Product idea: heater/cooler unit
 

Just a thought, it would be nice to have an aftermarket heater unit that would make for a clean install into a Bug. This unit would be similar to a modern day heater unit as found in watercooled cars but would house an oil cooler instead. The powerful electric fan in this unit would blow into the passenger compartment using the original ducting when heat is wanted. When heat is not wanted, yet fan operation is required, the fan would spin reversed, sucking air out of the passenger compartment and exhausting into the atmosphere. It would mount where the later model factory electric fan unit would normally be so as to have access to the grille in the hood and close to the connection to the windshield and down into the quarter panels for floor heat and maybe the oil lines could run trough the heater channels. Like I said, just a thought :)

Brian

I have thought about that too. My idea was slightly different though. Have a normal external oil cooler outside and one mounted inside under the rear seat, with a fan blowing air from under the seat to inside the car. Use an electronic change over valve with the switch mounted in the dash to change coolers. Or have a 3 way switch to use both coolers if needed. Use two thermostats, one for each cooler, with the inside cooler having priority if both coolers are running, so the outside cooler works as secondary.

Hello-

That may work well for "tropical" winters, but for freezing temperatures, you have a problem: the time when you want the most heat in the car is the time when you have the least in your oil. Remember - we can't directly compare oil coolers to heater cores. Heater cores have a potential to see the brunt of the entire heat load of the engine, but oil coolers just see a little bit (the main amount is aircooled, not oilcooled).

Sorry! :-)

Take care,

remove the stock cooler in winter. LOL. Might even work

That is a good point, but still the oil cooler has a constant supply of 180 deg. oil running through it just like a H2O car has a constant supply of 180-200 deg water though its heater. I'll give it a try some day and get back to ya. But, I only have those "tropical" winters to test it on.
Ron