Oil Temps.

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A friend of mine had his boat builder call him and wants him to check his oil temp at the filter with a infra red gun. He said oil temps over 200 degs. were causing cylinder head probs. on the volvo penta OS-1, 5.7 GM block. He had oil temps of 220 and climbing at 3300 rpm so he pulled the throttle back.
The dealer wants to install an oil cooler. Is 200 degs. too hot. He uses volvo straight 30w syn. It has a closed cooling system.
Thanks,Mark
 
From all the info i've read 195-210 is optimium oil temp. Mine runs right in this range with my large oil cooler. I would add a cooler if it got much over 220+.

Speaking of heat my old 355ci Solid Roller SBC w/o a cooler would run 210-220 crusing and spraying a 100 shot of nitrous the oil temp would rise to 280 degrees in 10 secs. With the addition of a cooler it dropped WOT N20 runs to 250 degrees.
 
Thanks for the reply. He is going to send a oil sample in. Worried about damage that may have been done.
Thanka Again,
Mark
 
did the builder specify what kind of head damage?

I agree with ryan, optimum is the 190-210 range, key word optimum. Most all oils in the millions of cars on the road are 220F and higher because of coolant temps running 200F for emission and fuel economy reasons. So I wouldn't be in a rush to add an oil cooler if you are seeing just 200F oil temps, and I certainly wouldn't jump to conclusions of engine damage. Especially with a synthetic. Now if the volvo brand oil, claiming it's synthetic, is any good then it should handle 220-240 no problem at all I would hope. When you start running 240+ consistently, for long durations, that shortens the oils life and leads to varnish, slude, increased wear, to the point where you should be concerned about it. I think a cheap oil temp gauge would be a good thing so you can monitor temps on a regular basis, not just a few times with a laser, before spending bigger bucks on the installation of an oil cooler. On top of it, a quality 40 weight oil would be a better choice; merc 25w40, pennzoil, chevron, mobil 15w40, 10w40 or 5w40 will provide better protection at those higher temps if that's what the engine tends to run the oil at. Not saying you don't need or shouldn't get an oil cooler, they are a good thing if installed properly. They'll help stabilize amd maintain oil at operating temp and prolong the life of the oil, just be sure your spending the money on one for the right reasons.
 
I read your post over at iboats couple weeks back. I would only get concerned if the temps started hanging around the 250* mark sustained. I would also opt going with a heavier oil also than the 30W if you running in the upper rpm range alot.
 
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