Good news and bad...

[Diesel Fly]

So my oil cooler pretty much let go last Tuesday. I managed to get another one shipped to me which arrived today. That's the good news!

I start tearing into everything and I discover that the rear header is pretty darn different. My rear header has 4 bolts and the one on the new (to me) cooler only has three.

Is this a van one? Can I still use it as long as I get the right gasket (I have the wrong one now). I'm trying to get everything done so that I can meet up with some folks from the list tomorrow evening.

The cooler also seems to sit a lot closer to the engine than the one I have now. Maybe I'm imagining this?

 

[Agnem]

What you're after is the O-rings in the cooler. Problem is, if this is a used cooler, then the O-rings won't hold up to being swapped over. Ron just checked coolers for me, and the van one has a different angle for the filter than the F series, but the bolt holes are the same. Can you post pics?

 

[Agnem]

Here is what a 6 ring cooler looks like. I can't tell for sure, but by the gasket, it looks like only 3 bolts.

You must be registered for see images

 

[Darrin Tosh]

Bummer, If you can post some pics, that would help. I have another one that I can compare it to but I didn't know anything was different and I didn't have any van ones.

I would be glad to send you another oil cooler even though it wouln't help you for this weekend.

Let me know,

 

[Diesel Fly]

The cooler I got today is a four ring. I'll go snap a few pictures to show the difference. Stand by...

 

[BigRigTech]

I have a 7.3 PSD from an 97 E350 sitting in my garage if you needed a pic of a van cooler.

 

[Diesel Fly]

Here are the side-by-side pictures. Never mind that the one header is cut. (It's part of an experimental oil cooler eliminator that I'm in the process of fabricating)

 

[Dsl_Dog_Treat]

Doing some googling I found this.

Found this over yonder on the other site in The Wardens pics.
Oil cooler gaskets for an IDI.

Could this be a 6 ringed cooler. Tis my only guess since all of my coolers are 4 ringed.
Tim????? Got an answer?

On edit, how's about a pic of the inside of the rear bundle.

 

[Diesel Fly]

Here are better pictures since I finished taking the one off the truck. It has to be a van cooler. The gasket set usually comes with a gasket that gets thrown away depending on whether you 're putting the cooler on a van or a truck. Also in the pictures you can see that the angle of the oil filter is different. The bundle is also too close to the block on the one on the left - it will not clear the engine mount. (last picture)

 

[icanfixall]

The newer looking oil cooler header that is angled backwards is for a van. The other header in the pictures thats dirty is for a truck. You can't install the van headers on a truck motor and get it to fit. The bundles are the same But I have never measured this. Others will chime in with more help. Where did your cooler start leaking at????

 

[The Warden]

Tim????? Got an answer?

Gary beat me to it; the other gasket's for a van oil cooler. I scanned the gaskets in because I wasn't sure either, and that's the answer I got.

IIRC the 4-ring cooler and the 6-ring cooler have the same headers; the difference is between the truck setup and the van setup...

 

[Diesel Fly]

Where did your cooler start leaking at????

Right where the bundle fits into the rear header. The surprising thing was the volume! It would leave a 12" puddle after about 15 seconds at idle!!

IIRC the 4-ring cooler and the 6-ring cooler have the same headers; the difference is between the truck setup and the van setup...

So I can use the newer bundle (4 ring) with my old headers (6 ring)?
If so, I may be in business - I'll just put one good cooler together out of parts from both.

 

[argve]

yep you can swap just the rear header over - but I would suspect that if all you did was pull your old one apart and install new o-rings you would be in business. When you do the o-rings do them all (front and rear). It's pretty uncommon for the bundle to be bad.

 

[Diesel Fly]

So the *only* difference between a truck 4 ring and a truck 6 ring is the O rings?! If that's the case, no wonder Ford stop carrying the 6 ring kit.

Please confirm that this is the case. Since I have no way of testing the cooler, it'll be all together before I can find out if it leaks or not. I'd hate to have to start over and get even more coolant down my arm and into my armpit

 

[Agnem]

I think the bundle is different. The 6 ring cooler would have 6 groves in it, while the 4 ring cooler would have 4. You should try to do a rudimentary test on the bench.... fill the water side with water and see if the level goes down. At least then you would know you didn't have a leak even with no presure. Good luck! Hope to see you somehow.