High oil Temp... It finally happened to me

houkouonchi · 01-15-2011, 08:32 PM

On cold days my oil temperature usually stays around 180-200F and on a hotter day it might be around 220. A couple times I have seen it get up near 240 but that was pretty rare.

Well today for the first time my oil temps got over 260F =( I didn't think it was going to happen to me as I thought the consensus was this usually only happens when driving on the track.

Well I decided to check out GMR (Glendora Mountain Road). It was my first time driving it and I wasn't really driving fast (rarely got above 45 MPH) but it was mainly uphil and I was mostly in second (and sometimes in third gear) with my RPM's averaging 4k-5k when I was in 2nd gear.

When I got about 15 miles into it I pulled over for 10-15 min to let the oil temps go back down (right where GMR splits off to Glendora Ridge Road).

I must say I am a bit disappointed. I guess if I ever want to drive on this road again without stopping I will likely need an oil cooler =(

I don't think it ever went into limp mode. I believe that happens at 280? I honestly did not want to let it get high enough to the point it would go in limp mode and I think its likely it would have gotten that high if I continued driving.

PS: I think driving on GMR got me the worst MPG I have ever gotten on my 370z. In the 15 miles that I had to stop I only got like 9.5 MPG lol. I reset MPG calculator right when I started on GMR.

spearfish25 · 01-15-2011, 08:40 PM

Well, you can drive the road all you want. You just can't rev to 5k in second gear and leave it there the whole time. In retrospect, the oil cooler was an easy install and solves the problem completely.

houkouonchi · 01-15-2011, 08:55 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by spearfish25

Well, you can drive the road all you want. You just can't rev to 5k in second gear and leave it there the whole time. In retrospect, the oil cooler was an easy install and solves the problem completely.

Well I think common practice when driving on a curvy road like that is to keep the RPMs up high when going into the curves. To be honest I don't like how the car feels going though a curve at a decent speed where I can feel the g-force unless my RPM is over 4000 or so. I also don't like breaking in turns and this helps the car slow down by taking my foot off the gas instead of breaking.

I didn't just drive it in 2nd the whole time @ 5k RPM. I was constantly shifting between 2nd and 3rd gear. I usually downshifted to 2nd when going into the turns and upshifted once I was out of the curve and I rarely got it above 5k. I honestly didn't think I was driving it all that rough. If I wasn't worried about my camera dieing from all the G's because it has an HD I probably would have recorded a video.

zero · 01-15-2011, 09:02 PM

I was at 4K-5K rpm when I did GMR. I was in 2nd or 3rd all the way to the end of the run. I have oil cooler and the temperature was max. at about 220. The oil cooler will keep the temperature down when running GMR in a hot day.

houkouonchi · 01-15-2011, 09:06 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by zero

I was at 4K-5K rpm when I did GMR. I was in 2nd or 3rd all the way to the end of the run. I have oil cooler and the temperature was max. at about 220. The oil cooler will keep the temperature down when running GMR in a hot day.

Definitely considering doing the oil cooler now. So you were also 2nd/3rd the entire time like me and similar RPMs. So as I mentioned earlier I would expect the way I was driving to be pretty 'normal' for driving on that road right? I wasn't driving crazy or anything (never went over the line or even really had the VDC activate) and it was actually pretty cool out as I went there at 9 AM (60s).

zero · 01-15-2011, 09:23 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by houkouonchi

Definitely considering doing the oil cooler now. So you were also 2nd/3rd the entire time like me and similar RPMs. So as I mentioned earlier I would expect the way I was driving to be pretty 'normal' for driving on that road right? I wasn't driving crazy or anything (never went over the line or even really had the VDC activate) and it was actually pretty cool out as I went there at 9 AM (60s).

It's fun when you are in 4K+ on that road. I always down shift to slow down before entering the turn. Don't you love the SynchroRev Match?

houkouonchi · 01-16-2011, 01:07 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by zero

It's fun when you are in 4K+ on that road. I always down shift to slow down before entering the turn. Don't you love the SynchroRev Match?

