Quote:
Originally Posted by Boxsta
Sooooo...
Allow me to understand the functionality/purpose of the oil cooler...
This “receptacle” cools oil with air or coolant that runs through it?
If by coolant...Does the leak / intermix takes place when the o-ring leaks allowing fluids to mix or Oil cooler line/unit is punctured?
I guess my two other possible repairs could be:
Head gaskets...?
Head replacements...? Would bad compression be a sign?
|
The oil cooler works by transferring heat from the oil to the coolant (which then transfers the heat to the air at the front radiators) AND by radiant cooling to the air surrounding the cooler.
There are 4 o-rings that seal the oil (inlet and outlet) and coolant (inlet and outlet) at the engine block. If any of those 4 o-rings leak, you can get a leak on the ground and/or intermix within the cooler.
The cooler itself can also leak internally. This usually only results in intermix (no leak on the ground). The cooler can be pressure tested to determine if it has an internal leak.
Head gasket failure can also cause the symptoms that you are experiencing. But head gasket failure is pretty rare and you would usually have some other symptoms like chocolate shake in the coolant reservoir.
Other (much worse) engine problems can also cause intermix but since you have intermix on the ground, I would start by finding where its coming from and go from there. It should be pretty easy to find where the coolant is coming from.
Here is a pic of the 4 o-rings that seal the cooler to the engine block... (some older models have the green o-rings mounted onto the cooler itself rather than in th engine block). You get the idea.
Threaded Mode
