Normal operating temps

[zedjr10]

I got a 92 accord ex coupe. What is normal operating coolant and oil temps after driving for some distance. Today my coolant temp was maxing out at 203 and my oil 244. It was only 72 degrees today and i didn't have my ac on so i thought that was kind of high. Driving around in city my coolant never goes about 195 and oil never above 200. Is 203 and 244 ok temps?

[zedjr10]

Anyone. Can anyone confirm 244 is normal oil temp and actually good for engines running synthetic motor oil. And yes i have installed oil temp gauge.

[sonikaccord]

244 oil temp sounds kind of high for normal driving.
The coolant temp should be around 97 Celsius IIRC as that is when the tstat opens.

[zedjr10]

244 oil temp sounds kind of high for normal driving.
The coolant temp should be around 97 Celsius IIRC as that is when the tstat opens.

It was around 50 minutes of driving on a mountain road. Don't u need oil above 100 celsius(212F) so you don't accumulate sludge? About the only thing i haven't replaced was the oil pump,pcv grommet and oil cooler gasket or maybe i have sludge in some of the oil lines. My mechanic who replaced the oil pan gasket said no sludge at all and everything seemed fine but really who knows as I didn't get a peekse. I think the coolant is running at fine temps. Anything above 210 would start to worry me. I don't have a front grille on my car so i wonder if some odd way that has something to do with it. As coolant drops it never interchanges with the oil cooler maybe? Any opinions is appreciated. Thanks.

[hiptech]

How many miles do you have, how old is the coolant, what condition are the heat exchanger and fans in?

These are places I'd be looking at...

[zedjr10]

How many miles do you have, how old is the coolant, what condition are the heat exchanger and fans in?

These are places I'd be looking at...

It's got 250k miles and i don't think the fans are the issue as the coolant cools fine. It is the oil temp that may or may not be of concern.

[hiptech]

Then it's possible your oil temp gauge may be suspect...

[zedjr10]

Then it's possible your oil temp gauge may be suspect...

It is a new gauge and by looking at cross temps between coolant and oil it is fine.

[sonikaccord]

With stock H23 the oil temp were:
- low speed cruising = 90°C
- highway cca 80-90mph = 110-120°C
- track = 120-130°C

Those temps are fairly high.

On my track car, I could get 260F (127C) easily within a couple of laps before I installed an oil cooler. I do not use the stock OEM H22 oil cooler. After I installed a 25 row Mocal oil cooler in front of the radiator, my oil temps are around 220F (104C) running WOT for a 20 minute session in 100F (38C) ambient temps.

I personally wouldn't want to see temps above 230F or so.

Picked up some info from the interwebs.

[zedjr10]

Picked up some info from the interwebs.

120 C is barely above the max i got. I am seriously wondering if not having a front grille has an effect on this. Does coolant reach the oem oil cooler if my temps are 160 F. The thermostat doesn't open until 190 F so am assuming it doesn't interchange when it is below this temp. My oil temp was 243 F when my coolant was very low temps(160F about). I hit a gust of cold wind or something and my coolant temp dropped fast.

[sonikaccord]

I highly doubt that a missing front grille would affect your oil temps that much. The water is still being circulated through the block and the head even though the thermostat is closed, so it should still cool the oil a bit. Maybe you have a lot of friction somewhere? You also said you were driving on a mountain road. That could be a big task on a motor especially if you are driving spiritedly. If that is the only time you see those temps, then I wouldn't worry too much about it. If you want to worry about it, there are always aftermarket oil coolers!


I guess the most obvious question here is where is your oil temp sensor located?
Do you have an infrared thermometer to cross-reference the temp?

[zedjr10]

I highly doubt that a missing front grille would affect your oil temps that much. The water is still being circulated through the block and the head even though the thermostat is closed, so it should still cool the oil a bit. Maybe you have a lot of friction somewhere? You also said you were driving on a mountain road. That could be a big task on a motor especially if you are driving spiritedly. If that is the only time you see those temps, then I wouldn't worry too much about it. If you want to worry about it, there are always aftermarket oil coolers!


I guess the most obvious question here is where is your oil temp sensor located?
Do you have an infrared thermometer to cross-reference the temp?

The temp gauge is located on a sandwich plate in between the oil filter and the oil cooler. So if the coolant is still being regulated back there even below 160 then it can't be the missing grille like u said. Are there any valves back there that would cause this. Like some oil cooler valve i am not aware of. No i don't have an infrared thermo.

[cb7 calling]

This might be dumb but can you boil the sensor to check for accuracy? 220 means that variable is eliminated.

[sonikaccord]

The temp gauge is located on a sandwich plate in between the oil filter and the oil cooler. So if the coolant is still being regulated back there even below 160 then it can't be the missing grille like u said. Are there any valves back there that would cause this. Like some oil cooler valve i am not aware of. No i don't have an infrared thermo.

I didn't see anything that looked like a valve. When I was changing the o-ring there, it just looked like it junctioned off of the water pipe and went back into the block. Nothing too special.

[zedjr10]

I drove again this weekend in a very mountanous area long enough to reach max temps. The oil never got above 225 F. Water temps never got above 165 i believe except at idle. Same ambient temps. So i think me is ok. Maybe a gauge fluke or something in the oil lines. The car has hardly been driven in over 3 years and for 3 years wasn't driven at all. I found out this weekend i need front rotors before i can drive in the mountains again. Steering vibrates above 50 when brakes are engaged. Funny i don't feel anything below 50. I just got front lbj's done. Should of just replaced the rotors and pads then i know. This am going to do myself me thinks.