how do you remove the oil cooler??? need to take it out to clean the extreme amount of oil all over the bottom of the car, due to the faulty oil cooler seal....can you take it out with the engine in the car??? is it done from the bottom??? pics??? thanks so much --JON

You have to take off the engine fan housing. Not a fun job with the engine in the car.

Just remove the sheet metal from the top of the engine and spray carb cleaner down thru the cooler.

Jon,
I said it before. George Hussey's 700 Tech Tips. Great book for the "new to 914 person"
Yes it can. Under the car passenger side. Check Pelican for sure and possibly Automobile Atlanta for a "reseal kit"

He has already had a carb cleaner fire this weekend. Lets not encourage any more carb cleaner stuff... He has a massive passenger side leak going at the forward side...

whats the carb cleaner gonna do? How do I put on new seals?

It is not worth the trouble of leaving it in the car and trying to do this. Just remove the engine and do it right and easy. You are gonna have to remove the fan, shroud, FI (if you have it, carbs if you dont), and tin on the passenger side. Take your time and be methodical and all will be fine. The seals are easy to replace once you get there I bet you will want to fix other things once you dive in

It can be done with the engine in the car but it is a nut roll...there are some tricks for getting the new seals in place like placing the seal in the opening of an open end wrench and pushing it in place...do a search for the procedure...you could probably clean the area with the cooler in place, then just slide the cooler out far enough to replace the seals...good luck.
Joe

Paul probably was thinking you had a gunked up oil cooler. Only he knows for sure but if it was all full of crud it would not cool well. Only he knows for sure.

George says in his book it is possible to change with the engine in the car. Others, I respect as well say it is nearly impossible. I guess you will have to figure out how much you want to avoid the engine drop.

oil cooler in the car ,instructions here;
http://www.914world.com/bbs2/index.php?showtopic=26033

If you're going to take the oil cooler out of the car, to clean it it's best to wash it out with some good old fashioned mineral spirits or solvent. Then after you've run water through it, what I did was put a cap or two of tide in a large bucket, let it fill up with incredibly hot water and put the cooler in there. Let it soak for a day or so, then rinse it out with more hot water. Really helped. Make sure it's dry inside and out before you reinstall it...

That's correct. And I agree you don't have much luck with carb cleaner. Use some type of water based product.

thanks

Nice to see SOMEONE uses the search function to find the directions for doing this.



Oh.. and anyone who doubts this can be done.... I can get an oil cooler out of a 914 in 30 minutes. I am also willing to prove this to anyone who wants to bring me to their house to do it, anywhere in the country.

does picking you up at the airport count as bringing you to my house??? if so, tell me when your plane arrives --JON

Yeah, but your hands are small enough that you can actually reach up in there!!

Replacing the seals is ugly but very doable. Replacing the cooler would be a cast-iron b*tch, unless you're Clay. IIRC, it involves removing the studs that the cooler is mounted on. Not something I'd really like to do from that angle.

If the cooler just has crud on the outside, replace the seals and hose carb cleaner on the fins. Better if you pull the engine tin off the top so you can spray directly down through, I would think.

If you think crud got inside the cooler, then the above advice is all spot-on. It might be overkill otherwise.

--DD

Yes it CAN be done in the car, but just because it can doesnt mean you should

I have large hands

Here's my .02 for whatever its worth:
If people say its easier with the engine out, do it. I've spent MONTHS trying to wrestle around with a job that I could "almost" do with the engine in! If you learn how to remove and replace an engine/ tranny you will be way ahead of the game. Trust me this is scary the first time (I still havent balled up enough to do it myself). However, the prevailing opinion on the board is its pretty easy and there is plenty of expert advice to go around. If you dont squish yourself the first time, then you will have learned a very valuable skill!
Konrad

I agree with the above statement.
I now am so lazy, I take the motor out for a good old tune up.
Its way easier to do the valves with it out.
And you get to clean everything, and look for new leaks each time.

Once you get the hang of it, it can take 30-45 min.

Rich

I am NOT saying it is hard to take the engine out.


I am trying to dispel the false assumption that it is MANDATORY to take the engine out to change the oil cooler. It is NOT mandatory.


At the time I learned this trick, I was living in a Duplex with a carport and a shed. The door in the shed was not big enought to put the engine and transmission through without major gyrations. So I became adept at taking the engine apart without removing it from the car. I can even pull a cylinder head with the engine in the car. I DO NOT recommend it, but it CAN be done.


It is far easier to pull the engine to replace the oil cooler.

Oh, and the size of your hands has NOTHING to do with the ability to pull the cooler with the engine in. Even MY small hands won't fit up between the cooler and the block. I use needle nose vice grips to remove the studs.

What ever you have to tell your self

I have done it, I would not do it again.

could you do it w/o removing the fan assembly?

just pulling the nuts and sliding it as far off of the studs as possible and slipping the new seals in there?

the surfaces would have to be good and clean.

use lots of teflon seal itll make the seals stick to the case.

do seals top down then reassemble?

i think i could do it. will take lots of trys and lots of swearing but it could be done. and dental picks.

i replaced a oil filter arm in the car w/o removing the cooler or the fan assembly.

thoughts?

Clay: I was teasing about the little tiny hands. Perhaps I should instead have said that you were the only one small enough to stand in between the fan shroud and the case to replace the seals??

Shaggy, you would replace the cooler by using needle-nose vise-grips to unscrew the studs that the cooler mounts on. Then you can drop the whole shebang down. This is, of course, after moving the fan shroud as far forward as you can. No way (to my knowledge) of getting enough room to pull the cooler off the studs otherwise.

Read Clay's post in the link he provided; I believe he mentions how he replaced the cooler. (Sounds like No Damn Fun At All, though!)

--DD

Well I just did this same job about two weeks ago it's not that bad it takes longer to remove and replace than to change the seals . Here are some pics. I have if you need more let me know i have more .



Look below.


jbart

i was just talking about doing the seals. if i had to do the cooler id pull the engine.

Oh, I figured that was a well- and thoroughly-settled question. Yes, you can do it without removing the engine. Yes, you do it pretty much as you describe. Follow the link in Clay's note, or look in the 914 Tech Articles page on Pelican. Write-ups in both places.

--DD

To try to summarize this thread, I think I'd say, yes, you can. But should you?
I think not.
But I like to pull engines, makes me feel all manly.

Real MEN pull engines.

i have done it in the car, was a little tough but overall not as much work as dropping the motor.

yes, i'm talking about the oil cooler