Everyone with oil temp issues

AK370Z

I have a small request for all of you. Please RESPECT everyone's input/opinion here in this thread. Just because someone DO NOT see this as a problem or do not feel that Nissan should fix this, please don't make them feel(or their post) unwelcome, stupid etc. This is a public forum and everyone can voice their opinion. But when someone is attacked or harassed because of their post(s), then I'm obligated to step in since it's against the forum rules. I am NOT implying that it has happened (you guys have been pretty mature about it) but I'm just throwing out a warning. Also, keep in mind that normal "street driving" for one member can be "spirited driving" for another. So, please respect everyone's opinion.

I will ask Nissan and see what's their plan on this issue.

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TheWeatherman

Okay folks. Just got off the phone with someone a step up from my Midwest Regional CS Manager. First, this person races cars for fun. He races street cars. His favorite track is Road America in Wisconsin. This guy knows his stuff. He's not a kid and has been doing this a long time. 250 to 280 to him is optimal engine oil temperature for high performance driving, and he urged anyone to just look it up from reputable sources. Also, I must say, this person could not have been nicer. They're motto right now is "prove it on the street." The racetrack is a different story. This we should completely understand. This oil cooler kit is coming out for all of the people complaining for an issue that most of us have never had. (I got to the 260-280, after a 'spirited driving' session, but it never cut itself off or limited anything.)

If it's not cutting off, it's running just fine. He said those of you trying to race your cars around at the much much cooler temperatures (ie. 180-200) are the ones actually not doing the engine any favors. This is some more VERY important information.

You hit 300, you're in a bit of trouble, but that's where the engine will automatically limit itself. It's not the complete end of the earth nor the engine. He said if you are racing, they will have your ultimate oil cooler kit that is thermostatically controlled. That's nice. It's just about out, and wait for it. Would it have been nice to have this option earlier this year? Of course. He stressed over and over, your oil should be between 250 to 280 for its best protection of the engine in high performance driving. If you're not hitting the cut-off, the engine is by no means in danger.

Should you choose to buy the Nissan Motorsports Oil Cooler kit, which I'm sure most of us are, get it done at the Nissan dealer. He said that will keep your full powertrain warranty in tact.

This should start putting this to rest. I believe him completely. He was very, very nice. I want you all to read what I have posted above a couple of times. 250-280 is good for a motor being run hard. You have to be well above this range for it to break down. He also said the Nissan Ester oil is perfect in this range. He said if you're on a track and are experiencing this, your fix is coming, but otherwise if your engine doesn't go into a full limp mode, it's doing fine. He said they've pounded the piss out of these cars, and know it takes an awful lot to have the motor go into limp mode. I agree. He even urged me to take him out on our roads in "A spirited way." He races street legal race cars on tracks people, and personally had a hand in R&D. Do you know these have been out testing for almost three years before they came out? He said they flogged the hell out of them. Up mountains, in the Arizona desert, and never had these problems. He said if you are racing them, well, your oil cooler is just about out. He said just to make sure, the thermostat will keep the temps in this "hot" optimal range.

Almost all of our cars are just fine and are not compromised in any way. If you race them on a track for quite a while, all out, he said they understand. Your temperature controlled coolers are coming out.

sylenze

i think the start of your statement is the problem itself... this guys doesn't even have a proper title... a step up from midwest regional CS manager... tells me nothing... he knows how to race and sets cars up to race just put him in the same level of knowledge as most of the forum members... it is a fallacy to say that just because this guys states such and such makes it a fact with mediocre background... the only fact i can see from this statement is that he works for CUSTOMER SERVICE and not engineering nor development... i do not mean to offend but it is insulting for you to belittle the issue with unfounded facts/sources... its like getting a weather forecast from somebody who's hobby is to watch the clouds in the sky and dance around in the rain...

TheWeatherman

I forgot the title... Quality contol something something? It's not like we were sitting there talking about the name of his job. Jesus. Yeah, I really tried to belittle you. Sorry I'm actually getting things done about this problem, and talking to someone besides a desk jockey at consumer affairs.

chubbs

Harsh.

Perhaps you'd like to let us know what YOU are doing to help solve the problem? If you're not doing much, maybe you'd like to be a little less rude to Weatherman, who is actually getting somewhere.

