify your existing oil lines to and from the remote oil cooler to bypass the cooler completely and just circulate to and from the remote oil filter.

I did that on my car. Made up a two foot line and routed the oil from the block to the filter and back to the block again. Works great in the winter and in the summer I re-connect the lines to and from the cooler. Seems to work real well. And very easy to do.