Hey
As per the subject- Anyone fitted an external oil cooler?
Just like the retro toyotas/datsuns etc ive seen in Japan?
Any pics/ and how tos on the MX5?
Cheers
Flyin Miata sell an oil cooler kit and this is how it can be fitted (uses the steering rack mounts):
More like this is what i mean…
why the fuck would you want to do that?
Hellfire that’s deffo external!!
I can understand the under the bumper bit but the pipes are a bit OTT IMO. Perhaps tidy the pipework up though.
Its the ‘trend’ in Japan. You havnt seen my car, its not the normal looking MX5, i think it will suit the look im going for…
It’s the trend for Bosozoku cars. This will be probably be a first for the OC forums and probably Nutz as well. Will you be going for the full Bosozoku package, 3’ front splitter and 10’ exhaust pipes etc?
Get some pictures up!
Yeah pics please Rob
Just found this, some interesting cars. http://www.honda-tech.com/showthread.php?s=7c79546c279b3e2a77b1b1b6e25c0e0a&t=2058181
The “drift look” is the result of drifting a car and having no money. Everything on my BDC car is either functional or very cheap, and almost always both. As I’ve done three full seasons of competitions and not needed an oil cooler I suspect this will just be a heavy and expensive lifestyle orniment.
Also with a bumper mount cooler if you get one stone getting flung in to the front of your car in the wrong place all your oil falls out. It’s not a robust solution. I have an oil cooler, and I was going to fit it horizontally under the bonnet on the intake side venting straight out of the bonnet with a cooling fan on it. Shorter pipe runs, less weight, cheaper hoses and well out of the way of any damage. But I never fitted it.
Thanks all for your imput.
Im not going to be entering any drift championships, but I will be giving it a go when a local drift get together is arranged, even if I do it just the once.
This car will hardly be used, as it is my second car/project car for me to mess about with / change things / make look shite / whatever gos, can be changed.
Its not a serious car, its on a low budget, and I dont have any skills. But I am having fun.
Fair play 
If your car does not need an oil cooler, then do not fit one. If you just want the look then bolt the cooler under your bumper but do not plumb it in. Running an external oil cooler when you do not need one will mean your oil is too cool, so your engine is not running at its optimum operating temperature. This will adversely affect your oil pressure. Notice your oil pressure when you first start your car from cold, then watch your engine temperature and oil pressure gauges. On a well set-up car the former will rise swiftly to operating temperature, and the latter fall to operating pressure. Start messing with your engine’s cooling and lubrication plumbing and you’ll mess up this balance which will reduce both the performance and life expectancy of your engine. Additionally, an external oil cooler adds to both the volume of oil in your engine and the distance it needs to be moved, placing greater demands on your oil pump. This means more of your engine’s horsepower is used up running the ancillaries rather than turning your wheels, with an inevitable shortening of parts life expectancy.
A sandwich plate with built in thermostat (oil-stat) would seem to to be the ideal solution here.
What you are describing is reverse engineering. Increased burden on your engine for no performance gain. Adding an oil cooler you do not need is like filling your boot with concrete - your engine will work harder to go no faster. If you do not need the oil cooler, do not plumb it in. There’s no shame in faking it, I’ve got fake Brembo six-pots on my roadster – the real things would not only have cost me a fortune they’d have made my car a spinning top. The fakes look great and nobody knows, well, until I posted here…
I’m not sure I understand. Surely an oil filter sandwich plate with a thermostatic bypass is not a burden on the engine since oil is not diverted to the cooler until it is hot enough to require cooling?
Cheers Baggi T - thats the info I have been waiting for!
I didnt think about fitting a faux cooler - I might just do that!
Cheers