Oil cooler

chrisk

chrisk

Hero member
Location
Brisbane, Australia
Yesterday I removed my oil cooler lines, as I am making up some new ones .............. you wouldn't believe it, no oil in the lines  :o
The bike hasn't run for two weeks (while I'm awaiting carby parts), so the oil probably drained back into the motor.

The cooler isn't Laverda, but the Citron 2V ......... but I thought the coolers had a one way valve in them, and I'm sure I read that on the forum. And as I believe everything I read here (apart from "Australia doesn't exist") I find this an odd thing.

Is this unusual?
 
No one way valve in my original cooler. When I cleaned it up I could flush from either end.
 
From my understanding, "normal" oil coolers should be mounted with their outlets pointing upwards, to prevent them draining.  The Laverda cooler is designed to have the outlets facing downward by having the tubes protrude up to the top of the cooler on the inside.
Maybe the externally idenitical Citroen one is not the same inside?  Cut it open and see?
 
Interesting Steve, I never really thought about oil coolers and how they work apart from hot oil goes in and comes out cooler.
I brought a Mocal cooler for the Motodd and have the spoggots facing down as you would on the lav. Must have a close look at the layout of the cooling lines.
Would the oil drain pass the oil pump??
 
Oil cooler on SF? I had one at one time, thought that they must have needed it, as the last SFC had one, and it was a universal update on any bike in those days. Firstly the bike ran so cold that it needed far more fuel at idle, so I blanked it off with tape unless extremly hot days. Then it was at the time of my bike eating cams. The cooler drained itself too, so my fear was that the time taken to get the oil out through the rocker pins was the culprit. It turned out to be the top cover pressing on the main studs, blocking the oil passages, which I solved by releiving the holes in the cover and I always now have a piece of wire to prevent the studs blocking the oilway. However the oil cooler got removed, and the bike a?has never shown the slightest sign of suffering from heat. 
 
Don't remember seeing oil in a cooler.

It's 2CV as in 2 chevaux (2 horses). The original 375cc car was classed as 2 ponies for tax reasons.

Paul
 
Steph said:
No one way valve in a Lemon 2V  :D  (Citro?n 2CV) oil cooler indeed.

St?phane
Click to expand...

You knew what I meant though. ;)

Thanks. Interesting theories abound.
I might see if there is a one way/check valve that could be fitted to the oil pump side of the oil cooler line.
 
There is a thermostatically controlled bypass available for British bikes, Norman Hyde made I think. I recently saw someone had one that had never used the oil cooler function as it never got hot enough for the thermostat to direct the oil into the cooler.
 
its not actually a 2CV oil cooler, that item is now very rare and (almost) unobtainable at a reasonable price. The Laverdas use the oil cooler from the later (and date wise identical) Diane 6.

As supplied to Citroen, they are fitted with quite long ,bent, preformed inlet and outlet pipes, as far as I can remember, although struggling a bit, on the Citroen the cooler is mounted in the air cooling ductwork with the pipes on the top, I have one that I have cut the pipes down to Laverda length, and when straightening out a bent spigot pipe, I managed to snap it off (oh bollocks), I dropped it off this am at the local alloy welder, so I cant check for internal stand pipes, but I will later .

oh yes, and the Citroen items are painted silver not black!
CLEM
 

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In theory at least the oil shouldn't get past the oil pump very quickly! There should be only be a thou or two clearance internally on the gears. But given time, eventually gravity takes its course.

When you think about it, unless you have an electric oil pump then as you press the button on any engine the oil is in the wrong place!

A non-return or check valve may help, but will raise back pressure and slightly reduce flow in service.
 
I don't have a diagram nearby but most coolers are on the "return"side of the circuit, meaning the cooled oil is returned to the sump after it's trip through the cooler. If the cooler drains when shut off it's no big deal, it will fill once the pump has pressurized the rest of the circuit.
 
Never had an oil cooler on my SF, when it was stock or when it basically an SFC. Never will. They don't need them, unless you maybe plan on doing a 24 hour race in temps of 40C. Even racing and thrashing my bike for 7 or 8 years through West Australian summers (read HOT, lots of long fast open road riding), never had an issue.

Tippie's tale only confirms it.
 
wdietz186 said:
I don't have a diagram nearby but most coolers are on the "return"side of the circuit, meaning the cooled oil is returned to the sump after it's trip through the cooler. If the cooler drains when shut off it's no big deal, it will fill once the pump has pressurized the rest of the circuit.
Click to expand...

Interesting, I had a look at a CBX lubrication diagram since i knew I had one and sure enough you are correct.  On the CBX it even seems to be a parallel circuit in some manner.  On the Lavs however it's in the 'flow' side of the circuit, probably due to the minimal pressure that the system runs due to the roller bearings.  The cooler is in between the pump and the supply to the crank and cam bearings, the return is gravity drain direct to the case or over the outer mains.
 
That may explain a lot Steve!

When I park up my Jota 120 after a ride, the oil cooler is of course 'hot'.
But after only a couple of minutes almost cold! The oil must drain away quite quickly!
 
as far as I can tell, and its fairly conclusive, is that on the Citroen Dianne 6 cooler there is no internal "stand pipe" the layers of the cooler can be felt with a wire poker as shown in the photos, I can feel a hole in the pipe for each of the layers, so that theory is gone, when they (at least the Citroen type) are bottom fed, the oil will drain from the cooler, but when on the car they are top fed, I think.

not pleased with the welding either, the boss was not there and it was done by a "worker" although not a youngster, and it has air tested as sound (by me) the look and finish is not what I would have expected of the man himself (Ian Angel) nor his dad the now retired Alex Angel, this man looks to have being doing it for years, it was done virtually while I waited and for a small cash outlay, all as before, but not the show piece rippled effect that I desired and the spigot is still bent!
CLEM
 

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Exactly the same cooler I have Clem. Given all this oil missing after Park up. Someone on here had a picture of their bike with the cooler up in the fairing  :o that would mean no oil to the internals for a long time at startup.
 
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