RCZ's 370Z Journal.

ChrisSlicks

I'd say heat soak in the engine bay raising the air intake temperature causes the real issue. Oil temp isn't really the issue but people associate the two because the temps often move together. Heat soak is much more of a problem on the street than it is on the track, on the track you normally have enough air moving through the engine bay and enough air moving through the intakes to keep temps reasonable.

The following is what most people experience on the street. Start up the cold car in the morning, drive for 10 minutes conservatively while it warms up. When they see the oil temp has hit 180 they go for a bit of a sprint, power feels good. Slow back down, sit at a traffic light for 2 minutes, engine bay temps climb, intakes and manifold temps climb. Go to take off from the traffic light and instantly feel the loss in power.

Not sure what the best solution would be for the street. Insulating as much of the intake as possible might help resist the heat for a little while, at least until you get moving again at highway speeds to cool things back down.

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