Rep Power: 119

Hello everyone, I am working on installing a 30 plate heat exchanger to help warm my oil quicker and to help keep it cool in the summer. The heat exchanger I bought isn't too restrictive, I can easily blow through it. However, I am wondering if adding a heat exchanger and a few feet of 10AN hose (5/8 inch) will restrict the oil flow significantly. I am quite sure that the bearings would still be the main restriction and the restriction of the heat exchanger and hoses would be negligible, but just checking.
I looked up the flow rate of the oil pump and I found that it can flow 10+ gallons of oil per minute at higher RPMs, which really surprised me. I can't imagine that there is actually that much oil flowing through the engine though, so I'm thinking that rating is probably for just the pump when it isn't working against any restriction and that the actual flow rate is much less than that when the pump is working against the restriction of the bearings, passages, filter, etc.

So does anyone have any idea roughly how much oil actually flows through the engine at higher RPMs? Thank you a lot in advance, I have looked all over for this info and I can't find anything, so any help would be greatly appreciated.

 
Rep Power: 211

Prediction: fast forward three months from now... (new post) Please Help My Engine Is Making A Knocking Sound.

 
Rep Power: 119

Why would my engine start making a knocking sound 3 months from now?

 
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He was being facetious.

 
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I didn't realize that, it's extremely hard to tell when someone on the internet is being serious.

 
Rep Power: 368

Typically, no...
Pretty easy to spot... for normal people

 
Rep Power: 119

I had no way to know if for some reason he thought my setup might be too restrictive and starve the engine of oil or something. I have no way of knowing what someone else is thinking. I was asking a serious question and expecting serious responses.

 
Rep Power: 211

Yes, I wrote that facetiously.

D17, on one hand I admire how you don't hesitate to try different things on your car. However, on the other hand you seem to have a history of posts that ask questions for thoughts or help when some of the things you tried didn't work out so well. Some times less is more (better).

You are the same D17 who's car was vandalled by one your neighbors in the apartment complex you live, aren't you?
If not I apologize.

 
Rep Power: 119

Thank you for clarifying. You are right that I don't hesitate to try things that haven't been done before or isn't common. Sometimes these mods worked out very well (like my EPS system), while other times the mods have caused additional complications that I needed to address before it worked correctly or have been a total mistake. Oh well, live and learn.

However, out of all of the modifications I have done, I have been satisfied with most of them. I would much rather daily drive my car as it is right now than a stock 7th gen. I have experienced this car stock and I have experienced it the way it is now set up, and I personally prefer this. No it's not perfect, but IN MY OPINION it's much better for the way I drive it than it was stock. Not everyone will agree with me on that and that's fine, we all have our own preferences and priorities.

Also, I don't modify things just for the sake of it, I only modify things when I believe that there is an actual benefit to be had. This is why I installed an oil temp gauge before I decided that I needed to modify anything oil related. There is no point in wasting time and money trying to solve a problem that never existed. However, from the temp readings that I am seeing along with the condensation problems I have had, I decided that my engine could benefit from an oil to coolant heat exchanger, which is why I am installing one.

And yes, I did have a problem with a neighbor vandalizing my car several times at an apartment complex I used to live at.

 
Rep Power: 211

That's cool. With your skill set you may want consider engine swaps for real power gains in the future.

 
Rep Power: 119

I am. I feel that at this point I have reached the maximum practical power potential with this engine with the upgrades I have done and I don't plan to put any more money into this engine other than maintenance and repairs to keep it running correctly since I plan to K swap sometime in the future and put this engine and trans in my white Civic.

Instead of upgrading the engine to make more power, I have been focusing more on upgrading the car itself (adding gauges, EPS, brakes, suspension, etc) since I am planning to K swap in the future. Also, the few parts I have recently purchased for my engine (such as this oil to coolant heat exchanger setup) are parts that I can easily swap over to the new engine. A full list of the mods I have done can be seen in my profile.

 
Rep Power: 211

The other upgrades besides the engine is probably money well spent. However, when it comes to bolts on for a D17 all-motor for power....you simply cannot polish that particular turd that way. Other than fuel effeciency it doesn't seem like a good strategy to get the most out of engine that was design to get granny to the store or a daughter off to college.

