T3: Re: oil temp

["Kenik Hassel" <kenik@telisphere.com>]

	Your dipstick is too hot to TOUCH?!!  Damn, in 27 years of fastback
ownership, NO ONE in my family has ever had that experience.  If I were
you, I would begin a check list of my engine cooling system.  Begin at,
where else, the beginning.  Check your side vents to be sure that they are
unobstructed, then check the inside of your rear trunk.  There is, at least
in the fuel injected cars, an ECU door on the driver side.  See if that the
opening is completely covered and that the rubber gasket is in good repair.
 Now open the decklid.  Make sure the rubber bellows type seal from the
body to the fan is in good shape and well secured.  This is a MAJOR cause
of fried motors over time.  Now look to your right.  There is a little air
hole from the body that attaches or would attach to a fuel injection
fixture.  If your car is FI, make sure that this also unobstructed, or if
your car has been converted, PLUG IT UP!  Duct tape works well as a quick
fix.  The key is making sure as much air gets to the motor as possible. 
Everything still OK?  Now it gets fun.
	With all of the easy visual checks out of the way, you must decide how
mechanically inclined you are.  If not a gear head, go to your trusted air
cooled mechanic (who to be of any worth must DRIVE an air cooled vehicle),
and request the following:  Check your engine tin.  Is it all there?  There
are a few smaller tin pieces that lesser mechanics may forget to install
and just throw away.  Refer to a shop manual if doing this for yourself. 
Still OK?  Now we should check the flaps to the fan housing.  
	These are thermostatically controlled air flaps that regulate cooling air
to the motor.  If these get stuck shut, it can be a mess.  The functioning
of these are kind of complex and I have seen many mechanics remove these
doors because they didn't want to mess with them.  Missing doors will not
be the culprit of your overheating.  If removed, the only problem you might
have is warming the car up in the morning.  But to make a long story short,
if stuck, your engine gets too hot and quickly.  If stuck, repair is a
must.  I would definitely leave all of this to someone with experience as
it is a real pain in the ass.
	So your flaps work great, huh?  Well, it's time to go for the last and
most obvious solution.  Is your oil thermostat stuck?  If all else fails,
replace the sucker.  With all of these things done, your cars motor should
remain cool.  If still plagued with problems, it would seem as if something
internal is the culprit.  Have your compression ratio checked.  If running
above 7:1, I would STRONGLY suggest having the heads hemi cut to bring down
compression.  These are the most common culprits of the overheated air
cooled motor.
	As a guideline, I will give you the readings that my guages give me after
the car is warmed up.

	Oil temp after warm up:  Approx.  180-190 deg F, regardless of weather.
	Head temp when warmed up:
				In town:  200-350 deg F,  depending on traffic
				Cruising:  190-200 deg F

----------
> From: John R. Jetty <jjetty@pahrump.com>
> To: type 3 old list <type-3@umich.edu>
> Subject: oil temp
> Date: Monday, March 02, 1998 10:24 PM
> 
> ok I got a question. I have seen people say that if you can not hold the
> dipstick that the engine is to hot. But I have never been able t pull up
> buy gas and even touch the dip stick and not get burnt fingers on any car
I
> have ever driven ???????
> Is this true or just BS ??????????
> 
> James
>