Slalom4me

The '88-'91 L98 power steering cooler (p/n# 26027162)
has been discontinued.

The '92-'96 LT1/LT4 p/s cooler (p/n# 26033166) is still
available.

Can someone post to say whether the LTx cooler is a
suitable, bolt-on substitute for an L98 car?

.

96GS#007

I can't speak definitively other than to say the factory ps cooler on my '90 Z51 coupe looked identical to the one on my GS, mounted in the same location, etc.

edit..
Btw, I ran the p/n's you have listed and 26033166 comes back as the ps fluid reservoir on the GM Parts Direct website. 26027162 shows as the cooler. FWIW

Slalom4me

Your finding puzzled me at first because the numbers worked for
me at GMPD earlier.

There turns out to be an issue with the info from the Catalog Tool at
GMPD. I got the same results as you when I searched the catalog
using the numbers. It even lets you put the L98 cooler in the basket.

However, the Parts Search Tool at GMPD replies 'No Parts Found'
for the L98 (#26027162) version and it describes the
LTx (#26033166) version as a cooler. The person that provided the
image below later confirmed that he has the same numbers.

I received the following illustrations from a friend.



Initially, I thought that the L98 and the LTx coolers have different
sizes and different inlet/outlet tube shapes to accomodate separate
locations for the reservoir.

However, based on what you say, it sounds as though the physical
shape & placement of the coolers is the same. Maybe the tube
shapes differ, but in the illustrations it looks as though the LTx cooler
tubes could be trimmed to duplicate the L98 ones if necessary. The
appropriate L98 hoses would then complete the circuit.

I'll try an LTx cooler to see if this will work as anticipated.

Thanks for your help!
Ken R.

.

96GS#007

We're in the midst of moving into our new house. My car will be arriving from St. Louis (2,000+ miles away) in about 2 weeks. Once we're moved in, I can snap a couple pics of the cooler on my GS if you want (assuming I can remember that far into the future! :o )

Slalom4me

(Ahhhhh. Earlier while I was in the midst of replying I noticed the WA in
your sig and had an "eh, wot's this? I thought he was near the EAST
coast" moment. Now I understand.)

Thank you kindly for the offer.

Let me see if I can still bring up the pics of a GS that Schram Auto
was parting out. They had many photos of the running gear including
the p/s cooler.

BRB.

.

Slalom4me

Compliments of Schram Auto

Wheelman

I had my cooler out the other day straightening the fins and cleaning it, and from the looks of those pics it would fit in the L98 Bracket. if you could find one. I don't know how that one mounts as the bracket is not shown.

Slalom4me

That is helpful to know. Having feedback from owners of both LTx
and L98 configurations raises the confidence level.

I ordered a cooler for an LTx and hoses for an L98. At most,
little cut-n-try to adapt the cooler inlet/outlets is all I expect to
have to deal with.

The bracket p/n is no longer recognized. I happened to be talking to
Jason at Vette2Vette about something else and asked him to let me
know if one turns up. I'll have the winter and beyond to troll for a
used OEM bracket, Fabricating something to position the cooler until
an original becomes available should be simple.

Thanks to both you and 96GS#007 for your help.

Ken R.

.

Wheelman

If its helpful, send me a pm with anything you'd like a closer look at on the stock 89 setup, and I will take a pic or two for you and bring them back this weekend.

Solofast

Check the P/N's on the racks. If the racks are the same you and you are going to the same place, one of the hoses will be the one that goes with that cooler. Since the PS pump is different you are going to be on your own for one of the hoses, more likely than not....

96GS#007

It's been awhile since I had my '90 L98, but as I recall the hoses to the rack will be the same, it's the hose from the cooler to the reservoir that's different. On the LT1/4 the reservoir is a stand-alone setup on the passenger side of the engine versus the L98 which has a reservoir that's attached to the ps pump. At least that's what I remember

Although the reservoir isn't in place in the photo below, you can see the large line that runs from where the reservoir would be on the passenger side to the ps pump. There's a second line that runs from the ps cooler to the reservoir.

c4cruiser

The chances are that GM will eventually discontinue all of the C4 PS coolers so why not run an aftermarket cooler and mount it wherever it will fit? There are some small 2 and 4-pass coolers available that are small enough to fit in front of the rack or where it could get better airflow and stil stay hidden and protected.

It's not a big deal to have a shop that makes hydraulic hoses fabricate a hose with any length necessary. Bulk PS hose is available at shops like these and they have just about any type of fitting required.

My 87 Z52 car does not have a PS cooler outside of the single U-shaped piece of tube out in front of the rack housing. Even running Red Line synthetic fluid, I still get occasional noise from the pump as the fluid gets hot. Right now it looks like my only option is to run an aftermarket cooler of some sort.