Is it the seal or entire cooler ?

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nismopath
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Joined: Tue May 24, 2016 5:19 pm

Is it the seal or entire cooler ?

Postby nismopath » Sat Jun 02, 2018 5:34 pm

So I had my path in the shop for a little while. I went on vacation, used the other car for a while, basically have not used my path for a little bit. I had a leak that we all had diagnosed as an oil cooler seal. And with all going on I hadn’t done anything about it.. I had it at the dealer for another issue and they said that my oil cooler had gone bad and wanted to replace it. How do I know if the entire cooler went bad or if it is just the seal ? To make the story short, I do not trust this dealer I went to so I didn’t discuss the issue with them. I paid my bill and left.
But now I don’t know if they were right or if they just saw a leak and went to replace the whole thing?


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smj999smj
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Postby smj999smj » Sun Jun 03, 2018 9:46 am

The oil cooler "could" go bad, but it's very rare and it is usually the seal that leaks; there was even a service bulletin on it. The only way to determine if it is actually the cooler or not is simply careful inspection of the cooler and verification of the actual source of the leak. Dye testing could be helpful. But for me, as cheap as the seal is and it's not a hard job to do, unless I see the an obvious leak from the cooler, I'll take a chance that it's the seal.

nismopath
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Postby nismopath » Sun Jun 03, 2018 6:29 pm

Ok that’s great to hear. Thanks a lot. Is there a better write up on doing this?


Or any tips? I don’t mind a lot of things but always good to hear another’s opinion.

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smj999smj
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Postby smj999smj » Mon Jun 04, 2018 12:14 am

There really not much to it. Remove the skid plate and oil filter. Remove the oil filter stud using a deep socket and ratchet. Once the oil filter stud is removed you can remove the cooler and replace the gasket; I used petroleum jelly on mine to help the gasket "stick" to the cooler. Reverse to install, torquing the oil filter stud to spec. Top off the oil level---or, do as I did and do it during an oil change---and start the engine to check for leaks before installing the skid plate.

nismopath
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Postby nismopath » Mon Jun 04, 2018 10:52 am

Thanks!

nismopath
Posts: 144
Joined: Tue May 24, 2016 5:19 pm

Postby nismopath » Sun Jul 01, 2018 11:06 am

Just wanted to pop in and say thanks again. I just did the seal instal and it was easy, nothing hard at all.. other than the tedious time it took to take off the front lip and the skid plate. I was a little worried about twisting the cooler around but once you take off the skid plate you have plenty of room.
I did the oil change at the same time and besides the small 15minute rain shower I was good!


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