Oil Cooler for track use

[jonty]

My mr2 was originally intended as a road and track car, has become my daily, but now looks set to go back to the original script at last..!

Can people please recommend an oil cooler setup they have used on track and found the quality (and price!) to be OK?

Ideally I'd like something off the shelf as I've got a gazillion projects on the go and don't wasn't to take an evening or three making brackets. I've got a 2zz, so does this make any difference? Externally they seem prey much identical, but I don't want to find the hoses are all 10mm short etc!

[MilesH]

13 row air to oil cooler with AN10 fittings and a sandwich plate above the oil filter.

I bought the sandwich plate and pipes together (via ebay) and the 13 row cooler was a 115 mocal one.

[jonty]

Thanks for the reply Miles, I'll look into it. Did you use an off the shelf mounting bracket, or did you have to fab something up yourself?

[m1tch]

Is it worth running a thermostatic sandwich plate so you don't overcool the engine? Anyone run a gearbox cooler?

[shnazzle]

Is it worth running a thermostatic sandwich plate so you don't overcool the engine? Anyone run a gearbox cooler?

Yes! Wabbitkilla had this on his. Only kick in after a certain oil temp. Don't want the car to take longer to warm up.

Gearbox cooler would be cool. How would I work? Pumped from drain to the the fill hole via a cooler?
Any evidence that this is even necessary? Quite a few C-series boxes being run regularly on the track with no issues up to 200+ hp.



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[MilesH]

Thanks for the reply Miles, I'll look into it. Did you use an off the shelf mounting bracket, or did you have to fab something up yourself?

I made something up out of a bit of aluminium. Bent to shape in a vice and drilled some holes for bolts and mounted it near the passenger side air scoop.

With a 2zz on track I was seeing high oil temps so fitted one to drop the temps slightly and reduce the strain on the engine. I definitely saw an improvement. Whether it is strictly necessary I don't know as many race with a 1zz all season and have no issues without one, but I did it simply as a belt and braces and because I was allowed to within regs  s:) s:)

[jonty]

I made something up..
With a 2zz on track...

On I'll probably end up making something as well. And in of the same mind as you, no point is risking it!

Mitch and schnazzle I'm interested in that too, I have a rotrex sat on a shelf waiting to entirely get fitted (been there about 4 years, will prob be another couple still) and if reducing temps can help gearbox life in all for it..

[m1tch]

Is it worth running a thermostatic sandwich plate so you don't overcool the engine? Anyone run a gearbox cooler?

Yes! Wabbitkilla had this on his. Only kick in after a certain oil temp. Don't want the car to take longer to warm up.

Gearbox cooler would be cool. How would I work? Pumped from drain to the the fill hole via a cooler?
Any evidence that this is even necessary? Quite a few C-series boxes being run regularly on the track with no issues up to 200+ hp.



Sent from my ONEPLUS A5000 using Tapatalk

Might look into extra cooling when I get round to fitting a turbo as there will be an additional heat source in the system, does the car not have any oil cooling as standard?

I only ask as I believe the E153 box has a gearbox cooler which helps keep temps down when under higher load - will be going above 200bhp for the project.

It would seem that a high gearbox temp could cause case warpage which would misalign gears and cause tooth failure, the hotter thinner oil might also mean that its too thin to form a coating on the internals - might look at some passive gearbox options, there are kits that have an electric pump using the fill and drain ports if there isn't an internal oil pump.