Date: Fri, 21 Jun 1996 21:32:48 -0700
Sender: Vanagon Mailing List <vanagon@vanagon.com>
From: ddes@anet-dfw.com (David Schwarze)
Subject: Re: Oil cooler placement?
At 8:43 PM 6/21/96, Tomstory wrote:
>Ok, ONE more time...: )
>
> The oil cooler is the DERALE brand cooler with the 10" electric
>fan, part number 15800, same exact one Bernie Bergman sells. It will not,
>repeat NOT fit in the engine compartment,
Why not? it's only a 10" fan, right?
>tranny, however the one place it will actually fit is under the chassis,
>drivers side, kind of ahead of the drain for the sink (yes it's a 77
>Westy), and the front of it is against the front crossmember( I
>think)...I'm a little concerned about the front tire kicking up mud and
>water onto this thing. I plan on using stainless braided hose, so rocks and
>such shouldn't be an issue. Ground clearance is higher than my propane tank
>so that doesn't seem to be a problem.
Despite the fact that at least one prominent listmember routs oil to a
cooler in the front of the bus, I maintain that it is a bad idea, because
of the distance involved.
> Does this seem like a decent place to put it?
No.
>I tend to think
>putting it in the engine compartment would not be good,
Why not?
>and since I'm going
>to use braided hose, I think it should be ok in that department.
Not as good as having no exposed hoses at all. Picture this. You go to
get new tires, and Joe mechanic slides the three-ton floor jack under your
bus behind the drivers door, and lifts it while you're reading a magazine.
Those nifty braided hoses get shredded, and you are left with an immobile
bus and a confused mechanic. I can think of a half dozen more unpleasant
scenarios if you like.
>Has anyone
>installed one of these models before? What about the power for the fan,
>what would be a good source for the power for that?
I'd probably route it directly to the battery (via an inline fuse) since
the fan will draw a considerable amount of current, and the wiring to the
front of the bus isn't very robust anyway.
>Sorry this is so long, but I've been trying to leave for a week now, and
>really need to get this thing installed. I think it can't hurt,
Oh, but that's where you're wrong! One leak anywhere along that braided
line (there will be at least 4 junctions) and you're in big trouble. There
could also be problems with a host of other things that I'm not an expert
on, like starvation in the sump, slow pressure buildup, inadequate pressure
supplied by the stock pump to push all that oil back and forth, and who
knows what else.
>can only
>help keep the oil cooler than it is now, and since I'll be driving
>something close to 10,000 miles in one month, the cooler the better! : )
There are other less dangerous ways to make your motor run cooler, like
driving slower, downshifting on steep grades, and keeping a light touch on
the throttle. If you're really concerned about reliability, installing
this cooler towards the front of the bus is a big step in the wrong
direction.
>Any and all advice greatly appreciated! Thanks, TOM
Well there you have it. :) Sorry if it wasn't what you wanted to hear...
-David
============================================================================
David Schwarze '73 VW Safare Custom Camper (Da Boat)
Dallas, Texas, USA '73 Capri GT 2800 (Da Beast)
e-mail: ddes@anet-dfw.com '87 Mustang Lx 5.0 (13.986@100.81)
http://www.anet-dfw.com/~ddes '93 Weber WG-50 (Da Piano)
============================================================================
