Tom2000 Posted August 10, 2008 Share Posted August 10, 2008 The Oil Cooler from Rimmers/Canleys site are around £100 I was wondering, as you can pickup an oil cooler for mini's, midgets, campers, bugs etc for alot cheaper and was wondering if I could use one of these alternative cheaper options and whats entailed? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
GT6boy Posted August 10, 2008 Share Posted August 10, 2008 Depends what your application is- you may not actually need an oil cooler? I have a thermostatically controlled oil cooler and I can't remember the last time the stat opened through nescessity, and that includes a track day session at full tilt all day! If your cooling system is up to scratch, then just normal driving shouldn't need the expense of an oil cooler IMO :). You could easily spend that money on something far more beneficial. :) Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
GT6 John Posted August 10, 2008 Share Posted August 10, 2008 Do you really need an oil cooler, Tom?I notice you own a Spit 1500. Does it have the standard 1500 radiator or the wider full width one?Why do I ask? Well, Canley Classics themselves say this:"...the worst culprits in the overheating department are the latest model Spitfires, something to do with Triumph reducing the area of the radiator as the engine capacity increased and the grille area reduced, that makes sense! Triumph must have known this because the American market cars came equipped with a full width radiator similar to that fitted to all earlier Spitfires when they were only 1147cc's and had a much larger grille aperture.Many years ago we tooled up to make this full width radiator, part number RKC2117, all Spitfire 1500's should be fitted with one by law!We usually get a call to our technical line after an owner has gone out and spent a fortune on electric fans and or oil coolers and the overheating problem has persisted or more usually got far worse.Electric fans and oil coolers mask the root problem and don't cure them in fact they often make things far worse."Link: http://www.canleyclassics.com/infodatabase.asp?article=overheating Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
CharlieB Posted August 10, 2008 Share Posted August 10, 2008 You could always fit an oil temperature gauge to find out whether a cooler is needed. It has nothing to do with if the engine overheats, the water system deals with that. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
GT6 John Posted August 10, 2008 Share Posted August 10, 2008 It's probably me being thick, but if the engine overheats then the oil gets too hot that way, seeing as the oil is in the engine, surely? Therefore a decent radiator to cool the engine is surely needed over and above an oil cooler?I'm sure it's also been said that oil coolers on road cars can cool the oil too much, causing it to not work at it's best as the viscocity is then wrong.What is the optimum working temperature for correct viscocity of the oil in our engines?Rarebits Bills wife would know this one! ;D Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Nick Jones Posted August 10, 2008 Share Posted August 10, 2008 Try this lot....http://www.thinkauto.com/There is good sense being talking above about whether you really need one.In general I would say that for the majority of Triumphs with unmodified engines being driven in the UK, you don't need an oil cooler. However: My 1500 experiences with a a 1500 lump in a Herald (wide radiator and overdrive!) was that it needed an oil cooler. Oil pressure after any kind of fast run would be dismal at idle (even with rebuilt bottom end) and bearing life was short. So when I modified it (only mildly) I also added a short 13 row cooler with an oilstat. The stat would open after about 15 - 20 miles fast driving. This sorted the hot idle oil pressure and the bearings lasted until the engine died of other causes.As a point of interest the same oil cooler and stat were transferred when I changed to a hot small crank 1300 ( still wide rad and overdrive) and even though the engine was more powerful than the 1500 and got revved much harder it took serious and prolonged caning to bring the cooler into service.Nick Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Tim Bancroft Posted August 11, 2008 Share Posted August 11, 2008 Totally agree with Nick.Three important considerations:1. Position of rad.2. Ensure a oil thermostat is fitted.3. Fit quality joints to hoses.Think Automotive at Isleworth are the manufacturers of the Mocal range and very helpful/good.I imagine a few people will come on here and rubbish them, but I have always found them to be helpful, 20 years dealing with them. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
JohnD Posted August 11, 2008 Share Posted August 11, 2008 Most oil cooler kits come with hoses that are attached to the connectors by jubilee clips or similar.Horrors!Loose some water on the road, and you can fill up from a friendly tap, but oil loss...................Industry would never do this. Find and visit your local hydraulics shop, that deal with JCBs, tractors, HGVs etc. etc.. They will make you a set of swaged connecting hoses, that will never, ever come off the connectors, for not a lot.If you DO need a cooler, that is!JohnPS I'm sure the kit sold by Rimmers etc is Mocal kit anyway, so I support tim. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Tom2000 Posted August 11, 2008 Author Share Posted August 11, 2008 The only reason I ask is that I have read many sources that say an oil cooler is a good idea on an every day spit. My 1500 is used everyday, perhaps I should just get the wider radiator?The only reason I want one is.. I can! and i'm running out of shiney bits to put in the spitfire ;D Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
GT6boy Posted August 11, 2008 Share Posted August 11, 2008 Tom2000 wrote:The only reason I want one is.. I can! and i'm running out of shiney bits to put in the spitfire ;D Oi- stop it! ;) If you really do want to spend money, go to Stafford and pick up an oil pressure gauge and an oil temperature gauge second hand for peanuts at the auto jumble. Then run these and you can see if you need the oil cooler. :) Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Tom2000 Posted August 11, 2008 Author Share Posted August 11, 2008 Although tbh the one thing I should probably do is save and buy myself a spray job. But.. i'd never want to drive her, she's solid, and I love her so that's all that counts ;D Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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