What's new
Van's Air Force

Don't miss anything! Register now for full access to the definitive RV support community.

Rv-10 oil cooler size

bryanflood

Well Known Member
Hello all,

I have heard some people having high oil temps on the eve-10 with the 20006a oil cooler. It appears that this oil cooler has about 5" x 5" of cooling area, looks like 12 rows. If I look on the airflow systems webpage the 20009a model appears to have about 5" x 7.5" of cooling area, 17 rows I think. This oil cooler is just about 2.5 inches longer and should offer a bit more cooling capacity. The mounting under the cowl would certainly need to be different.

Has anyone tried using this larger oil cooler to get their temps down? I was thinking about this to be a little easier on the expensive engine.

Thanks,

Bryan
 
Hello all,

I have heard some people having high oil temps on the eve-10 with the 20006a oil cooler. It appears that this oil cooler has about 5" x 5" of cooling area, looks like 12 rows. If I look on the airflow systems webpage the 20009a model appears to have about 5" x 7.5" of cooling area, 17 rows I think. This oil cooler is just about 2.5 inches longer and should offer a bit more cooling capacity. The mounting under the cowl would certainly need to be different.

Has anyone tried using this larger oil cooler to get their temps down? I was thinking about this to be a little easier on the expensive engine.

Thanks,

Bryan

No actual flight experience on the -10, but based on living in the South (I do) and wanting to eliminate oil cooling as a potential issue for my soon-to-be RV-10, I substituted a 8001649-NE cooler from Pacific Oil Cooler Service as a higher efficiency, drop-in replacement.
 
I've been talking with Bill of Airflow Systems and his recommendation for the RV-10 with IO-540 engine is their AS-2007X cooler. He even has a set of plans that show how to mount it to the standard Van's RV-10 oil cooler box so that it fits without modification of the cowl or other FWF equipment. The 2007X is only 1" taller than the stock RV-10 cooler.
 
I'm running the AirFlow 2006X on a stock IO-540 from Van's. Never had an oil temp problem. I did however mount the cooler horizontally on the firewall instead of using the Van's oil cooler mount. The Van's mount just looked like too many airflow directional changes to me. I do have a 4" butterfly valve on the air inlet to the cooler as without it oil temps are too low anytime other than summer.

Carl.
 
Oil cooler

I opted for a compromise.

I went with the 2007X, which is a 15 row cooler. It was a very minor mod to the original mount, and should provide additional cooling over the 13 row model. Total mod time was only an hour or so.

I looked at the 2008X for a very long time before I made my decision. I think it would fit but not on the original mount without significant modification.

I think the best way would be to mount the cooler perpendicular to the firewall and use one of Airflow Systems Plenum ducts to supply air to the cooler. This would require removing (or not installing) the VA-186 oil cooler mount on the firewall. The perpendicular mount wouldn't really be a problem, and I think routing the 4" scat from the plenum could be done. I think that setup would give a much better result than the stock mount.

My decision was based on the fact that the VA-186 was already mounted, as well as the engine mount and engine. Let us know which way you go...
 
2007X

I installed the 2007X. It is an easy install with minimal changes to the Vans oil cooler mount. I did install an airflow controller in the duct to the oil cooler. Have not used it yet. Oil temps steady at 196F.
I know the guys in South Africa install the 2008X, mounts in the same Vans oil cooler mount. The oil hose attachment orientation is are 90 degrees to standard (Vertical vs horizontal). It was done in response to excessively high oil temps. Jannekom (Jan Hanekom) on VAF has detailed pictures on the 2008X installation.
Cheers.
Johan
 
Last edited:
I've got the stock cooler with stock mounting and typically see oil temps in the high 180's to mid 190's in cruise with Sea Level temps in the mid 90s. It will spike on climb outs on hot days to as much as 210-215, but cools off quickly once I level off.
 
stock cooler works great!