Actually I didn't turn on my synchro rev match as I usually never use it. This would have actually been one of the few times it would have been useful to do so. Next time I will turn it on =)

seungklee · 01-16-2011, 01:37 AM

I just came back from Streets of Willow Track event last week and went WITHOUT an oil cooler. However, it was very cold up there, in the morning, temperatures would be around 24 degrees and when it warmed up in the day, 44 degrees to 50 degrees. Maybe it was the cold weather that I didn't run into limp mode even after pushing the car near redline. I was in the beginner group and the first session was all about following behind the instructor to learn the lines and stuff. Rest of the sessions (there were 6 total sessions that day), I ran almost but not really at full 100% capacity, but I say around 85%. The first five sessions, I shifted constantly at 5k to 6k rpms. In the last session, I decided to go all-out and just redlined it. Temps got never higher than little over 260, but never did I run into a limp mode. Shouldn't be a too much problem doing canyon runs in GMR...this was my experience with the oil temps.

kellyefields · 01-15-2011, 09:07 PM

there may be another factor as well. How old is your oil. I found that the older the oil the faster the temp builds. If I have fresh oil my temps stay lower. I always use royal purple and and the royal purple filter but I went ahead and put a 34 row oil cooler on anyway just for planning on future mods and since then i do not break 210 even in stop and go traffic. You shouldnt have to go that big but I like it.

houkouonchi · 01-15-2011, 09:08 PM

I believe my last oil change was around 2500 miles ago.

ImportConvert · 01-18-2011, 05:20 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by kellyefields

there may be another factor as well. How old is your oil. I found that the older the oil the faster the temp builds. If I have fresh oil my temps stay lower. I always use royal purple and and the royal purple filter but I went ahead and put a 34 row oil cooler on anyway just for planning on future mods and since then i do not break 210 even in stop and go traffic. You shouldnt have to go that big but I like it.

Royal Purple shears relatively fast compared to other premium oils. The longer you run it, the thinner it shears down. The more it shears down, the less it protects, the more friction you have. With a more stable oil, what you are noticing won't be nearly as apparent.

Endgame · 01-18-2011, 09:23 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by ImportConvert

Royal Purple shears relatively fast compared to other premium oils. The longer you run it, the thinner it shears down. The more it shears down, the less it protects, the more friction you have. With a more stable oil, what you are noticing won't be nearly as apparent.

Not arguing here, but why is Royal Purple 'expensive' then? If it does this, I do not understand the hype about it. Is it just a percieved believe the 'brand' is better than most? I ruled our RP a while back because of the above dynamic and would get Mobil 1 over RP.

Am I missing something?

ChrisSlicks · 01-18-2011, 09:30 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Endgame

Not arguing here, but why is Royal Purple 'expensive' then? If it does this, I do not understand the hype about it. Is it just a percieved believe the 'brand' is better than most? I ruled our RP a while back because of the above dynamic and would get Mobil 1 over RP.

Am I missing something?

They spend millions on advertising to the race/hot rod crowd. For race car engines they are going to change the oil after every event so long term viscosity break down isn't a big concern. It is a huge concern for street cars, and the VQ's in particular don't get very good results from RP on the oil analysis.

ImportConvert · 01-18-2011, 03:54 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Endgame

Not arguing here, but why is Royal Purple 'expensive' then? If it does this, I do not understand the hype about it. Is it just a percieved believe the 'brand' is better than most? I ruled our RP a while back because of the above dynamic and would get Mobil 1 over RP.

Am I missing something?

Because of that exact opinion."It's expensive so it must be good". People buy into that all the time, and this is no exception.

Just google "Royal purple shearing" and you will find tons of UOA's and other lab tests that back up what I have stated.

cab83_750 · 01-15-2011, 09:08 PM

I am not exagerating, but my ex-Z would hit 260 in the summer time just climbing 405 fwy by Getty. On my side of town, I would hit high temps also around Mulholland Hwy/Decker Canyon Road without being super aggressive. My Z never liked aggressive or slow driving.

BTW, i never went into Limp Mode.

I just realized that I still have my oil cooler kit in the garage. Time for me to hit the 'for sale' section.

