Is my engine oil too hot?
01-07-2017, 02:33 PM
#1
Le Mans Master
Thread Starter
Is my engine oil too hot?
Installed an A&A supercharger on my '13 GS. Engine oil temp now runs 20 to 40 F above water temp. About 230F on the highway, up to 245-250 on the track. Is this oil temperature too high? I'm used to it running around 200F
01-07-2017, 04:03 PM
#3
Team Owner
That is great oil temp.
01-07-2017, 06:48 PM
#4
Melting Slicks
Somewhere along the line Corvette dropped the engine oil cooler. I've got a 13 GS stock and my oil runs in 236 F range in hot weather, normal driving. When my friend had his 2010 Z51 with cooler, it ran at least 10+ degrees cooler.
I would suggest keeping a high grade full synthetic in it. Maybe add a cooler...
I would suggest keeping a high grade full synthetic in it. Maybe add a cooler...
01-07-2017, 06:49 PM
#5
Team Owner
210-240 is great for oil temps. Hotter oil works better and protects better, until you get to a breakdown point of 290+.
01-09-2017, 01:04 AM
#7
external oil coolers
I closed off my Dewitts radiator's small engine oil cooler section and did 2 external Setrab oil coolers in series.
Having the oil cooler section on the Dewitts radiator didn't allow for proper cooling of the oil for 2 reasons: the area dedicated for engine oil cooling was relatively small; Also, since the oil cooler was simply a section on the engine coolant radiator, it seemed to heat the coolant more than if they would have been on separate units. Running HPDE in Florida with a forged motor and A&A V3si kit (before the external oil coolers)I would hit 250 to 260 deg oil temps within 8 to 10 min on track and it would steadily climb. That was with me short shifting. I would only do half sessions at the track from fear of overheating after a few more laps. That was in the late fall with ambient temps at 70 to 85 deg. On the street, oil temp would be at 220 to 240 and coolant 230 to 240 in traffic in the summer. It would drop 10 to 20 degrees on the highway when I had decent airflow over the radiator, but in traffic the temps would just climb.
With the new setup, in the Florida summer heat, stop and go with AC on and doing normal driving, I'll hit 190 to 210 max for oil and coolant temps. I'm hoping this setup keeps me in the 210 to 230 range for oil temps on track for a full 20 minute HPDE session using regular shift points. Planning on testing this in 2 weeks.
Having the oil cooler section on the Dewitts radiator didn't allow for proper cooling of the oil for 2 reasons: the area dedicated for engine oil cooling was relatively small; Also, since the oil cooler was simply a section on the engine coolant radiator, it seemed to heat the coolant more than if they would have been on separate units. Running HPDE in Florida with a forged motor and A&A V3si kit (before the external oil coolers)I would hit 250 to 260 deg oil temps within 8 to 10 min on track and it would steadily climb. That was with me short shifting. I would only do half sessions at the track from fear of overheating after a few more laps. That was in the late fall with ambient temps at 70 to 85 deg. On the street, oil temp would be at 220 to 240 and coolant 230 to 240 in traffic in the summer. It would drop 10 to 20 degrees on the highway when I had decent airflow over the radiator, but in traffic the temps would just climb.
With the new setup, in the Florida summer heat, stop and go with AC on and doing normal driving, I'll hit 190 to 210 max for oil and coolant temps. I'm hoping this setup keeps me in the 210 to 230 range for oil temps on track for a full 20 minute HPDE session using regular shift points. Planning on testing this in 2 weeks.
Last edited by c6moneypit; 01-09-2017 at 01:17 AM.
01-09-2017, 11:14 AM
#8
Pro
If your oil temp is steady on the track you are right in the sweet spot.
01-09-2017, 09:35 PM
#9
Le Mans Master
Thread Starter
I closed off my Dewitts radiator's small engine oil cooler section and did 2 external Setrab oil coolers in series.
Having the oil cooler section on the Dewitts radiator didn't allow for proper cooling of the oil for 2 reasons: the area dedicated for engine oil cooling was relatively small; Also, since the oil cooler was simply a section on the engine coolant radiator, it seemed to heat the coolant more than if they would have been on separate units. Running HPDE in Florida with a forged motor and A&A V3si kit (before the external oil coolers)I would hit 250 to 260 deg oil temps within 8 to 10 min on track and it would steadily climb. That was with me short shifting. I would only do half sessions at the track from fear of overheating after a few more laps. That was in the late fall with ambient temps at 70 to 85 deg. On the street, oil temp would be at 220 to 240 and coolant 230 to 240 in traffic in the summer. It would drop 10 to 20 degrees on the highway when I had decent airflow over the radiator, but in traffic the temps would just climb.
