I am in the process of building a L98, have it fully disassembled down to the bare block. Not sure weather i want to keep the oil cooler or not. Im swapping it into a L03 car so where do the cooler lines even run to?


is it worth even keeping it?

Thanks

 

I just finished building an L98 myself. If you are talking about the factory "KC4" (oil cooler option) I put mine back on. As far as the line routing, my motor came out of a vette and that routing was as follows; line from block drain (dr side) to the outside fitting of the cooler, inside fitting of the cooler to an aluminum transfer tube, transfer tube continued forward then looped under the oil pan and came out near the mechanical fuel pump location. I don't know where the factory routing went from there but I routed that end directly to my heater core line.

 

i had asked the same question since i took out my stock LB9 and put in a L98 i had originally had the oil cooler but wen it got to my hands it did not have it i was thinking of puting a factory one i found in the junkyard great condition and every one said respectfully that it really wasnt an oil cooler it was a heat transfer and that they constantly leaked and it was best if it came with it or was trying to install one it wasnt worth it they said i should buy aftermarket oil coolers and those will render more results

 

The real answer is:

a) if you run synthetic oil, you certainly don't need it.
b) If you run dino oil, and don't run the car hard, you don't need it.
c) if you run dino oil, and run the car hard, you should consider it.

 

FWIW
Once up to operating temp, the factory oil heater lowers my oil temps 10 -15 degrees ( closer to coolant temp ) over not running it.
Alternatively in cooler areas,on start up it will bring oil temp up to operating temp faster because it is transferring coolant heat to oil.

As noted ;coolant supply comes from bottom of block ; all you need to do is connect cooler return line into the heater return line ( or suction side of WP ) with a T fitting

 

That's only the case on the corvette, there is taps into the drain plug on the block. On the F body there are 2 dedicated lines, one coming from the rad the other from the stee heater pipe on the pass side engine subframe rail.

Still, I too recommend using it, it does help bring up oil temp and it does indeed keep it a good 20 deg lower if your coolant is not running super hot. Especially the quicker warmup is nice IMO, it usually takes a lot longer for the oil to reach operating temp before the coolant will.

 

I use one and believe in them 100%! The oil heats up quicker in cold weather and stays cooler in hot weather. As far as "not needing" this cooler? ? ? Almost every manufacturer is using some sort of oil cooler now days, Why not use it? This is standard practice on HP Motorcycles, so there is not a down side that I can see.

The setup that I built for my 85 El Camino takes hot water from the Left side head where the temp sensor was originally located, piped it to the cooler, then out of the cooler with a 3/8 hose to the front of the pan, across the engine and used a TEE into the 3/4 inch heater hose that returns into the right radiator tank. I use a 1/8" orifice in the return to slow the water down and keep the water flowing primarily through the heads and intake.

 

look at the C4 and C5. NO OIL COOLER.. they use synthetic oil instead. it's well documented.

 

early c4s do have oil coolers lt1s were the first without them

 

well what happens when the factory oil cooler starts to leak or a gasket is bad someone told me those gaskets are hard to come by if im wrong let me know i been told this and as far as performace goes you should want a real oil cooler instead of heat transfer oil coolers but what ever works best for any person and what they intent to use it like stock, upgrade, racing is all up to the person and find as much info and what they plan to use it for

 

Are you going to run headers? I had to remove mine to run LT's. If not, then keep it.

Another thing to keep in mind though is if the sandwich plate develops an internal leak, you instantly have chocolate pudding running through your engine instead of oil and coolant.

 

it's adds so many more points of failure. Go with the synthetic oil, and never look back.

 

I guess it is ultimately up the the individual. I discovered synthetic oil about 25 years ago, this is not my first rodeo. The thing that I like most, is the fast warm-up of the oil. This is a major reason that many automotive manufacturers for the the expense and complexity of adding an oil cooler to their vehicles. They are almost more concerned to get the oil quickly up to operating temperature as they are to keep the oil cool. The advantages of quickly warming the engine oil and maintaining the temperature of the oil within a certain range are well documented facts. Yes, there are more things to fail, unfortunately that is a chance we all take.

