This 2015 370z sees some track day events and the owner noted that oil temperatures had been creeping up a bit and wanted to add an oil cooler to improve reliability and endurance at the track. As with many performance oriented vehicles, the factory included an oil cooler which makes use of engine coolant. This helps stabilize oil temps, and can also help to get oil up to the proper temperature sooner under cold weather conditions, but under sustained performance driving this adds additional heat to the cooling system that is already being taxed.
Adding an external oil cooler helps keep things under control. Since the car will be driven year round, the owner opted for a thermostatically controlled cooler that allows cooling flow after a preset temperature. This lets the oil come up to temperature sooner and compliments the factory system by maintaining the adaptability of the system to deal with a range of weather and driving conditions.
In consideration of the owner’s desire for a high quality cooler that would work under a range of conditions, and offer long term durability, we sourced the components from Z1 Motorsports and opted for the mid sized 25 row cooler with several upgrades including a Setrab core, a thermostatic adapter, and braided stainless lines with an outer protective wrap.
The installation was very straightforward, but required dis-assembly of the front bumper cover and assorted components to easily mount the cooler and route the lines properly.
The cooler core arrived with several well designed brackets that allowed placement in a location the factory had intended, and had already provided lower mounting locations for. The holes in the cooler bracket aligned well with only the right side requiring a bit of elongation for a perfect fit. The hose were routed, and the protective covers added additional insurance against chaffing. We elected to add some additional protective material over the hoses where they pass through the sheet metal of the radiator support and the passenger inner fender.
Under the car, the thermostatic adapter installs between the filter and the existing coolant based oil heat exchanger. This is a perfect time for a fresh filter and oil change, and the cooler core must be pre-filled with oil as it holds a significant amount (over a quart). Space is tight, and this will make future oil changes a bit more challenging.
After the install and warm up, oil temps were stable at approximately 160 degrees and would rise to 170 during driving. We will update with results after a day at the track…