I was pretty sure when i changed my oil last i saw what looks like a hose coming from where the filter screws on. It runs to the driver side of the engine. Any ideas??

 

yes thats the factory oil cooler.

 

is it a little radiator type?? Because i didn't see anything that looked like a cooler. I've heard of oil coolers that are intigrated into the radiator. Is this the case??

 

Anyone have an idea how ours runs/works?

 

Power steering oil, yes. Engine oil, no!

 

The sandwich adapter that you scew the oil filter into is the factory oil cooler. Coolant runs through it from the cooling system.

 

Yes, we have an engine oil cooler. It functions like the cooler used on most modern liquid-cooled motorcycles. This should help:

 

You beat me too it, was about to post a pic.

 

So if I install an A/M oil cooler do I bypass the factory or is it still used. I'm going to be doing this soon so it good to know.

 

Don't install an aftermarket cooler unless you prove you need it. The reason the oem unit is coolant based is because for a normal car that it better. It doesn't over cool the oil when the weather is cold (for instance). Problem is it also adds heat into the coolant (which is bad if you are maxing out ability of the radiator to cool the car). I had a 50 row Setrab on my previous car with a Mocal Sandwich plate and built in thermostat. But a thermostat on the oil system always lets about 10% of the oil past the thermostat even when it’s closed. This insures the oil cooler/lines are always primed. Even with the Setrab totally blocked from the front my oil struggled to get over 170f in cold weather. You want your oil at least 170 on a street car. A water/oil cooler keeps the oil at the right temp because the radiator fluid once warm is always above 170ish. Install a tempature gauge for the oil and see if the oil is even getting over 240F before you decide a cooler is needed.

 

If you decide that you want a cooler anyway, try it with the existing lines in place and see if that helps your oil get to tempature first. If you have a oil cooler you NEED a oil temp gauge to make sure you don't rev the car hard when the oil is cold. Of course you can do it with out the gauge but your just asking to push the engine hard with cold oil which is not good for the engine at all. BMW M3 has a oil temp sender hooked to the ECU to prevent just such a thing.

 

Wow thanks guys!! Yeah i always take it easy for the first ten miles or so. So much that i have people passing me cause i'll accelerate so slowly. And i wait for the oil pressure to drop down to normal. Thanks for all the great info!!