With the new setup, in the Florida summer heat, stop and go with AC on and doing normal driving, I'll hit 190 to 210 max for oil and coolant temps. I'm hoping this setup keeps me in the 210 to 230 range for oil temps on track for a full 20 minute HPDE session using regular shift points. Planning on testing this in 2 weeks.
Having the oil cooler section on the Dewitts radiator didn't allow for proper cooling of the oil for 2 reasons: the area dedicated for engine oil cooling was relatively small; Also, since the oil cooler was simply a section on the engine coolant radiator, it seemed to heat the coolant more than if they would have been on separate units. Running HPDE in Florida with a forged motor and A&A V3si kit (before the external oil coolers)I would hit 250 to 260 deg oil temps within 8 to 10 min on track and it would steadily climb. That was with me short shifting. I would only do half sessions at the track from fear of overheating after a few more laps. That was in the late fall with ambient temps at 70 to 85 deg. On the street, oil temp would be at 220 to 240 and coolant 230 to 240 in traffic in the summer. It would drop 10 to 20 degrees on the highway when I had decent airflow over the radiator, but in traffic the temps would just climb.
With the new setup, in the Florida summer heat, stop and go with AC on and doing normal driving, I'll hit 190 to 210 max for oil and coolant temps. I'm hoping this setup keeps me in the 210 to 230 range for oil temps on track for a full 20 minute HPDE session using regular shift points. Planning on testing this in 2 weeks.
01-09-2017, 11:38 PM
#10
Article
http://www.speedtalk.com/forum/viewtopic.php?f=1&t=31363
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KW Baraka (01-10-2017)
01-10-2017, 06:55 PM
#11
Former Vendor
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St. Jude Donor '03-'04-'05-'06-'07-'08-'09-'10-'11-'12-'13
For us with the endurance cars if we could keep water between 180-220 and oil temps 240-260 that car would run 24hrs WOT and be perfectly happy doing it.
Of course that is using a good synthetic oil in the car, which most of us do anymore. Some of the better oils can see 280-300 for a very short amount of time and be fine and still protect the engine but you would want to change the oil ASAP after the event, and I would not suggest to keep doing it at those temps.
Try not to heavily load the engine when the oil is under 150 degrees.
Of course that is using a good synthetic oil in the car, which most of us do anymore. Some of the better oils can see 280-300 for a very short amount of time and be fine and still protect the engine but you would want to change the oil ASAP after the event, and I would not suggest to keep doing it at those temps.
Try not to heavily load the engine when the oil is under 150 degrees.
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c6moneypit (01-10-2017)
01-11-2017, 08:31 PM
#12
Team Owner
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St. Jude Donor '13
On some twisty roads in Wisconsin, I was having too much fun in our 2009 Z51 while trying to keep up with some friends in C7 Z51's. Got my oil temp up to 290-293 for about 5 minutes, three times. I consider that to be an abuse of the engine but just couldn't restrain myself.
The oil life was down to about 50% (Mobil 1 5W-30) anyway, so I had it changed and sent a sample to Blackstone like I always do. To my amazement, the wear metals were some of the lowest I've seen with the same amount of miles/% on the oil.
Kids, don't try this at home...
The oil life was down to about 50% (Mobil 1 5W-30) anyway, so I had it changed and sent a sample to Blackstone like I always do. To my amazement, the wear metals were some of the lowest I've seen with the same amount of miles/% on the oil.
Kids, don't try this at home...
01-11-2017, 09:23 PM
#13
Le Mans Master
Thread Starter
On some twisty roads in Wisconsin, I was having too much fun in our 2009 Z51 while trying to keep up with some friends in C7 Z51's. Got my oil temp up to 290-293 for about 5 minutes, three times. I consider that to be an abuse of the engine but just couldn't restrain myself.
The oil life was down to about 50% (Mobil 1 5W-30) anyway, so I had it changed and sent a sample to Blackstone like I always do. To my amazement, the wear metals were some of the lowest I've seen with the same amount of miles/% on the oil.
Kids, don't try this at home...
The oil life was down to about 50% (Mobil 1 5W-30) anyway, so I had it changed and sent a sample to Blackstone like I always do. To my amazement, the wear metals were some of the lowest I've seen with the same amount of miles/% on the oil.
Kids, don't try this at home...
01-12-2017, 05:03 PM
#14
Team Owner
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St. Jude Donor '13
If I was more mature, I would have started easing off when my oil hit 260.
Our resident oil expert "LDB" recommends having the Mobil 1 5W-30 oil temp between 180 and 260 for high power use. If you split the difference, that means 220 would be about perfect.
