Universal oil coolers?

[Basket Case]

Hey guys. I want to add an oil cooler as i live in sunny southwest florida and plan on adding FI and doing some HPDE in the near future. Through some of my searching i have found plenty of off the shelf coolers like perrin, mishimoto, jackson racing, etc. Those pre-made kits are all well and good, but i do not see the value in spending $500+ for what essentially comes down to some hosing which i ahve the tools to make myself, a sandwich plate which itself shouldn't be too expensive, and a core...

Is there any reason why i shouldn't go with something like this?
http://www.ebay.com/itm/Universal-30...4e9b73&vxp=mtr

There are plenty of universal kits out there. I can make my own brackets no problem. My only question really comes down to is there really a difference in the cores...

[Thorpedo]

Long story short, there is a reason most of the name brand kits do not use no name cores. If you're going to build your own, use a Setrab and a name brand sandwich plate and figure the lines out yourself.

[Basket Case]

Telling me there is a reason that big companies use name brands doesn't really answer my question though...That's kinda like telling me that Toyota only uses genuine toyata parts for repairs...Of course they are going to.

[Koa]

@Thorpedo is trying to help save you from almost certain leakage and cracking issues associated with lesser quality components. Brother, there's a few things you should NEVER skimp out with on an FI build, and among those are cooling parts.

It's not at all like telling you that Toyota uses only their genuine parts- that's a supply line/Q&A reason.

[Basket Case]

Again, still doesn't truly answer the question...I understand that there are lesser brands out there, but I want to know why. Are the materials different? Is the core design different? Telling me they just aren't good but not really saying why is like telling me to not buy the store brand product when as far as I can tell they taste the same...

[wparsons]

Originally Posted by Basket Case

Again, still doesn't truly answer the question...I understand that there are lesser brands out there, but I want to know why. Are the materials different? Is the core design different? Telling me they just aren't good but not really saying why is like telling me to not buy the store brand product when as far as I can tell they taste the same...

Probably most quality control and quality of materials on mating surfaces/seals. They might look the same, but if they leak you're just in for massive headaches.

[swarb]

From my experience with ebay intercoolers/radiators and the real deal, there IS a big difference(left over metal flashing, thin welds, exposed metal/cuts, fitment), just depends if you want to pay twice the amount for that (sometimes small)difference. That difference was acceptable to me at the point of install but the radiator ended up cracking/leaking at the return line after one year(Fixed). Another friend had one leak after 6months(coolant missing/rubber hoses) and overheated/ stranded. Ended up being a huge crack at the weld/material because the tank was too thin.

Hell, it might even be good and work the first install. But I personally won't take the chance on a engine critical component like oil. That member has only been on ebay since dec/14. And none of the products are branded, so it is just a reseller.

If half the stuff ends up working, it will still be worth it dollar wise. Just depends if you have the time/patience to get it working right, and if you trust that it wont fail eventually. Peace of mind is worth a lot.

If you end up getting it, And install it on the first try with no issues, and do a full write up, I will paypal you 5 bucks.

[Basket Case]

Originally Posted by swarb

From my experience with ebay intercoolers/radiators and the real deal, there IS a big difference(left over metal flashing, thin welds, exposed metal/cuts, fitment), just depends if you want to pay twice the amount for that (sometimes small)difference. That difference was acceptable to me at the point of install but the radiator ended up cracking/leaking at the return line after one year(Fixed). Another friend had one leak after 6months(coolant missing/rubber hoses) and overheated/ stranded. Ended up being a huge crack at the weld/material because the tank was too thin.

Hell, it might even be good and work the first install. But I personally won't take the chance on a engine critical component like oil. That member has only been on ebay since dec/14. And none of the products are branded, so it is just a reseller.

If half the stuff ends up working, it will still be worth it dollar wise. Just depends if you have the time/patience to get it working right, and if you trust that it wont fail eventually. Peace of mind is worth a lot.

