We finally installed an engine oil temperature gauge and a transmission temperature gauge on the CR-Z before going to Road Atlanta last week. The car currently has an Earl's 19 row wide oil cooler with a 200F Mishimoto thermostatic sandwich plate. The front bumper cover has been replaced with a C-West cover, and all the gaps and holes around and leading up to the radiator have been blocked off to help duct it better (super impressed with Honda's CVT cooler in the radiator. It never exceeded 186F). We also made a box that the oil cooler is mounted in to act as a duct and so that it can be taped off on the street to help keep temperatures up. With the oil cooler fully open at Road Atlanta, oil temperatures never exceeded 208F by the end of 20 min track sessions. However, even with tape blocking air flow to the oil cooler on the street, the oil temperature is only 140-150F on the highway. The hottest it's ever gotten on the street is 179F when stuck in traffic in downtown Atlanta. Usually, it never gets above 155F.
Last year, I measured the temperature of the oil cooler in the paddock with an infrared thermometer (which seems to be within ~5F of the gauges) after a run at Memphis International Raceway at 230F. Are these temperatures too low? What oil temperature is considered too low? Would we be better off switching to a smaller oil cooler now or should we wait to see what temperatures we get at other race tracks? Currently, the longest we plan to run the car on the track is 40 min.
Last year, I measured the temperature of the oil cooler in the paddock with an infrared thermometer (which seems to be within ~5F of the gauges) after a run at Memphis International Raceway at 230F. Are these temperatures too low? What oil temperature is considered too low? Would we be better off switching to a smaller oil cooler now or should we wait to see what temperatures we get at other race tracks? Currently, the longest we plan to run the car on the track is 40 min.