The problem is that without a thermostatically-controlled oil cooler, you will usually be above or below that range.
Fortunately, the LS engines and Mobil 1, have proven to be pretty durable.
Our resident oil expert "LDB" recommends having the Mobil 1 5W-30 oil temp between 180 and 260 for high power use. If you split the difference, that means 220 would be about perfect.
The problem is that without a thermostatically-controlled oil cooler, you will usually be above or below that range.
Fortunately, the LS engines and Mobil 1, have proven to be pretty durable.
01-12-2017, 08:45 PM
#15
Le Mans Master
Thread Starter
If I was more mature, I would have started easing off when my oil hit 260.
Our resident oil expert "LDB" recommends having the Mobil 1 5W-30 oil temp between 180 and 260 for high power use. If you split the difference, that means 220 would be about perfect.
The problem is that without a thermostatically-controlled oil cooler, you will usually be above or below that range.
Fortunately, the LS engines and Mobil 1, have proven to be pretty durable.
Our resident oil expert "LDB" recommends having the Mobil 1 5W-30 oil temp between 180 and 260 for high power use. If you split the difference, that means 220 would be about perfect.
The problem is that without a thermostatically-controlled oil cooler, you will usually be above or below that range.
Fortunately, the LS engines and Mobil 1, have proven to be pretty durable.
Yes, I'm wondering about that. I'd like oil temp regulated, to maintain 200-220F.
01-17-2017, 02:49 PM
#16
I've had 3 DeWitts radiators .
FYI
1. On my stock motored ProCharged LS2 is used a tall radiator with EOC. It did a fair job.
2. On my new build, 408 cid, D1 ProCharger, big cam, I ran the shorty DeWitts with EOC and it sucked.
3. Now running a tall DeWitts w/o EOC, with a remote separate oil cooler. Coolant and oil temps are fine, however it is now colder outside temps ( 50's) and it will be summer before a real evaluation can be made.
FYI
1. On my stock motored ProCharged LS2 is used a tall radiator with EOC. It did a fair job.
2. On my new build, 408 cid, D1 ProCharger, big cam, I ran the shorty DeWitts with EOC and it sucked.
3. Now running a tall DeWitts w/o EOC, with a remote separate oil cooler. Coolant and oil temps are fine, however it is now colder outside temps ( 50's) and it will be summer before a real evaluation can be made.
01-18-2017, 09:08 AM
#17
Advanced
On some twisty roads in Wisconsin, I was having too much fun in our 2009 Z51 while trying to keep up with some friends in C7 Z51's. Got my oil temp up to 290-293 for about 5 minutes, three times. I consider that to be an abuse of the engine but just couldn't restrain myself.
The oil life was down to about 50% (Mobil 1 5W-30) anyway, so I had it changed and sent a sample to Blackstone like I always do. To my amazement, the wear metals were some of the lowest I've seen with the same amount of miles/% on the oil.
Kids, don't try this at home...
The oil life was down to about 50% (Mobil 1 5W-30) anyway, so I had it changed and sent a sample to Blackstone like I always do. To my amazement, the wear metals were some of the lowest I've seen with the same amount of miles/% on the oil.
Kids, don't try this at home...
01-22-2017, 10:12 AM
#18
Le Mans Master
Thread Starter
I've had 3 DeWitts radiators .
FYI
1. On my stock motored ProCharged LS2 is used a tall radiator with EOC. It did a fair job.
2. On my new build, 408 cid, D1 ProCharger, big cam, I ran the shorty DeWitts with EOC and it sucked.
3. Now running a tall DeWitts w/o EOC, with a remote separate oil cooler. Coolant and oil temps are fine, however it is now colder outside temps ( 50's) and it will be summer before a real evaluation can be made.
FYI
1. On my stock motored ProCharged LS2 is used a tall radiator with EOC. It did a fair job.
2. On my new build, 408 cid, D1 ProCharger, big cam, I ran the shorty DeWitts with EOC and it sucked.
3. Now running a tall DeWitts w/o EOC, with a remote separate oil cooler. Coolant and oil temps are fine, however it is now colder outside temps ( 50's) and it will be summer before a real evaluation can be made.
I'll check my temps 1 more time. I think I'll install an oil cooler if my oil remains 30+F above the water temp.
01-25-2017, 10:05 PM
#20
Le Mans Master
Thread Starter
Thanks for the info. I'm surprised so many people, including the very experienced mechanic I use, believe oils temps of 230-245F are ok. My only other data point is my non-blown 370Z. The 370Z has a factory stock (small) air-cooled oil cooler, and the oil temp matches the water temp, about 200F at highway speed, 220 max.