The Big Fat Track Car Cooling Thread

[luc]

When I spoke to them they only had version for RHD, do they have a LHD version now? Who did you talk to over there? I talked to them last January and they said they were having too much trouble with an LHD kit and were probably going to abandon the project.

@db232, did you ever hear from the USA office?

We bought our 2 kits in early December of last year
I was the first person to buy a lhd kit and they sent my install feedback and pictures to Australia
My Contact in the us was Ryan at 937 723 78 88
It is really a well designed kit so I’m not sure what the issue is
Let me know, I’m curious

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[ihasnostang]

it seems frontal air space is at a premium. Has anyone investigated using a oil to water plate heat exchanger with a remote radiator? This creates two seperate circuits where you would still use a sandwich plate to get oil from the engine, but the water radiator could be mounted in the trunk with a fan/pump. You could probably get away with a rad similar size as if you had one for a diff cooler. My only concern would be condensation from the cooler water getting into the oil. I have used this plate method for coolant to water on a project before and it only required a trickle of water to pass through to keep the engine coolant at a stable temp.

quick google example
https://www.ebay.com/itm/223247721044?chn=ps&mkevt=1&mkcid=28

 

[shogun32]

Has anyone investigated using a oil to water plate heat exchanger with a remote radiator?

yes, Camaro 6G SS/1LE and now the Mach1.

Trunk air is vastly cooler than boiling water but since the reservoirs are so small and closely coupled you hit heat saturation. We just need to figure out how to get the water coolant down to say 120-150F before it hits the oil cooler and engine on it's return trip. How many BTUs is that?

Hmm, could we marry a 2nd radiator to the underside of RaceLouvers? quick-connect hoses and mounted on stand-offs? Engine bay air is hot though but maybe we can duct some ala Mopar Shaker-hood mouldings?

 

[TeeLew]

it seems frontal air space is at a premium. Has anyone investigated using a oil to water plate heat exchanger with a remote radiator?

I think this is the way to go, but it does mean the radiator has to be able to reject enough heat to accommodate cooling both water and oil.

People see really high numbers on track. It seems they're basically just trying to make sure the car doesn't go into limp mode. In my experience, best power for a Coyote engine is about 85-90* C (& a bit lower for an Eco). That takes a lot of work on one of our cars.

 

[Plimmer]

This doesn't melt from the heat of the radiator? I'd much rather go your plastic route than sheet aluminum as well so I'm very curious.

Doesn’t melt up to 245F. I use the white corrugated sign board from Lowe’s. Also the heavy duty duct tape keeps it stuck to side of radiator.

The plastic is so much easier to work with, slightly flexible, cuts with a box knife and cheap. Works fine for me.

 

[TeeLew]

Doesn’t melt up to 245F. I use the white corrugated sign board from Lowe’s. Also the heavy duty duct tape keeps it stuck to side of radiator.

The plastic is so much easier to work with, slightly flexible, cuts with a box knife and cheap. Works fine for me.

Does anyone remember when I said you can make a lot of cool aero stuff with corrugated plastic and got a ration of shit for it? It's not nearly as hokey as it sounds.

 

[SVO MkII]

Doesn’t melt up to 245F. I use the white corrugated sign board from Lowe’s. Also the heavy duty duct tape keeps it stuck to side of radiator.

The plastic is so much easier to work with, slightly flexible, cuts with a box knife and cheap. Works fine for me.

My data log from the track showed my coolant temp touching 244 deg. I assume the temp at the radiator is lower, especially in the front?

 

[shogun32]

Does anyone remember when I said you can make a lot of cool aero stuff with corrugated plastic and got a ration of shit for it? It's not nearly as hokey as it sounds.

no. But you're such an easy target ...

I kid, I kid!!!

 

[TeeLew]

no. But you're such an easy target ...

I kid, I kid!!!

It's the story of my life, brother. I've never been any good at remaining silent and being thought a fool. I always open it and remove all doubt.

 

[TeeLew]

My data log from the track showed my coolant temp touching 244 deg. I assume the temp at the radiator is lower, especially in the front?

I find it amazing that with all the Eco horror stories, you get away with this. It gives us all hope.

 

[ihasnostang]

I think this is the way to go, but it does mean the radiator has to be able to reject enough heat to accommodate cooling both water and oil.

People see really high numbers on track. It seems they're basically just trying to make sure the car doesn't go into limp mode. In my experience, best power for a Coyote engine is about 85-90* C (& a bit lower for an Eco). That takes a lot of work on one of our cars.

true, you could also add a reservoir tank to the circuit

 

[SVO MkII]

I find it amazing that with all the Eco horror stories, you get away with this. It gives us all hope.

As with most things in life, you will always hear a disproportionate amount of "horror stories". That's human nature.
With respect to my experience, this has been an amazingly reliable car over the last 3+ years 43K miles. It's a daily driver in all conditions and sees at least a half dozen track days a year. Always run 5w-50 at the track. Full synthetics are capable of dealing with temps in excess of 300 deg. As mentioned above, when the oil temp hits about 270 (on the real gauge), I start backing off. I run about a 60/40 coolant/water blend. At the pressures this cooling system runs, boiling point is around 270. I definitely don't want to boil (cavitation, etc.). So far, so good!

 

[shogun32]

I run about a 60/40 coolant/water blend

wouldn't it be better to run (almost) all water with some Water-wetter during summer/track?

 

[SVO MkII]

wouldn't it be better to run (almost) all water with some Water-wetter during summer/track?

Boiling point is higher with coolant, and I have cooling issues at the track. Yes, heat transfer with water is slightly better, but the comfort of a materially higher boiling point is more important to me.

 

[TeeLew]

If you're on track, it should really just be distilled water and something like Water Wetter to keep the pump happy and surface tension low. You'll gain a little in heat transfer, but boiling point shouldn't be an issue. The pressure in the system should address that concern.

One big problem with running coolant on track is losing coolant on track. That quickly makes a little problem a big problem and potentially for several cars.

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