Couldn't help myself, and after a break ended up back in the garage mocking up various parts of the oil system. I may have run into a problem with my oil temp sender though. My plan has always been to run three sensors: One in the engine replacing the pressure relief valve, one in the tank and one at the outlet of the oil cooler. The theory being that I can then see engine oil temp at the engine, engine oil temp at the tank (required for warmup), and what the temp of the oil going into the engine is. I want this third sensor as it gives me more info on what's going on, and will allow me to diagnose any issues with the oil system, cooler size, etc down the road. This third sensor, though, is going to be a problem!
Here's the temp sensor. Sorting out how to put this at the end of the oil cooler is the trick.
Russell Performance has part #670350 which is a -8AN fitting with a 1/8NPT take-off, normally used for fuel pressure...I figured I'd see if it might be helpful. Now, I should note that I ordered this
before I actually looked at the oil temp sender ;-)
Obviously it's not going to work just threaded in...
So, through a series of insanely complicated adapters...one
can make it work. But this isn't ideal. It's heavy, has five sets of threads that could leak...and, lets be honest, ugly!
But, it does get me thinking. With the sensor so far out of the oil stream I also have to consider whether or not the data collected will be worth anything. Russell Performance has this fitting, which I might be able to modify on the lathe to make work:
I'll have to call tomorrow and find out the I.D. and wall thickness of the part, to see if it's thick enough to cut down and thread for the sensor. Otherwise, I might have to eliminate this one from the system.
-Dave