Oil cooler..........round two, AKA fun with foam! Options

[East coaster]

So after a little brainstorming on an oil cooler layout, I figured I better actually do it.

Started out by figuring out the mounting of the cooler itself. It's a very large (4 x 24 fin area) and I think a good fit for a 3.6 since it doesn't have an engine mounted cooler. I started by cutting sections out of the front support tray for clearance and then re-boxing the area to keep the shelf rigid and serve as a mounting point for the front of the cooler.

Here's a pic of the cut outs...........

[ArtechnikA]

QUOTE (fiid @ Feb 21 2006, 03:50 PM)

How come it's okay (encouraged?) to use braided oil lines and not brake lines? Is it just because the brakelines have to flex with every bump in the road? What makes this so different?

the types of hose and their fittings are *completely* different, although they do both have an exterior woven stainless steel wire braid sheath.

the lines commonly used for fluid transfer (oil and fuel) are a nitrile rubber inner hose with various layers of reinforcement until you get out to the final outer braided sheath. most hose ends for this type of hose use a cutter to split the rubber hose (annular) and form a positive, high-retention seal.

brake (and clutch, where it's used) is a Teflon inner hose with a single braided stainless sheath. the hose end is completely different and may in some cases separate from the hose. could be manufacturing defect, could be installation defect, could be abuse. but it *has* happened.

in addition, non-DOT-rated hose has no outer nonpermeable sheath, so sand and grit can theoretically penetrate the braid and exacerbate abrasion of the Teflon inner tube. Teflon doesn't like to be kinked, os if that ever happens, for any reason, you should consider the hose toast. hanging a caliper from the brake hose is an especially bad thing.

many consider them an expensive, high-risk item with marginal to imperceptible gain. aircraft use them, and race cars use them. aircraft are *completely* inspected by certified inspectors at least annually. race cars, if they last longer than a season, are at least inspected and usually rebuilt and replumbed *very* frequently. and they DO NOT use adapter fittings like we do - they are AN-3 all the way from the MC to the caliper...

i plan to use DOT-rated lines on my car, as I have had good results with them in the past and i'm committed to a regular inspection program.

the technical differences between nitrile and Teflon hose are very well spelled out on the Earls site - and probably Aeroquip and Goodridge and everybody else that makes hose. Hose ends for Teflon braided-steel lines are *very* expensive...

Still - when i replumb the 911's fuel system, i plan to do it in braided Teflon hose, because there are so many oxygenates in contemporary fuels that I do not trust nitrile in this application any more for cars that are not subject to re-plumbing on a regular basis. it will cost a small fortune but i will be done with it once and for all...