As you say C4 and C5 do not use an oil cooler, great. The Z06 C6 can be equipped with a cooler, GM sells an oil cooler package to add this equipment "for heavy duty use" That is one example. There are plenty of other LS engines that use Oil coolers, like almost every LS equipped truck and van. There are far more LS equipped trucks and vans on the road than Vettes. The LSX has provisions for an oil cooler. So GM felt that the LSX needed some help for some reason. You can argue C4 - C5 Corvette all you want, GM would not put the coolers on LS equipped trucks and other vehicles if it was not a necessity in heavy duty situations.

I go back to high performance motorcycles, they use an almost identical system to quickly heat and cool the oil. These are engines that make well over 3 horsepower per cubic inch, naturally aspirated, they are doing something right.

His question was whether to keep the OEM cooler on his L98 or not. My opinion is YES, keep the cooler, GM saw fit to put it on the L98 for some reason. I run the L98 cooler and synthetic oil to gain the advantages of both. For me, the advantages of the cooler outweigh the disadvantages. If he is afraid of the cooler failing, take it off. He can sell it to someone who might want to add a cooler to their car.

 

what do you need to buy to fit the filter if you get rid of the cooler?

 

you answered your own comment. LS equipped trucks do not run synthetic oil from the factory, so GM put an oil cooler on them. plain and simple. and they know the Fleet maintenance people will not put synthic oil in, due to the corporate bean counters wont allow, so they install oil coolers.

and they know the corvette owners are mostly car guru's who care very much about their corvettes, and will spend money on good oil.

 

I bought an oil cooler from summit racing.........very easy to hook up.....ran the lines to the front of the radiator.....gets a nice cool breeze on it....when i had an 86 vette and i went to driving schools, the red warning light would come on at 300 degrees.....ever since i run a cooler....i also use synthetic oil, but the oil seals don't know what kind of oil you are running .......when it gets super hot, they get soft...........

 

I have 7 LS equipped vans and we run synthetic in ALL of them. MANY fleets use synthetic oil due to the extended change intervals, it is actually cheaper to use synthetic oil in the long run. They run heat exchangers on these vehicles so that the oil heats up fast and stays within a specific temp range. Bottom line is ANY OIL lasts longer when you keep it cool. Synthetic oil lasts even longer and works even better. I bet that I run the same oil in my El Camino as you do in your Corvette. I can guarantee that your Corvette is not taken any better care of than my El Camino!

As far Corvette owners being "mostly car gurus", that is laughable. Some are really sharp, but they are not "gurus" because they own Corvettes! They buy Corvettes because they are generally car people! ANYONE can buy an expensive sports car and think that makes them an "expert", it does not make it so. Driving a Corvette does not make you smarter than someone who does not. Anyone who can make a payment can buy a Corvette! If they are ignorant when they buy it, there is no knowledge that is transferred from the Corvette to the new owner by osmosis!

I have spent 40 years in the automotive and motorcycle service business and many of the "Gurus" who own Corvettes that I have met have been some of the least informed and most arrogant folks you could ask to meet. On the other hand, some of the smartest guys I know also drive pickup trucks. It is not the "Corvette" that makes the guru, it is the Guru that makes the Corvette.

You are not going to talk me out of my oil cooler/ heat exchanger and I am not going to convince you to use one. I believe that there is a benefit to using one and am willing to accept the added complexity that it requires Enough said! Have a good evening!

 

The gasket is just the square O ring gasket used on a regular oil filter.

Just some regular socket head bolts to replace the special ones used with the oil cooler.
The bolts that mount the oil filter adapter to block ( reg SBC one ) have extended heads that locate the filter and stop it spinning when you fit oil filter below.
The oil cooler has a female thread that screws on to the std oil filter adapter and the extended studs fit into the 2 notches shown in pic

 

You realize you would get better cooling by accessing the cooler water at bottom of block like the C4 Vette does rather than hot coolant from the heads?

 

vettoz thanks for the info i might rethink my whole kc4 oil cooler and i might just go take it from a 88 gta that still has it complete