01-15-2011, 08:32 PM	#1 (permalink)
houkouonchi Enthusiast Member Join Date: Jun 2010 Location: Ontario, California Posts: 440 Drives: '14 GT-R '10 M6 370z Rep Power: 15	High oil Temp... It finally happened to me On cold days my oil temperature usually stays around 180-200F and on a hotter day it might be around 220. A couple times I have seen it get up near 240 but that was pretty rare. Well today for the first time my oil temps got over 260F =( I didn't think it was going to happen to me as I thought the consensus was this usually only happens when driving on the track. Well I decided to check out GMR (Glendora Mountain Road). It was my first time driving it and I wasn't really driving fast (rarely got above 45 MPH) but it was mainly uphil and I was mostly in second (and sometimes in third gear) with my RPM's averaging 4k-5k when I was in 2nd gear. When I got about 15 miles into it I pulled over for 10-15 min to let the oil temps go back down (right where GMR splits off to Glendora Ridge Road). I must say I am a bit disappointed. I guess if I ever want to drive on this road again without stopping I will likely need an oil cooler =( I don't think it ever went into limp mode. I believe that happens at 280? I honestly did not want to let it get high enough to the point it would go in limp mode and I think its likely it would have gotten that high if I continued driving. PS: I think driving on GMR got me the worst MPG I have ever gotten on my 370z. In the 15 miles that I had to stop I only got like 9.5 MPG lol. I reset MPG calculator right when I started on GMR.

01-15-2011, 08:40 PM	#2 (permalink)
spearfish25 A True Z Fanatic Join Date: Mar 2009 Location: Naples, FL Posts: 4,117 Drives: to work Rep Power: 1857	Well, you can drive the road all you want. You just can't rev to 5k in second gear and leave it there the whole time. In retrospect, the oil cooler was an easy install and solves the problem completely. __________________ 2013 Cadillac V-Wagon, RIP Z

01-15-2011, 09:02 PM	#4 (permalink)
zero A True Z Fanatic Join Date: Dec 2008 Location: Southern California Posts: 1,259 Drives: MK 7.5 Golf R Rep Power: 23	I was at 4K-5K rpm when I did GMR. I was in 2nd or 3rd all the way to the end of the run. I have oil cooler and the temperature was max. at about 220. The oil cooler will keep the temperature down when running GMR in a hot day. __________________

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01-16-2011, 01:37 AM	#8 (permalink)
seungklee Enthusiast Member Join Date: Oct 2009 Location: SoCal Posts: 291 Drives: you around! Rep Power: 16	I just came back from Streets of Willow Track event last week and went WITHOUT an oil cooler. However, it was very cold up there, in the morning, temperatures would be around 24 degrees and when it warmed up in the day, 44 degrees to 50 degrees. Maybe it was the cold weather that I didn't run into limp mode even after pushing the car near redline. I was in the beginner group and the first session was all about following behind the instructor to learn the lines and stuff. Rest of the sessions (there were 6 total sessions that day), I ran almost but not really at full 100% capacity, but I say around 85%. The first five sessions, I shifted constantly at 5k to 6k rpms. In the last session, I decided to go all-out and just redlined it. Temps got never higher than little over 260, but never did I run into a limp mode. Shouldn't be a too much problem doing canyon runs in GMR...this was my experience with the oil temps.

01-15-2011, 09:07 PM	#9 (permalink)
kellyefields A True Z Fanatic Join Date: Nov 2010 Location: Lexington Ky #BBN Age: 48 Posts: 1,156 Drives: Supercharged Rep Power: 17	there may be another factor as well. How old is your oil. I found that the older the oil the faster the temp builds. If I have fresh oil my temps stay lower. I always use royal purple and and the royal purple filter but I went ahead and put a 34 row oil cooler on anyway just for planning on future mods and since then i do not break 210 even in stop and go traffic. You shouldnt have to go that big but I like it.

01-15-2011, 09:08 PM	#10 (permalink)
houkouonchi Enthusiast Member Join Date: Jun 2010 Location: Ontario, California Posts: 440 Drives: '14 GT-R '10 M6 370z Rep Power: 15	I believe my last oil change was around 2500 miles ago.

01-15-2011, 09:08 PM	#15 (permalink)
cab83_750 Track Member Join Date: Apr 2009 Location: CA Posts: 887 Drives: 09 NISSAN 370Z Rep Power: 418	I am not exagerating, but my ex-Z would hit 260 in the summer time just climbing 405 fwy by Getty. On my side of town, I would hit high temps also around Mulholland Hwy/Decker Canyon Road without being super aggressive. My Z never liked aggressive or slow driving. BTW, i never went into Limp Mode. I just realized that I still have my oil cooler kit in the garage. Time for me to hit the 'for sale' section.