Quote:
Originally Posted by ElderGod
Would adding a small electric fan add any benefit to an oil cooler or would it not really be worth doing?
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As XLsior stated, the only real benefit would be if you were stuck in stopped traffic for extended periods of time. In those cases I just tend to shut down the motor. Once you are moving even a little bit the airflow is usually sufficient to keep the motor temps in check.
That doesn't mean there wouldn't be a benefit to doing it, but the expectation vs. reality thing is different enough that I think most of us understand it isn't really going to be that effective.
The main issue is oil isn't very good at transferring thermal energy, so the cooler needs to be fairly large if the intent is to act more like a cooling system. The 125ml cooler I run would actually be decent for this, but mounting options for it are also limited because of its size. Especially mounting options that leave room for the fan or fans. That would leave a dual cooler setup as a better option, such as how JerryHawk runs his. Then you could run a fan on each cooler.
Then you obviously need the fans, and of course a control system. Simplest control system is just a switch to turn them on manually. Complicated would be a thermocouple and thermostat with a control switch.
Then, even after all that effort, you would maybe buy yourself a few more minutes of run time before eventually you would need to shut down the engine anyway to protect it from overheating, if that is your concern.