To oil cooler OR to not oil cooler

[dankberries]

Hey BBS,

I'm about to hybrid my legacy and I'm contemplating whether or not use an OEM oil heat exchanger. I figured I should throw a new water pump on and that got me to thinking about including an oil cooler in the setup. Money is not so much an issue and I can source everything needed including a new water pump for around $250.

I'm mainly after the benefits of heating the oil because I see negative degree temps where I live. It would be nice to have oil cooling benefits but its not entirely necessary as this is a daily driver not a track car.

After hours of research I'm over whelmed with information. With so much misinformation out there I'm really unsure if its worth it. I would like to find definitive data that shows true #'s. Some people are saying they see 10 degree cooling differences, some say they don't see any. Some people say they dont see any oil warming benefits, while some say they do.

Does anyone have definitive data? Should I bother? Logic says Subaru put it there for good reason.

I plan on using a block heater and thought to myself that this in its self would surely help with warming the oil but I don't reep any cooling benefits.

Thoughts, data, love - please bring it my way!

Thanks in advance!

[mike-tracy]

My thoughts are that it acts like a buffer for temp spikes. The oil and coolant warm up at different rates so it helps both systems warm up faster, and the larger cooling capacity of the radiator helps protect the engine's oil from overheating, for a while anyways. Subaru even put them on na foresters and outbacks if you ordered the tow package. So i prefer to use them, as insurance.

[Legacy777]

I agree with Mike....it will help add a buffer. I don't know if you'll see concrete data. I've got coolant temp and oil temp sensors in my car hooked up to my ECU. From what I've seen and experienced the engine does warm up quicker than the non-turbo engine. The coolant comes up to temp relatively quickly. Oil temp does take a little more time, and doesn't vary too much unless I'm running on the freeway or similar for extended periods of time where the t-stat is controlling the lower end of the coolant range.

If you have the money and can get all the parts I'd do it. Do be aware that there are differences in the crossover piping between some of the models. I don't recall the details but I was going to try and use a forester crossover pipe had issues, I think it may have been non-turbo but I don't recall now.