nels415

Is it possible to remove the front oil cooler without removing the front bumper? I have my car up on jackstands near my garage wall. Not sure if I have enough room to work and remove the front bumper.... Just trying to shortcut if I can.

-nelson

chris walrod

I would say not possible. Best just to remove the cover and go to town.

black ice

It is possible with the fender liner off and the bottom bumper panel off, but you won't have a lot of leverage and may end up taking the bumper cover off anyway. You will need the right open-end wrenches to get those fittings off, and they will be tight as hell. I think they are 32mm and 36mm but don't quote me.

I would say it's worth a shot because you'll need to take those parts off on the way to get the bumper cover off.

dave

nels415

Ok, I figured it wasn't going to be that easy. Thanks for the replies guys!

-nelson

nels415

Ok, so I was able to get the bumper off without having to bring the car back down, looks like I had enough room, phew.

Now, I could use some help with removing the oil lines. I read the DIY on Robin's site, but I'm not sure if I got it right. When loosening the large nut (2) the entire line is twisting. Is (1) and (2) connected in my photo below, it looks like it is. I have (3) loose as well.



(2) was pretty easy to loosen, however I didn't see any signs of oil seepage here. From some old threads some folks have mentioned that these should be really tight. My oil leak seems to show up on the lower half of the oil cooler. My plan is to take the oil cooler off, clean and inspect to see if I can find any broken fins.

Thanks in advance.

-nelson

user 70801213

I have same issue. leak is on the bottom of the cooler. hoses are dry on top.

http://p-car.com/diy/fan/#oilcooler

EckFe1

Hello Nelson,
you need to hold 3 and loosen 2. The # 3 fitting remains on the cooler. This way the hose won't twist. You propably figured that out already.
Good luck with removing it all. It'll be a bit messy unless you have plugs or caps to pull over each piece.
Ed

nels415

Thanks Ed. Yes I got it loosened. It was easiest for me use a scissor grip hold to squeeze both wrenches together when loosening it. After cleaning all the oil and dirt/grime off the oil cooler, it appeared fine. Only a few bent fins, but nothing major. Hopefully, it was just clogged up. I'm going to button it all back up and for hope for the best.

-nelson

Garth S

Perhaps I'm confused .... but if you were chasing a leak and the connections were tight & dry, then the cooler leaks .... regardless of how well it cleans up: a hairline crack is often difficult to see, and may only show with a pressure test.
The oil cooler must operate at minimal PSI, as it is connected to the reservoir, so toss in a liter or so of something like varsol/paint thinner and put 7-10 psi air to it with some cobbled up fittings. ( corks & duct tape will hold a few PSI )
If there's a leak, the low viscosity varsol will whiz out nicely ....