[chaos311clarity]

posted this on a forum i frequent with some knowledgable guys but wanted to ask here as well...


ill quote myself:

Originally Posted by CHAOS

OK, so ive noticed something really weird/worrying about my oil temps over the last few days. At NOT the oil sits at about 90*C, well over the past week it was rising to about 100C and sitting there... this was no huge deal to me because ive seen it happen during summer before... but then yesterday on my way home from work i was seeing 120C... this is beginning to worry me. On my way to work this morning it actually passed 120C. I know i am due for an oil change but i have no idea what would be causing this sudden rise in temps. The coolant temp has been unaffected the entire time. The temp sensor is at the oil filter. Any ideas as to what could be causing this? Obviously im going to change the oil but im trying to figure out if there is something else i should be looking for/concerned with.

Originally Posted by CHAOS

forgot to mention..


oil pressure is normal

oil level is good.

Originally Posted by BTR

i wouldnt worry about it too much until you change the oil.

if your coolant temp goes up with it then thats when you should start worrying

Originally Posted by alexf20c

um wrong. oil temp is much more important than water temp. oil temp directly correlates to oil pressure. water temp is more or less an average/overall engine temp.

Originally Posted by teh_sysadmin

i'll bet his oil is a lil low and dirty...that's all

Originally Posted by tjf

maybe its an electrical problem with your gagues? just to throw that out there it might not be though maybe something worth checking out,

Originally Posted by el_jefe

QFT.

Is this on an OEM gauge, or aftermarket? I would change the oil first.

Originally Posted by CHAOS

Defi gauge


john recommended i switch to 10-30... been running 5-30...

Originally Posted by el_jefe

5W-30 > 10W-30. Both 30 at temp, but the 5W flows better when cold, getting to your turbo faster.

Originally Posted by CHAOS

any recommendations on brand? ive used mobil 1 before and quakerstate Q ... i like the Q better... but im open to suggestions

Originally Posted by el_jefe

How hot has it been lately? Have you cleaned your oil cooler? (STI has an oil cooler, right?)

Originally Posted by el_jefe

You use synthetic, right? Mobil 1 was the last real synthetic of the easy to get brands. All the rest are "quasi synthetic"

Originally Posted by CHAOS

OK update:

just took the car out for a bit to get lunch.... once warmed up the pressure usually drops to around 2 bar... i noticed it was sitting just under 4... and i also noticed the oil temp was kinda jumping around...

and jeff, if there is an oil cooler its some little bull**** one.

Originally Posted by BTR

the argument was never about which one is more important.

right now it could be as simple as a sensor or low oil

if your oil pressure is rising as well as your engine temp then you obviously have a more serious issue.

Originally Posted by CHAOS

yea, the oil level is fine.. i checked it last night... im looking into other stuff right now...

[520]

My recommendation would be to change the oil and then go from there.

[chaos311clarity]

lol someone had to say it.

[La Mer]

No oil cooler.

[Tortfeasor STi]

How warm is your engine running? Could be time to look at the cooling system.
But your description of the oil temp jumping around makes me think the gauge or the wiring could be messed up. Look to make sure that its installed properly and working correctly.

[chaos311clarity]

Originally Posted by Tortfeasor STi

How warm is your engine running? Could be time to look at the cooling system.
But your description of the oil temp jumping around makes me think the gauge or the wiring could be messed up. Look to make sure that its installed properly and working correctly.

normal readings:

Oil pressure @ idle: ~2bar
Oil Pressue @WOT: ~6bar
Oil temp @ NOT ~90C
Water Temp @ NOT ~90C



current weird readings:

Oil pressure @idle ~3.75 bar
Oil pressure @ WOT ~7bar
Oil temp @ NOT/cruising at highway speeds ~120C+
Water Temp @ WOT/cruising ~90C


water temp remains unchanged. im def going to take a look at the gauge set up as a culprit. it just seems unlikely.

[BenW]

Defi senders?

I read about 90C in town, 95 on the highway, 100 if I get on the throttle at all.

Change the oil and see what happens, I'm interested to know. Especially since your temps are up, and your pressures are up as well. I would think the pressures would go down with the increased temps.

[chaos311clarity]

yeap defi senders.

[chaos311clarity]

update:

friday evening - got home from work and changed the oil... the oil that came out looked normal... and there werent any abnormal amount of particulates on the magnet built into the plug. So i took my sample for the UOA, then refilled the car with 5-30 Mobil 1.

Upon getting it filled... i cranked the car up while the front was still on stands... i do this from time to time with no issues. Well, about 2 seconds after starting and trying to check the oil temp and pressure... we were startled by smoke coming from the exhaust ... so the car was shut off soon after that.

After setting the car back down on the floor and rolling it back out of the garage we started it up again. Still smoking... nothing too much... it was on-throttle smoke... didnt appear to be enough to be anything to crazy in hindsight but at the time i was freaking out. The smoke was very intermittent so i decided to drive it to the meet that night. Didnt smoke at all on the way there, or the way back, the temps continued to skyrocket... the gauge was jumping around a bit.

Long story shorter... The car hasnt smoked since the initial time... and im 95% sure the senders are ****ED lol... 50 degree morning where the oil temp reading 70C lol. and then bouncing from 120 to 90... yea... so the next step is to check grounds and such...

the senders plus wires are like ~120 each. not fun. but much cheaper than a borked turbo or motor.