engine coolant/oil temp gauges

[tynashracing]

What range of temps are you guys running for engine coolant and oil temp?


Thanks,

Ken

[mcclaskz]

This past weekend at VIR ~70 degrees. Water 180-210, Oil 170-190 in an IP E36 M3.

[tynashracing]

This past weekend at VIR ~70 degrees. Water 180-210, Oil 170-190 in an IP E36 M3.

Thanks for that info...specifically, I was curious about the range on the actual gauges.

I finally hooked up on the search and see that water temp gauges used go to 250 F, while the oil temp gauges go to 300 F.

Still trying to find at what point water temp and oil temp becomes a concern.

Ken

[nick325xit 5spd]

BMW says that the S54 is OK with the oil up to 300 degrees. I know of one guy who's stated that that's fine if you don't mind replacing your VANOS unit constantly. He recommended ~250F for the oil. All in all, I'm inclined to agree with him. Especially after my experiences.

Now, whether or not you can directly apply this to the S50 is somethign else entirely.

[tynashracing]

BMW says that the S54 is OK with the oil up to 300 degrees. I know of one guy who's stated that that's fine if you don't mind replacing your VANOS unit constantly. He recommended ~250F for the oil. All in all, I'm inclined to agree with him. Especially after my experiences.

Now, whether or not you can directly apply this to the S50 is somethign else entirely.

300 degree oil temps

I'm looking for longevity. LOL

Ken

[B.Watts]

As long as you have an oil cooler, you shouldn't see any dangerous oil temps. We actually cover up our oil cooler on cool days in order to get more heat into the motor.

[JBgotM]

last time I was on course, I saw 260F for oil temp.

Mt new zionsville radiator w/ oil cooler should be ariving anyday and I can have them stay a little lower.

[nick325xit 5spd]

300 degree oil temps

I'm looking for longevity. LOL

Ken

Yeah, I think the folks at BMW are nuts too.

FWIW, my motor ran at 270, and I had one of the most spectacular VANOS failures possible without actually destroying the engine. Whether or not that's actually linked is a separate question that I can't answer.

[JBgotM]

BMW says that the S54 is OK with the oil up to 300 degrees. I know of one guy who's stated that that's fine if you don't mind replacing your VANOS unit constantly. He recommended ~250F for the oil. All in all, I'm inclined to agree with him. Especially after my experiences.

Now, whether or not you can directly apply this to the S50 is somethign else entirely.

what in the vanos wouldn't take 300F? I will admit I haven't really looked into the materials/configuration, but i design components all the time for sumps speced higher than 300 (not automotive).

[nick325xit 5spd]

what in the vanos wouldn't take 300F? I will admit I haven't really looked into the materials/configuration, but i design components all the time for sumps speced higher than 300 (not automotive).

Absolutely no clue. He simply noted that he stopped having to buy new VANOS units after he got an oil cooler. The S54's VANOS unit runs at pretty spectacular oil pressures, which might affect it as well.

[JBgotM]

Absolutely no clue. He simply noted that he stopped having to buy new VANOS units after he got an oil cooler. The S54's VANOS unit runs at pretty spectacular oil pressures, which might affect it as well.

interesting.

The oil itself shouldn't have any problems at 300 and have some headroom still. If the oil goes stagnant at much higher temps, it could start to coak. I know what coaked oil looks like, I have baked some stagnant oil at 550F and it made a cool looking paperweight.

something in the system just may not like those temps, but I don't know what it would be. Any decent o-rings are fine at that temp. Maybe they have some low grade polymer somewhere in the system? I could speculate all day.

Any of you racing guys who have torn things apart many times can share the wealth of knowledge if you know. I would appreciate it.

[nick325xit 5spd]

interesting.

The oil itself shouldn't have any problems at 300 and have some headroom still. If the oil goes stagnant at much higher temps, it could start to coak. I know what coaked oil looks like, I have baked some stagnant oil at 550F and it made a cool looking paperweight.

something in the system just may not like those temps, but I don't know what it would be. Any decent o-rings are fine at that temp. Maybe they have some low grade polymer somewhere in the system? I could speculate all day.

Any of you racing guys who have torn things apart many times can share the wealth of knowledge if you know. I would appreciate it.

No idea, but maybe it's just more sensitive since it operates at an oil pressure of 100 bars. (No, that isn't a typo. Yes, I really do mean 1,450PSI. Yes, it really says that in the BMW docs.)

I'm neither a chemist, nor an engineer, so I'm not equipped to answer the question.