Oil Overheat IMPORTANT UPDATE

TheWeatherman

Loved that part! I do understand, but am not expecting a miracle.

SoCal 370Z

My motivations are probably different that others here as my concern is with my wife driving it with her elderly parents. I do believe that Nissan screwed-the-pooch on this one. However, all matters can be remedied. Regarding coming out-of-pocket or not I am more interested in a resolution—and soon—that will not impede existing factory warranties or extended factory warranties. I have no interest in having our 370Z's engine overheat because at that point I will get rid of it. I would put an oil cooler on today, but I am not quite happy with the current solutions—including Nissan's and would much rather go along the lines of the Fluidyne Ultralite, but again, I do not want to hassle with Nissan or some Service Department idiot trying to explain to me how I voided a warranty because of Nissan's issue in the first place (small claims court is much better at handling this situation). Time-is-of-the-essence...summer is fast upon us.

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Why I NEVER say NO to the Panda Lou Fusz!!!

Lug

Remember that the issue is that the upper rev limits are being reduced at a certain temperature point, there is no evidence of damage to the engines or engines shutting down. For all we know the 350Z does the same thing but just doesn't have the protection circuit built in. If your wife is going over 6500 RPMs with her parents in the car, she's probably shortening their lives as it is!

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keep Chubbs in your pocket - Chubbs

spmcpa

FWIW, I have the means and motivation to buy, but will not until this issue sees some kind of resolution.

Nissan clearly had some idea as to the issue from its test mules - that's why all of the media cars were equipped with oil coolers, even for the differentials. BTW, just saw last night that 0-60 magazine had a 370z that went into limp mode after no more than 1-1/2 laps(!) of a North Carolina track.

Perhaps Nissan has not heard about this from its dealers - just because a member of this group complains to their dealer about the issue does not mean that the dealer forwards the complaint to Nissan.

Let's face it, Nissan is not all that worried about those of you that track your cars or use them in timed events. Such use is clearly beyond typical passenger car usage, even for an enthusiast vehicle. However, what concerns me is the number of cars in the sample reaching 260+ while sitting in traffic - believe me, that is not a situation that should result in high oil temps (those cars shouldn't even be hitting 230). It's not much different than leaving the car idling in your driveway.

Under normal usage, there is little reason that oil temps should not stabilize somewhere near the coolant temperature of these motors until they are pressed hard. It seems likely that oil temperatures are rising under typically low heat load conditions as a result of the VVEL set up.

Finally, I'm not an engineer but have nearly 30 years of automotive repair experience and I've also had more than 25 years and 250,000 miles to observe oil temps in my 1982 280ZX turbo under just about any conceivable conditions...my $30k+ stays in my pocket until there is at least a factory certified optional cooler available at reasonable cost...

chubbs

Who goes in the trunk, Grandma or Grandpa?

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ocfoilist

I just returned from a weekend trip from Los Angeles to Lake Tahoe, going up the back side of Cali via the 395. Without any kind of "enthusiastic" driving, my oil temp hit 260 twice on the way up and once on the way back down. My cruise control was on most of the time and it was set to 75.

I am still not certain, however, how improper that temperature is for a car (not having monitored oil temp regularly in the past on my 350z). I wasn't flooring it nor was I excessively speeding to generate that temp, but it only happened 3 times and it dropped back down within 2-3 minutes. On the two times up to Tahoe, it occurred while going up a hill and on the way back it was on a very gradual gradient.

But what exactly does that mean for the car? I'm assuming, based on the previous posts, that these three brief bursts into 260 will not damage the car and it did not seem to affect performance. What exactly is "normal" and when do temperature spikes become a "problem" for a car? How frequently do would they have to happen and how long "should" they take to dissipate? I understand about what triggers the "limp wrist" mode, but I haven't gotten anywhere close to that. Temperatures were pushing 94 degrees on the drive and it took 8 hours. So I'm more concerned about the 240-270 range and what means to a car over its lifetime.

I intend to track this car from time to time, so I will be forced to add an oil cooler regardless. The overwhelming feedback has been that a full 20-25 minute run on the track - much less an entire day - is pretty much impossible without one. But I am also interested in what is, or should be, considered "normal" conditions off the track. Emotional opinions about Nissan knowingly releasing a sports car that overheats on the the track aside, does anyone have any engineering perspective on this?

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Stillen CBE & G3 Intake // Stillen Lightweight pulley // Stillen Oil Cooler // Goodridge Braided Stainless Steel Brake Lines // ACT HDSS Clutch& Alum Flywheel

wstar

260 is the point where I worry. It shouldn't cause immediate harm of any kind, but over the long term if you're hitting 260+ on any kind of regular basis, it's got to affect both oil life and engine life. 280 is a level I consider totally unacceptable. If I ever saw my needle about to hit 280, I'd stop doing whatever I was doing (in your case, apparently going up a mountain in 95 degree weather), and pull over and pop the hood (but leave the engine running!) to get it cooled back down if necessary. I don't plan on ever allowing my car to reach limp-mode if I can help it.

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ChrisSlicks

My opinion is that under normal highway driving the oil temp should remain between 180-230 degrees, this gives you the headroom for the spirited driving the car is advertised as supplying. The fact that you hit 260 with cruise on scares me as this just shouldn't happen unless you're climbing a mountain.

As far as engine damage, there is non likely for brief spike to 260. Sustained temps of 260 and above are a serious concern for the bearings and could drastically shorten their life.

wstar

I'm pretty sure he was basically climbing a mountain, on that route. I haven't driven it myself, but it sounds like it. Lake Tahoe is nearly a mile higher in the sky than Los Angeles, and it was an 8 hour drive with lots of ups and down I assume.

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ocfoilist

Ironically, the times that I hit 260 were not steep climbs but rather more gradual inclines. It seemed that trying to sustain 75 or so over a longer, but flatter, increase in elevation is what bothered the car more. I was surprised, however, at how quickly the temp changed from the 220-230 range up to 260 during that time. I would say that within approximately 2-3 minutes the oil temp had jumped 35 degrees or so. But, to be fair, it did seem to drop back down pretty quickly once I was on level ground again.

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Proud owner of a new 167.2 inch, 3278 lb baby Z!
Stillen CBE & G3 Intake // Stillen Lightweight pulley // Stillen Oil Cooler // Goodridge Braided Stainless Steel Brake Lines // ACT HDSS Clutch& Alum Flywheel

toasterflyer

Thanks for the info..Glad I held off on buying a 370z..(although still cant find the combo I want)..I will buy once NISSAN fixes this oil cooling problem.

Rich
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