If you end up getting it, And install it on the first try with no issues, and do a full write up, I will paypal you 5 bucks.

Thanks for sharing your actual experience. The link I posted was merely as an example and i don't think that would be the one to go for necessarily. I may just go for one of these kits, try and clean it up a bit if needed, and if necessary simply use only the lines and sandwich plate and order a straw core.

[D_Thissen]

Low quality products may have different issues that need addressing. It might cost more to fix the issues than it would have been to buy the higher quality product in the first place ones. For example, I purchased 'cheaper' clear side markers which after a month would leak no matter what I did. So I replaced them with authentic ones. I'm sure the same principle can be applied here. Cheaper isn't always cheaper

[Thorpedo]

I can't say that I blame you for wanting hard evidence. Most of us who have been in the game for a while have seen cheap coolers fail, whether it be oil or coolant. And every car guy's worst nightmare is losing oil pressure under WOT at high rpm.

I cheap out on a lot of things. I have RTX wheels, and several other ebay parts but I just can't stand the thought of oil shooting out (with the fire risk that comes along with it) in a situation where i'm approaching redline and about to come into a corner at autocross or on track (or on the street for that matter).

I've seen several no-name coolers leak slowly and a couple fail "catastrophically".

[sam69]

I bought this kit and so far so good but are keeping a close watch on everything . http://www.ebay.com.au/itm/Thermosta...item3cdc773be6

Cooler itself is well finished neat and tidy so only time will tell .

The other thing is it has a thermostat sandwich plate which I feel is a must have .

[Iwannajag]

Any thoughts on the Mishimoto coolers? They seem good value. Any failure stories?

[malave7567]

You could assemble your own oil cooler by buying a setrab core and a mocal sandwich plate and some lines and fittings from racerpartswholesale (just listing that one site as an example) and be cheaper than buying a name-brand FR-S specific kit (such as Perrin/Mishi). You're definitely paying for the convenience with those kits, which isn't a bad thing for someone who doesn't want to have to deal with sizing lines and putting fittings on, etc.

But like everyone else has already said, I would avoid no-name sandwich plates and cooling cores. Oil system is just not one of those areas of a car you can afford poor construction. I've seen a couple of the issues others have already stated on this thread (metal flash, poor machine surface finish on sealing surfaces, etc.). Sometimes you get lucky and it all works fine though.

[Koa]

Originally Posted by Basket Case

Again, still doesn't truly answer the question...I understand that there are lesser brands out there, but I want to know why. Are the materials different? Is the core design different? Telling me they just aren't good but not really saying why is like telling me to not buy the store brand product when as far as I can tell they taste the same...

I could share you tens of first-hand or helping-hand (friends) experiences basket case, but its common knowledge that low cost cores and fittings are known headcase issues with quality control problems up the wazoo. There's things one can skimp out on in a build and get away with, even at the professional level. Zipties to hold shit on comes to mind. Cooling is typically not one of them..

CXRacing radiators (ebay brand) for some platforms are exceptions to the rule. I've been running this Ebay aluminum radiator for nearly 4 years on my Bugeye WRX... check out the discussion on NASIOC. These oil cooler cores, however, demand one gets quality because what happens when you run out of oil versus running out of coolant? The former has a much higher chance to be catastrophic and not as easily recovered from than the latter.

Perhaps you can find a vendor that has a budget offering similar to the CX above, and be a pioneer for those who are looking for a low cost solution!

Cheers on the hunt. I'm all for a good deal. For my purposes the FA20DIT/Forester temp. regulator retrofit works excellently, with an easy install, for less than $150 routing to the TB lines on the intake... for most aftermarket FI, definitely won't do the trick on this engine w/o serious other mods to the engine bay for airflow and even then may not be enough without an external core. Turbos also easily tap into those lines so it may interfere with a good number of kits. I haven't dived that far in yet, savoring every bite of this platform

"The bitterness of poor quality remains long after the sweet taste of low price is forgotten"