running an ls3 in my c5. cooling system is having a hard time in this texas heat.. so i was thinking about plumbing up an oil cooler... i was wondering if some one else has done this and if ya have any tips on how to start with the design.. all comments are welcome..(except those that refer to the search link) thanks

 

It's an open forum, so it doesn't matter if you welcome the comments or not..


Seriously, have you upgraded the cooling system yet? Radiator? Adjusted fan settings, etc? What temps are you seeing?

 

your a funny guy.. so i have the 180 thermo with the fans adjusted to 180,, it does have the under drive pully on it at a 25% reduction. was even thinking of puttin a pusher fan on the condensor to flow more air but for some reason cooling the oil just seemed like a better idea.

 

Still doesn't answer the question: what temps are you seeing?

Many (especially those in the desert southwest)have upgraded their radiators to a DeWitt's or Ron Davis, with great results. The usual inspection rules apply here..making sure the radiator/condenser are clean, free of debris, etc....

 

radiator first.. try cleaning out what out have.. after time dust and crap collects in them and inhibits airflow. thats the first step..

if all is good and it is still running a little too warm and you've verified it... then you might/can look at a better radiator... and they come with integrated oil coolers so at that time you could do both. The additional cost of the IOC is not that much more and will give you piece of mind. The premium radiators cool about 20% better than stock.

We offer the Ron Davis as well as a few other vendors and there is the Dewitts who is a sponsors on here as well. They are close to the same, cool within 2* of each other. The main differences being in construction and this is not a thread to debate those differences so please lets keep this on track. Both are very good quality.

 

sorry its consistantly running 200 and i saw it hit the 190's on the highway when it was raining... when i did my motor swap i pulled the radiator and condensor and blew them out very throughly. as well as flushed the radiator..

 

Not sure what you are concerned about with those temps, especially when you guys have mid 90's temps everyday. I certainly don't think this warrants an oil cooler(especially if you are not auto-xing), and an upgraded radiator would be my first step if you feel compelled to do something. Honestly, I'd leave it alone.

 

well i was concerend for when i started spraying nitrous on it...

 

Anything below 230 is not harmful to these motors and can be considered 'normal.' Your 180 degree thermostat will not change the amount of heat your motor puts out; your temps sound BELOW what I would expect, honestly.

 

I added an oil cooler when I saw 302* oil temp on the track. That was Sebring in August. Put in a cooler now down to 278* oil temp water runs 220*.
Save your money you are fine.

 

LS3 are notorious for running high oil temps even in normal weather

so YES adding an oil cooler is a great idea

that said oil temps of 180 to 230 are normal and should be expected. Burns off the crap in the oil.

up to 260 is OK but above is pushing it. as the oil temp probe does not monitor internal oil temps which are 40-50 degrees higher

I run an oil cooler on my LS6

 

I'm with everybody else LS motors run hot, I think you are
overly concerned. The search button will verify what we
are telling you---Knowledge is a good thing!!

 

I recently purchased a radiator with the EOC built in. I was seeing oil temps above 280* when doing multile top end runs. I don't think nitrous would be a big factor since you aren't spraying for extended periods of time.
PFADT Racing also makes a stand alone oil cooler that look nice, but pricey.

 

Cracker,

Are you sure your OIL temps are 190-200? Sounds more like coolant temps to me.

I have a forged LS3 in my C5 Z06 and I'm running 200-210 coolant and 235-240 Oil temps cruising in 6th gear, 2k rpm and 80 mph 80/90 degree ambient temps.

I'm in the middle of installing an oil cooler and will have it finished next week. I'm using the Mocal AOTGM Thermostatic oil cooler connector which is supposed to keep the oil in the block until it reaches approx. 180 degrees then it lets it flow out to the oil cooler. Using a Setrab 619 cooler and 10AN hoses/fittings.

Other things you need to check: center air dam is in place to force air up into condenser/radiator and the two foam strips on each side of the condenser are in place and keeping the air from going around the condenser. Re-attaching those two foam strips dropped my temps 10 degrees.

 

i never said my oil temp was high,, to be honest i havent been monitering the oil temp i just said the coolant temp was higher with the ls3 and was concerend,,, basically im down to finding little things to help make more power and do it safely,, and of course heat is the enemy... thought that an oil cooler would be a good idea, how much was the aotgm system?

 

You can monitor the oil temp on the DIC, let us know what it's reading. System cost just over $500 installing it myself.

 

Your temps are normal,you really do not have a problem.

 

so i monitered the oil tem today it got to 240* i know thats really not high, but it does seem like it runs better at lower temps.. who carries the oil cooler kits?

 

There are many types of oil coolers as well as sizes etc., etc. The drop in aftermarket radiators with built in oil coolers will work well for most everyone and they allow for a clean install. However, because the radiators are meant to directly replace/upgrade the factory unit they do have limitations. The oil coolers cannot be very large simply because of packaging. Air to oil coolers can be had in many sizes, but if mounted in the airstream of the radiator they do create some air flow restriction. On the street they may also keep the oil too cool and water in the oil will have less chance of boiling out. Not really that big of a deal if you change your oil regularly.
My latest creation is a double pass radiator (water flows through the radiator twice essentially. That configuration allowed me to have the bottom outlet on the drivers side and provided the room I needed to install a laminova water to oil heat exchanger. This whole setup is something you would see on a hard core race car, but I've done it on my street/track car. My background is in road racing so setting up a double pass is the norm for me. The advantage is the cooler is completely rebuildable and super robust. It is fairly small (I installed the large one;they have three) and does not restrict air flow in any way. It also separates the oil cooler from the radiator which can be a benefit if one of them becomes damaged(don't have to replace both).

 

Here is a photo of my unit(s)



Trans cooler Left, Oil cooler right

Intake Air filter above.

car is a front breather, not a bottom breather and have NO cooling issues