simbey1982 Posted December 5, 2008 Share Posted December 5, 2008 Alright i have a 92 Legacy SS with i think a 91 engine that was swapped in. I have a oil cooler on it which runs coolant through a thing right at the oil filter. See photo http://members.aceweb.com/robinegg/oil.jpg Im having a problem with oil in my coolant. Before you scream headgasket i just pulled the heads had them resurfaced, leak tested, and put NEW head gaskets on it, and flushed coolant system. Now the oil is back in the coolant. There is NO coolant in the oil so it has to be somewhere high pressure enough that only the oil is getting in. The only other places i can think is the oil cooler or the turbo...the turbo seems unlikely since they are seperated so well and it would take a pretty nasty crack. So i guess my question is...can i just bypass this oil cooler. I was noticing that its only on 91 model engines...is this thing needed at all...id rather just bypass it than replace it Thanks Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
simbey1982 Posted December 6, 2008 Author Share Posted December 6, 2008 no opinions.. bump Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Skip Posted December 6, 2008 Share Posted December 6, 2008 Mr. Simbley sir, Please excuse this massive 20 hour delay in getting you a response. It is my understanding that the device you have pictured does not circulate coolant as you say but diverts the oil to and from the cooler . The oil cooler on my 91 SS is a free standing unit and does not use engine coolant for cooling. Maybe some plumbing is knackered? Please with all haste tell us where you got this information. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
simbey1982 Posted December 6, 2008 Author Share Posted December 6, 2008 (edited) well there are coolant feed and return lines and the coolant runs through the outside cooling the oil as it goes to and from the filter....looks like an oil cooler to me is this supposed to pump the oil through a smaller spot on the radiator like a tras fluid cooler?? because the cooling system was "modified" before i got it and i just assume this is how its supposed to be...il take photos and post Edited December 6, 2008 by simbey1982 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
simbey1982 Posted December 7, 2008 Author Share Posted December 7, 2008 (edited) Here are a couple photos. Hard to see but the nipple and hose in oil3.jpg comes straight from the nipple thats screwed into the block. The picture oil2.jpg shows the coolant return which is routed right back into the cooling system...there is no radiator that it runs through....so is this all $#%^#$ up or is this right....like i mentioned the person before me modified the cooling system by putting in a WRX cooling system...if anyone has pics of their stock setup and could show me that would be great http://members.aceweb.com/robinegg/oil2.jpg http://members.aceweb.com/robinegg/oil3.jpg Thanks PS i did enjoy the nigerian post =) Edited December 7, 2008 by simbey1982 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Gloyale Posted December 7, 2008 Share Posted December 7, 2008 That looks like the cooler that comes installed on Phase II 2.5 engines in Forresters and maybe others. It has baffles in it that the oil flows through. Seems restrictive to me, I took it off a 2.5 we are building. That had more to do with contamination suspicion because the main bearings were shredded in the block. Wouldn't want to rebuild it, then flush old burnt bearings fragments through it. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
simbey1982 Posted December 7, 2008 Author Share Posted December 7, 2008 so its supposed to have oil running through it??? becuase it has coolant running through it??? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
mellow65 Posted December 8, 2008 Share Posted December 8, 2008 the picture you show is the subaru factory oil cooler. and from what i have read really aren't a bad cooler till you start making major HP. there is supposed to be coolant running through that cooler. you should have a pipe running from your thermostat housing to the cooler then from the cooler to the block. it could be possible that it cracked and pushing oil into your coolant. but i would keep it rather then trying to bypass it. finding used ones are pretty easy, all SS should have them. all wrxs have them, i think it was 99 and newer auto foresters had them. you might have to get the matching hoses for what ever year/model you get the new cooler from, as with different models they moved the pipes around Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Gloyale Posted December 8, 2008 Share Posted December 8, 2008 so its supposed to have oil running through it??? becuase it has coolant running through it??? Well, both actually. It is a heat exchanger. Like the trans cooler in an automatic cars radiator, or a water to air intercooler. The coolant enters hollow tubes (like radiator core) in the baffled section though one side tube and returns to the engine via the other. The oil flows through the center going into and out of the filter, flowing over the baffles. The Oil and Coolant don't occupy the same chambers and should not mix. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
simbey1982 Posted December 10, 2008 Author Share Posted December 10, 2008 ok i got the impression that it was attached to the radiator somehow... Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
bulwnkl Posted December 13, 2008 Share Posted December 13, 2008 Well, it is attached to the radiator, after a fashion. Not directly to the radiator, but to the cooling system. However, switching to a WRX radiator wouldn't have affected this item at all. The Bajas have that same kind of cooler. As was said, it's a 'standard' Subaru OEM oil cooler. They're quite useful devices really. More than anything, they help all the short-trippers get their oil up to proper temperature more rapidly, but then they also keep it cool under load. It is possible that it's failed internally, just as any radiator may fail. I don't personally see that as very likely, but it's possible. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
simbey1982 Posted December 14, 2008 Author Share Posted December 14, 2008 yeah...im just trying to eliminate the possibilities now....but at the same time it seems an unneccesary system since it wasnt on the later model years....what are the cons to removing this system...is there something diffrent between the model years where this system became necessary?? seems like overkill and overcomplication....this isnt a rally car its a road driver Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
bulwnkl Posted December 15, 2008 Share Posted December 15, 2008 I guess I don't know which later model years it's not on? I don't remember one way or the other on my '91 XT-6. My '05 Baja has it, and I thought that both my '99 Outback and '01 Legacy had it. Could be mistaken, though. It's actually a very useful system to have in place. Because it brings the engine oil up to temperature much faster than it would heat up on its own, it is an extremely useful system for many, many drivers (short-trippers, etc.). It keeps acid production down and helps get rid of fuel and water that gets into the oil from cold-start rich running. It also cools the oil if you do end up working the motor hard. So, don't think of it as an oil cooler. Think of it as a system to keep the oil in its design operating range, whether that means it's heating the oil or cooling it. For this reason, I'd keep it in place and functioning. As was said, it is clearly possible for it to break internally such that the oil and coolant could mix. I just don't happen to know of that ever happening (OK, not enough that I've ever heard of it, and it's never happened to me). Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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