Robi-Cooler Install....Oil Temps under 180???

[mad_sb]

Originally Posted by wparsons

I thought that the Robispec radiator doesn't cool the oil with coolant... it's just a regular oil cooler attached to the radiator? The only oil coolers that use coolant to cool the oil that I know of are the factory setup from the FA20DIT and the Cusco kit, which uses some of the factory parts.

No, it uses a laminova core built into the rad section. Laminova is flluid to fluid heat exchanger.

Originally Posted by Deep Six

..

Anyway, after 2 days of driving in 70 degree Florida weather I have not seen the oil temp get above 180. Sustained 75 mph driving (3100rpm) yields 172 degrees where I was at 215 before.Running Amsoil 5w40 synthetic by the way. I am concerned whether or not this average operating temperature may actually be too low. If so I may have to restrict airflow during regular daily driving and open it up on track days. I will probably switch to a 5w30 to ease the work on the oil pump since the temps won't be near as high on the track anymore.

Thoughts???
..

It does sound like a stuck thermostat as others have mentioned.... Concerning to me as a lot of my daily driving is very short trips and i wanted to use the RobiRad to help get my oil up to temp (hot enough to evaporate any fuel / water out of the oil) much quicker than stock.

[Ironsquid]

Im not familiar with the robi setup. Some oil coolers have a thermostat built into the oil plate sandwich. If you're not seeing above 170 I would check the thermostat there.

Well I just took another look at your pictures. I don't think your oil cooler sandwich block has a thermostat in it, so it's basically sending oil 100% of the time through your oil cooler. I would look into buying a different adapter block. The FBM one I have now includes a thermostat. I don't know if FBM sells just the thermostat sandwich block. @FullBlown

[Malt]

You guys missed one important fact in the very first post. He's running 5w40 instead of 0w20. That alone could account for the lowered oil temperature.

[Dave-ROR]

Originally Posted by Malt

You guys missed one important fact in the very first post. He's running 5w40 instead of 0w20. That alone could account for the lowered oil temperature.

Thicker oil will increase oil temps generally. They absorb heat more slowly from the engine.

[Draco_PR23]

I also have the Robispec radiator, I DD my car (which is turbo) and I usually see between 175-180 Oil temps and 190-195 water temps.

[SirBrass]

Originally Posted by Draco_PR23

I also have the Robispec radiator, I DD my car (which is turbo) and I usually see between 175-180 Oil temps and 190-195 water temps.

Nice! Now if only the Robispec wasn't a full grand to buy!

[Dave-ROR]

Originally Posted by SirBrass

Nice! Now if only the Robispec wasn't a full grand to buy!

That's not really bad when you look at the price of a quality oil cooler setup and the price of a quality radiator. I haven't seen the Robispec setup in person so I can't comment on how good of quality it is but I haven't seen anything bad (haven't searched either).

[SirBrass]

True. I agree it's probably worth the cost, but man that's expensive.

I guess I'll just have to consider it if I end up seeing an issue with heat levels. I probably won't until I go FI, and if I stick with going SC, it may not be as big of an issue as I think it might. I'll just have to keep an eye on coolant temps.

[Draco_PR23]

Agree with Dave-ROR, the price will be similar if you get a quality oil cooler and radiator. As for the quality of the Robispec setup it is good but fitment is tight.

[mit_peid]

I'm surprised by the low oil temps discussed above. In what general range should the oil be operating at (assuming the same viscosity as came stock in our cars)?

I started to log my engine oil temps since I'm planning on installing a KW S/C within the next week to get a baseline of what temps I get stock in different scenarios: 1.) freeway cruising, 2.) city driving/work commute, 3.) spirited canyon driving, etc...

I was a tad surprised to see the oil get to 220F in some of my logs yesterday - just cruising ~70-75mph on the freeway in L.A. with 70F ambient temps. I wonder how hot it will get with the S/C installed without a oil cooler in city driving and driving it hard.

Log/Graph below captured by the Torque App.

[Deep Six]

I haven't checked in here for a while so let me update and clear up some misconceptions. For clarification all the readings are taken from a scanguage.

I switched to a 5w 40 before the install after seeing ultra high oil temps at the track in May. Daily driving oil temps went from ~208 to ~216 probably due to the increased friction with the heavier weight oil. Three track weekends later, I have not seen the oil temp exceed 220 during 20 - 30 min sessions at 5 to 7.5K sustained.

Daily driving oil temps have continued to run in the 170's. The oil does heat up fairly quickly but peaks at that temp. Hard driving may see 200 tops. Gas mileage is down a couple mpg's consistently I believe due to the heavier oil running at a lower temperature. I am planning to switch to 5W 30 now that my inventory has been depleted.

There is no issue with the thermostat. The coolant temp stays rock solid at 190 and peaks at 200 during track duty. This radiator has massive cooling ability compared to stock.

Again, I am over the top satisfied with this product and how well it keeps maximum temperatures down. I am still concerned about the daily oil temps running in the 170's although I don't have a scientific basis for the concern. It may be that a hardwired temp guage would read higher temps as the ECU info may not be completely accurate.

[DarkSunrise]

Originally Posted by Deep Six

I haven't checked in here for a while so let me update and clear up some misconceptions. For clarification all the readings are taken from a scanguage.

I switched to a 5w 40 before the install after seeing ultra high oil temps at the track in May. Daily driving oil temps went from ~208 to ~216 probably due to the increased friction with the heavier weight oil. Three track weekends later, I have not seen the oil temp exceed 220 during 20 - 30 min sessions at 5 to 7.5K sustained.

Daily driving oil temps have continued to run in the 170's. The oil does heat up fairly quickly but peaks at that temp. Hard driving may see 200 tops. Gas mileage is down a couple mpg's consistently I believe due to the heavier oil running at a lower temperature. I am planning to switch to 5W 30 now that my inventory has been depleted.

There is no issue with the thermostat. The coolant temp stays rock solid at 190 and peaks at 200 during track duty. This radiator has massive cooling ability compared to stock.

Again, I am over the top satisfied with this product and how well it keeps maximum temperatures down. I am still concerned about the daily oil temps running in the 170's although I don't have a scientific basis for the concern. It may be that a hardwired temp guage would read higher temps as the ECU info may not be completely accurate.

220 F peak oil and 200 peak coolant seems perfect for the track. Looks like Robi's product works as advertised. Thanks for the data.

170 F oil for normal driving does seem a little bit low though. Have you thought about blocking off some airflow?

[BatStig]

Originally Posted by Deep Six

......... It may be that a hardwired temp guage would read higher temps as the ECU info may not be completely accurate.

I had a Scangauge before I installed a set of gauges. I am taking my oil temp from a spacer located at the oil filter. I left the Scangauge plugged in for a day or two to see what kind of variance there was. I didn't see more than one or two degrees difference from eachother. I'm not sure what size of variance you'd see by taking temps from the galley or pan.

[kiichiro]

Drive it harder. Made for track. Works great as intended IMHO.