Type I Oil pump for front mounted oil cooler?, Does anything else need to be done other than griding the tab? Options

[ThePaintedMan]

Hello all,
I've tried searching for this question, but haven't found anything definitive. Though its still a ways off, I am hoping to add the ol' RX-7 oil cooler up front, complete with a custom fiberglass valence on this '73 1.7. In the meantime, while I've got the motor sitting here in the driveway, I wanted to switch to the heavy-duty oil pump. I have heard this is a good idea with an oil cooler mounted a ways from the pump. I'll be using the sandwich adapter and keeping the stock cooler as well. My question is mostly pertaining to the relief valve inside the motor. Do you have to replace it if you use the type I pump? Will it dramatically increase oil pressure if you don't? Any help would be appreciated. Thanks!

[ape914]

stock 1.7's or 2.0 can run too hot with extended driving at high rpm's Pushing 4000 rpm can cause the oil to get too hot specially in a hot climate, or pulling a heavy load or up hills. The cooling system is marginal , push it hard, or spin it faster and it can cause problems.

For a simple fix, try a remote cooler, in addition to the stock cooler, you can use a sandwihich adaptor at the oil filter, and then install a shorter filter to the adaptor (hoses will enter/exit the side of the sandwhich adaptor) you can then mount a remote cooler from those hoses, some sandwhich adaptors have a thermostat built in, or get a remote thermostat. You dont want to skip the thermostat, as too cold oil is not good either.
an other option is to run a remote filter also, using an adaptor on stock filter mount, that has simply an inlet and outlet for hoses, you then mount a remote filter, then a thermostat, then the cooler. The nice thing about a remote filter is you wont be limited to a small filter can. Bigger filters are better as they can flow better and than means less likelyhood of the filter going into bypass mode, and your oil not all getting filtered.

with a good remote cooler you can keep the temps down, and that is a good thing, 180F should be a nice target temp for the sump oil, although under 200F is still very nice temp.
for good cooling get the biggest cooler you can fit, mounted in cool air flow is best, but that usually means the front bumper area, you may not want to cut the car for that.
You can get some cooling however with a flat cooler mounted near the tranny under the trunk floor use an electric fan, but the air under the car is pretty warm, so you may still see some temp spikes, but you will be much better off than stock.

I have mounted a Empi 72 plate cooler under there, you might even be able to fit the 96 plate one (it is about a foot on each side, and about an inch thick, fan addes another couple inches to thickness.) If you have a Bursch type exhaust rather than a stock mufler you will have more room to mount the cooler

but the optimal place is in the cold air stream at the front of the car.

these cars tend to run even hotter than when new becuase of the oxygenated fuels now mandated. Smaller tires also up the engine rpms, and that means more heat too.