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sylenze

the only reason i have not posted what i have done with this issue is because i do not have any new information to offer... after discussing my situation with a CS, i was contacted by a regional quality assurance personel who basically instructed me to bring the car to a dealership to make sure the problem is not mechanical... during my discussion with him, i described that the temps that i was reaching driving for 30 mins in stop and go traffic were 260 and 240 after driving 2 hrs straight from LA to Santa Barbara... he did not at any point in our conversation suggested that those temps were normal nor refute my argument that this is a cause for concern on the longevity of the engine... at this point, i am trying to find time to schedule an inspection of my car...

again... i did not mean to be harsh towards weatherman at all...what i am trying to convey is the fallacy on his statement... we cannot just accept any statement that is given to us by some guy in customer service over the phone because it is evident that their motive is to make you complacent with the car you have purchased and stop you from escalating the issue at hand... i apologize if i was mean, i just dont want people to be discourage at figuring out a substantive conclusion for this situation...

SoCal 370Z

I understand where sylenze is coming from as this is why I asked TheWeatherman his process in getting his answer. There is a process here for Nissan protocol to get to where TheWeatherman got.

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wstar

I haven't called anyone yet because I don't feel like I have anything that's really actionable from the point of view of customer service on a consumer street-driven car. I can only get it to 260+ by doing things I would never do on a public road with a Nissan rep riding along, they would just blame the abusive driving. It's still not 'right', in that the car is a sportscar and should be able to drive like one, but I think it would be hard for me to convince a CS person on a live drive that my car was defective for normal driving.

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lww

What kind of gas mileage does your little Insight get...? Sorry, I couldn't pass up the opportunity!

The issue here is that we could have gone out and bought any number of other cars that are competing for this segment of the market and NOT had this problem. I believe the VVEL system is a fantastic technological and engineering achievement, but I also believe it is the culprit.

If I don't see a reasonable resolution soon, my money is going to another manufacturer that has a product engineered to support the use it's owner's expect out of a capable "Sports Car". Porsche, BMW and god help me, even Chevrolet fills this bill.

The statement from the CS person TheWeatherman spoke to is spurious:

If by an awful lot, he means one 20 minute session in a track day, then I call bs on that statement. Track days have become one of the most common "after work" activities for sports car enthusiast/owners as evidenced by the number of track day organizers that have sprouted up over the last 10 years. The number of 350Z's I see at track day/HPDE events is enormous and I see none of them with similar problems. P.S. I'm an HPDE Instructor for several event organizers.

If Nissan won't engineer a product to support this EXTREMELY important "enthusiast" segment for their "sports cars", I question the competence of their marketing organization.

For the same money or less, I can buy a nicely depreciated Porsche, BMW or Corvette and never have to worry about these issues again AND have better resale value in 5 years than the 370Z is going to have after it's first month.

Unfortunately, I'm going to look at a Boxster S this afternoon...

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ChrisSlicks

20 minutes? Heck, if it's a warm day out (80-90) and you start out with your oil at normal operating temperature (180-220) you will hit limp mode in 5-7 minutes on the track. I don't know of any other car where oil temperatures accelerate so quickly and take so long to recover.

TheWeatherman

This was originally posted by Smartbomb. It may already be in this thread, but I'm reposting it as a refresher. A top-notch cooling kit is coming out from Nissan, so be patient. Those seeking other cars, that's your opinion of course, but just hold on, and you'll be just fine.

Oh, to talk to the Quality Specialist at Nissan, I just did what everyone else does. Call CS, take the car to the dealer, talk to my regional CS to diagnose my problem, then wallah! They'll ask you to take them out on the street, and try to hit limp mode. If you can't, you're not hurting the motor or it's Ester Oil at all. Sorry, I didn't post earlier. I've been gone. After reading this above article, for me, this issue is closed. If I race, I'll need an oil cooler. Should Nissan have offered this on it's release... Yes. Are our cars going to have a short life? Absolutely not. Racing= oil and possibly a diff cooler. Hard street driving? Good luck hurting the car. Future owners: this will pretty much be a non-issue when the cooler comes out which is very shortly. (I like the last sentence of the article.)

Okay, I just got off the phone with my Quality Control specialist. He doesn't know the exact temp of the max thermostat's setting on the Nissan Motorsports cooler, but for anyone who doesn't know what that thermostat is for here's the explanation. (For those of you who know, sorry for dumbing this down.) When you are easy on your motor, cruising, traffic & such, you don't want your oil too cool. A normal cooler would just continuously cool the oil that's circulating through the motor. So if you're cruising, if the cooler is powerful enough, it may only have you sitting at like 140-170 which is not healthy for the motor. (Mine sits between 205-235 all of the time, without any spirited driving, even in 90-degree temps. I even let it sit idling with the air running for 15 minutes, and the temperature came back down to 205. FYI) In this case, the thermostat would know, and shut that cooler off. If the oil temp starts popping over it's recommended operating temperatures while racing the motor, etc. the cooler will turn itself on and try to keep those temperatures in check.