 
Rep Power: 119

I agree that the D17 was never designed to be a performance engine and it never will be without significant changes, like boost. However, I have been able to make some pretty decent improvements with the upgrades I have done. The car certainly isn't fast, but it is noticeably more responsive and powerful than it was stock. And I can still get 38-40 MPG on the highway. Worth the money? I would say no because I probably could have a K swap for what I spent over the years upgrading this engine for more power, and it probably still makes less power than a stock K20A3.

My neighbor has an 03 Civic auto and was curious how mine drove with the upgrades I did, so I let him drive it to see what he thought and he said it feels a lot more powerful than his car. I then drove his and it does feel noticeably slower and less responsive than mine, the brakes didn't feel as strong, and it didn't feel nearly as confidence inspiring as mine does around corners. However, his car feels a lot more refined than mine does. It is a lot quieter and has a smoother ride because the exhaust and suspension is stock and doesn't have the vibrations that mine does from having stiff motor mounts, and refinement was no doubt one of Honda's priorities when they designed these cars. So for what it was designed to be it is a great car, but my personal preference is a more sporty feel, refinement isn't nearly as important to me as performance.

 
Rep Power: 119

Where would you guys put the oil temp sensor with a setup like this? Would you put it in the flow of oil going from the engine to the cooler or in the flow of oil coming out of the cooler and going to the engine? I'm thinking it would be best to be measuring the temp of the oil coming out of the cooler since that's the temp of the oil that is on its way to the engine's bearings and other moving parts and therefore the temp that is most important. Thanks

 
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Ideally before cooler and after cooler would be nice. After cooler temp would let you know that the cooler is working and before cooler would let you know how hot the engine is making the oil.

 
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Thanks. I agree that having 2 gauges would be ideal. However, I only have one sensor, so I am thinking the best place for it is after the cooler so I know what temp oil the engine is reviving. The way I see it, the engine cares a lot more about the temp of the oil that's going to its moving parts than the temp of the oil that's sitting in the pan.

Also, is it okay to start pushing it hard as soon as the oil coming out of the cooler/warmer reaches normal temp? I'm sure the oil in the pan would still be a bit cool at that point, but it should still be okay to push it as long as the engine is receiving warm oil, right? Thanks

 
Rep Power: 368

everybody turn it on and start driving.
when radiator gets hot enough, use more of engine.
that's all.

 
Rep Power: 119

I respectfully disagree. My coolant can warm up to a normal temp, but the oil may still be at 50-60 degrees. I didn't trust my temp gauge at first, so I drove until the coolant fully warmed up and then immediately pulled over and felt the oil pan. It still felt cool. When the oil is too cold, it is too thick and won't flow through the engine as it should. Also, the bearing clearances won't be correct when the oil is colder than normal. I'm not saying that flooring it before everything warms up will instantly cause catastrophic failure as I have done it before, but it will cause unnecessary wear on the engine.
http://www.tuneruniversity.com/blog/...l-temperature/

 
Rep Power: 368

any engine works that way.
there's a reason street cars do not have a oil heater system other than the combustion itself.
there's a reason you can't find the oil flow in the internet also - it doesn't matter that much unless you are designing an engine.

overkill

 
Rep Power: 119

A lot of street cars do actually have an oil heater/cooler system. It's often a round unit that goes between the oil filter and the block with 2 coolant lines going to it. Honda has actually used these on several models over the years. It helps to warm the oil up quicker, and it also helps keep it from getting too hot once it warms up.
Also, I have noticed vanilla pudding under my oil cap when driving in cold weather because the oil often doesn't heat up enough to evaporate condensation out of it. That's bad, water is a poor lubricant and causes rust.
Apparently engineers don't think it's overkill since a lot of cars come with oil to coolant heat exchangers from the factory.

 
Rep Power: 368

then, what is holding you from buying one of those cars?

 
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Why in the world would I go spend thousands of dollars to replace a car that I otherwise really like when I could easily add the feature I want to the car I already have for thousands of dollars less?

 
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why do you keep asking things that are surely not fit to be in a common internet forum?
Things that surely does not matter much if any at all?
Go apply for Honda if you so much wants to know. Leave us alone