22GR/BRZ Oil Temps

[X25]

Yeah I agree about the issue being possibly overblown. I've had 10+ track cars, and I don't remember any of them not hitting 260s, and that's with oil coolers. Corvettes often run in 270s and 280s degrees F with no issues, and their limp mode actually activates at 325 degrees F oil temp. Not that we should hit that limit of course, but it gives you an idea on what their engineers thought was the hazard limit for their engines.

I've switched to 5W-30, and plan to use it year-round. We'll see how it works out, and I'm sure I'll send a sampler or two for testing as well.

[justinco]

I ran UMC outer loop this past weekend (very high avg speed track) and the highest oil temp I saw was 248*, with 95+ outside temps. Not bad for the OEM setup, but I'll still do an oil cooler at some point after I gather more stock track data.

I installed a Forester heat exchanger/coolers on my old 2017 BRZ and it barely did anything, track temps were still in the 270's if I remember right.

Pic below is right when I got to paddock after the 248* session (20 minute session).

[MrSkubi]

Originally Posted by justinco

I installed a Forester heat exchanger/coolers on my old 2017 BRZ and it barely did anything

That's exactly my experience with this part too but many will still stand by it that it's valid cooling option for previous gen cars It works well as oil warmer for colder days for me. Now I'm running it in conjunction with external air/oil cooler and I like the fact that my oil warm up times are almost like pre cooler installation (17' BRZ).

[SCFD]

Originally Posted by ZDan

275F is not a problem for any decent synthetic oil. 30wt synth at 275F has about the same viscosity as factory 0w20 at 250F In my experience oil temperature in the gen1 climbs up towards 270-275F, but reliably holds there, never goes into runaway overheating. I honestly think some are *adding* risk (and $$$ expended) getting oil coolers for these cars. IMO our cars are fricking *good to go* for track usage, as delivered.

I agree that making any changes or increasing complexity adds risk to the system but I did see my oil temps reach almost 300F during a lapping session which prompted me to go with the JR dual cooler. The temps might depend on the track and driver so I'd still recommend people to keep an eye on it to see if you need to go with an oil cooler.

[SCFD]

Originally Posted by justinco

I ran UMC outer loop this past weekend (very high avg speed track) and the highest oil temp I saw was 248*, with 95+ outside temps. Not bad for the OEM setup, but I'll still do an oil cooler at some point after I gather more stock track data.

I installed a Forester heat exchanger/coolers on my old 2017 BRZ and it barely did anything, track temps were still in the 270's if I remember right.

Pic below is right when I got to paddock after the 248* session (20 minute session).

Is there something different between the forester heat exchanger vs the ones on the Gen2? That's a very reasonable temp for a 20 minute session.

[blsfrs]

It may "boil" down to which oil you want in you engine after 25 hr of track time. Oil "A" that was kept at 230*-240* for 25 hours or oil "B" that was kept at 270*-280* for 25 hours. I've made the choice to go with oil "A".

[justinco]

Originally Posted by MrSkubi

That's exactly my experience with this part too but many will still stand by it that it's valid cooling option for previous gen cars It works well as oil warmer for colder days for me. Now I'm running it in conjunction with external air/oil cooler and I like the fact that my oil warm up times are almost like pre cooler installation (17' BRZ).

Definitely not for previous gen cars. I datalogged before and after track days and I just noticed that the oil warmed up quicker, as you mentioned. Cooling was nearly unaffected.

Originally Posted by SCFD

Is there something different between the forester heat exchanger vs the ones on the Gen2? That's a very reasonable temp for a 20 minute session.

As far as I know it is the same type of cooler/heat exchanger. The hoses seem to be routed different on the GR86 than what I did on my 2017 car, but that was a manual vs factory install. It works decent enough on the new cars for sure.

I'd like to see oil temps down to the 230's though, as that is what I see on my TT BMW with a full oil cooler setup. So eventually I'll throw on another cooler.

[DrinkenBRZ]

Originally Posted by blsfrs

It may "boil" down to which oil you want in you engine after 25 hr of track time. Oil "A" that was kept at 230*-240* for 25 hours or oil "B" that was kept at 270*-280* for 25 hours. I've made the choice to go with oil "A".

You should probably change it after such use so the quandary is mute.

[ZDan]

Originally Posted by SCFD

I agree that making any changes or increasing complexity adds risk to the system but I did see my oil temps reach almost 300F during a lapping session which prompted me to go with the JR dual cooler. The temps might depend on the track and driver so I'd still recommend people to keep an eye on it to see if you need to go with an oil cooler.

Hmm, what track and ambient temps have you seen close to 300F? FWIW I go to New Hampshire Motor Speedway, Palmer Motorsports Park, Thompson Speedway, Watkins Glen, and Mont Tremblant. Hottest days at Thompson, ~95F. 987.2 2.9 Cayman would overheat after a few laps, but the BRZ ('17 gen1) has always held at 200F coolant, 275F oil.

[dreamwonder]

For me, so far with GR86 oil temps been around mid 250F (max observed). Hottest day experienced so far is close to 100F. Tracks visited: Glen, Tamworth, Limerock, Thompson, Calabogie, Palmer (25ish days in total).

[X25]

250-275 degrees F is still a pretty healthy range. Pacific Northwest rarely gets too hot, but I think I'll get to test it up to 85 degrees F on Friday (my first time with the '23 BRZ), and see how it fares. I'll be using 5W-30 weight oil.

.. maybe I should also get a borescope and check out RTV leftovers in the sump after the event : P

[Capt Spaulding]

Originally Posted by MrSkubi

That's exactly my experience with this part too but many will still stand by it that it's valid cooling option for previous gen cars It works well as oil warmer for colder days for me. Now I'm running it in conjunction with external air/oil cooler and I like the fact that my oil warm up times are almost like pre cooler installation (17' BRZ).

As another data point. A subi OEM cooler with factory plumbing dropped the Obd measured oil temp on my 2015 15 degrees f (245 to 230) when cruising at 85 mph in 98 degree ambient temperatures. Necessary? Probably not. But it salves my mechanical empathy impulses and I just like putzing with and under my car.

[Lincoln Logs]

Chiming in here...assuming oil pressure is adequate, 275*F is non issue for any modern synthetic oil. There is no arguing this, oil analysis will back it up and has been done by others. I will say that an external cooler does add risk; whether that could be a line failing causing a fire, rock through the external cooler, etc. I've seen all of these things happen over the years at HPDE. There is no free lunch.

[ZDan]

Originally Posted by blsfrs

It may "boil" down to which oil you want in you engine after 25 hr of track time. Oil "A" that was kept at 230*-240* for 25 hours or oil "B" that was kept at 270*-280* for 25 hours. I've made the choice to go with oil "A".

I have the oil changed every ~6 track hours and ~3000-5000 street miles, my oil's not seeing anything like 25 hours of track time. If I was running 24hr endurance events I *might* consider an oil cooler, but I think I'd first run one and compare before/after oil analysis. Good 5w30 or 40 synth should still be in good shape after 25 hours... Would have to weigh benefit vs. risk of cooler. If there's little benefit, prolly not worth the risk of having a fragile heat exchanger and multiple additional oil lines that could be vulnerable in the event of getting banged around...