Date:         Tue, 7 Sep 2010 00:21:26 -0400
Reply-To:     Jonathan Poole <jfpoolio@GMAIL.COM>
Sender:       Vanagon Mailing List <vanagon@gerry.vanagon.com>
From:         Jonathan Poole <jfpoolio@GMAIL.COM>
Subject:      Re: Oil cooler in 1980-1982 aircooled buses?
Content-Type: text/plain; charset=ISO-8859-1

As stated you can run fine without any secondary/external oil cooler on an
AC Vanagon.  If you do add an external oil cooler you will need to put a
thermostat in the oil flow circuit so that you don't over-cool the oil at
times.  As you probably know you can only run with the stock cooling setup
if the engine is setup properly, in good tune and the cooling system is all
intact/operational.

I wouldn't drive an AC Vanagon without an oil temp guage and cylinder head
temp guage though.  The two temps aren't always closely linked and poor
Ignition/Fuel tuning etc. can spike head temps under load etc. while you can
conversely push oil temps up in some conditions with a well tuned engine
without seeing head temps spike.  If nothing else the temp guages are one of
your best overall indicators of engine problems.   If you notice the temps
running slightly high you can find/fix the issue before a dropped valve or
thrown rod lets you know that there is an issue.

My oil cooler only seems to come into play during the hot summer months when
I'm travelling in the humid/hot Southeast at highway speeds, or when I'm
climbing long mountain roads.  I have a fan on the oil cooler that I can
turn on manually and if the oil gets up around 220 I run the fan which will
drop temps back down some and keep them from going higher which they will do
on an AC engine.

I also would not run oil lines all the way forward, though if you did it
properly and flushed the old oil out with changes the extra oil might be a
benefit in some climates/situations.  This could open up a lot of issues
though.  My oil cooler is near the engine/tranny inside the passenger wheel
well.  It is a close/protected spot with decent enough ventilation.  I think
the fan is necessary where my cooler is located though due to limited
ventilation at speed and almost no ventilation when moving slow.  It may not
do much, but turning the fan on makes me feel better when I exit the
interstate into stop and go traffic.

Bus Boys has a good oil cooler setup that you can purchase with
lines/thermostat etc.  Boston Bob pointed me in that direction when I got an
engine from him and it has worked as expected.

Jonathan Poole
'83 AC Westy