I fly in some of the hottest weather in the country, gateway to death valley...need I say more. I depart with ground temps at 110 and have no issue with oil temp whatsoever using the stock cooler and Vans baffling. Cylinder temps in climb take much more attention with adjustment in climb speed. Second nature in my world. In the climb, yes it will get above 200 in the hottest weather, think once it hit 205, but look at the Lycoming NORMAL operation numbers, this is nothing. When I fly tow-planes we continually have the needle resting on 240 mark....:eek: Just one very stock system/data point (RV-10) that is operating in a very temp-hostile place.:)
 
Living in AZ, I opted for the Airflow Systems 07 sized cooler. Very easy mod for the standard bracket, just remove some frame material to make the opening larger and mount some angle stock atop to affix the nut plates for the larger footprint. I also have the AFS sharkgills in the side of the cowl and abeam the cooler on that side. They came with the AFS A/C kit. Not only have I never had hot oil temps, even in 110 degree weather, but I was having difficulty staying in the green in the winter time. I ended up adding the butterfly valve to be able to precisely control the temps in all conditions. It works very well.
I like the erring on the cool (conservative) side and the flexibility of the valve, and would build the exact same way again. However, barring extreme situations, I think that the standard setup is adequate.
 
Last edited:
Oil cooler 90 degree Airflow Bracket

Has anyone installed the "ASIK-03: 90-degree bracket" and repositioned their oil cooler for this bracket. I have the parts but it looks awful tight, just hoping someone has done it and could share some pics. BTW RV-10 with Aero Sport power I0-540 SPL engine. Using upgraded cooler Airflow 2006X on the standard 45 degree Vans cooler mounted to firewall. Thanks
 
Two things:

1) Can you swap vernatherms to isolate that issue? I'd do that before I reengineered the system to something the next guy is gonna have to figure out.

2) I'd like to see pictures of your exit ramp.

For what it is worth, I installed an enlarged cooler on my (stock) engine in the -10. I see 200-205F on hot days. Higher on climb if I start with a heat soaked engine from something like a fuel stop on a 95F day.
 
Based on some recent testing where the oil temps did not change during a prolonged descent at reduced power, nor did they change with some closure of the oil cooler duct butterfly (but the #6 CHT did decrease as expected) - I'm beginning to suspect the Vernatherm isn't opening (closing) fully with increased oil temps. My RV-7A shows a very quick change in oil temp with modulation of the duct butterfly.

If the vernatherm was stuck and not moving, a reduction in power along with increased airflow through the cowl should decrease oil temps even if a small amount though it may take a few minutes. With squirters, OT is going to more closely follow CHTs, as the oil is doing a much larger job of piston cooling than a non-squirter engine. I don't have piston squirters and get to 210 at the top of a ROP climb to above 12K and that is with a fully closed VT. If yours was stuck open, even partially, you shouild be WAY higher than that with squirters.

I would start by confirming that the OT sensor is reading accurately. The fact that it matches ambient at start up is NOT necessarilly an indication that it will be accurate at 200*. Do you have a 90* oil filter adapter? Those have a reputation of poor alignment and therefore the VT does not fully seat on the bore, meaning less than 100% of oil is going through the cooler. You can pull the VT and look for a complete circular witness mark on the cone. Less than full ciccumference mark = incomplete sealing and oil bypassing the cooler. There is an SI for dealing with this if it is wear on the crankcase that is causing it. A tool can be made to better align the filter adapter if that is the cause.

Larry
 
Last edited:
Thanks for the additional information. I'm going to check the temperature sensor, Vernatherm and it's seat first. I have the stock Lycoming thermostatic housing - no 90 degree adapter. I use a Challenger/K&P remote oil filter mounted on the firewall.

As to the exit ramp, I can send you a picture - but it's on a Showplanes cowling. If you have the stock Van's cowl, this won't do you much good.

While the VT is out, best to test it for full movement. Heat a can of oil to 190*. Measure the length from end to end. Put VT in oil for 1-2 minutes and measure again. It should grow in length. IIRC, the min. growth is .160" but don't trust my memory. It is in VAF somewhere. I was able to save one that wasn't moving enough. PUlled it apart and cleaned out a bunch of varnish type junk inside of it. Still working 1000 hours later.
 
Last edited:
During my engine test stand first run, I had two cylinders (#1 and #5) getting hotter than the others. The root cause was an inadequate ground of the SDS ECUs. At higher rpms, the test stand thin single ground wire couldn't carry the return current of the injectors (fused at 5A each) that go through the ECUs.

Check also the SDS stainless steel fuel injector adapters that are screwed into the cylinder head. They can come loose if not properly installed: torqued to 60 (older manual listed this as an option) instead of tight plus 1 1/2 turns (current manual's only option). If so, the particular cylinder can run too lean.
 
Back
Top