Installing an oil cooler on a kz750?

I have an '80 kz750, and I was thinking about installing an oil cooler. Can anyone tell me if it will make a difference, and if so, what is involved with the installation?

Thanks!

there are several threads on oil cooler so seek and ye shall find, short answer is, it depends on the temperature where u live

I have one on my 82 GPZ750 from the factory. 99% of the time Id say no its not needed but that other 1% I was crossing the Mojave desert @ 116 degrees. I put my hand behind it at 70 and pulled it right back out. I was amazed that an air cooled motor just didnt melt into a pile of molton aluminum at that temp. I stopped at the only gas station and paid $4 for a gallon of water in 1983 and poured it over my head, and it was worth every penny. If you were ever stuck in traffic in Sturgis or rode thru the Badlands yould want one there too. Like the man said, depends on where you ride

X3

The oil cooler that you can get does not affect the motor. It's air cooled...not oil cooled. in racing applications it keeps the oil for the clutch from boiling. It looks cool, I have one that was installed on my KZ1100 it's a yoshimura. It's possible that it might make a difference in really hot climates...I doubt it...as again these are AIR cooled engines. just my opinion.

As posted before - you're wrong. The oil helps cool the motor.

It really comes down to this - are your driving habits such that normal air cooling is not sufficient? If you race the bike on a track where you may be running near the max rpm for extended periods - maybe yes. If you are driving in heavy city stop and go traffic day after day in a hot climate - maybe yes. If you live in a desert or other area where the temperatures frequently run above 100 degrees - maybe yes. However, most folks don't need additional cooling for their bikes because in normal use the surface area of the fins are calculated to dissipate sufficient heat to keep the engine running in the normal operating temperature range. Ed

dano83-1100 wrote: The oil cooler that you can get does not affect the motor. It's air cooled...not oil cooled. in racing applications it keeps the oil for the clutch from boiling. It looks cool, I have one that was installed on my KZ1100 it's a yoshimura. It's possible that it might make a difference in really hot climates...I doubt it...as again these are AIR cooled engines. just my opinion.

Aside from being wrong, it's also irrelevant, an oil cooler cools the oil, nothing else, and the oil helps cool the motor. Oil gets really hot, and above 235f or so it will start to break down and lose it's lubrication qualities, and once that happens engine wear accelerates. In a perfect world the oil would reach 212f and stay there

your forgetting that installing a cooler onto a bike that did'nt originally have will cause a marked drop in pressure unless a high volume variety pump is fitted, fact unless you go for a thermostatically controlled one.

zed810 wrote: your forgetting that installing a cooler onto a bike that did'nt originally have will cause a marked drop in pressure

The aftermarket coolers I saw which were "shunt" flow had a restrictor orifice that allows only a small amount of oil out through the cooler and back to the oil pan. Very little pressure tapped off the high pressure output of the pump.

steell wrote:

dano83-1100 wrote: The oil cooler that you can get does not affect the motor. It's air cooled...not oil cooled. in racing applications it keeps the oil for the clutch from boiling. It looks cool, I have one that was installed on my KZ1100 it's a yoshimura. It's possible that it might make a difference in really hot climates...I doubt it...as again these are AIR cooled engines. just my opinion.

Aside from being wrong, it's also irrelevant, an oil cooler cools the oil, nothing else, and the oil helps cool the motor. Oil gets really hot, and above 235f or so it will start to break down and lose it's lubrication qualities, and once that happens engine wear accelerates. In a perfect world the oil would reach 212f and stay there

Oil coolers were REALLY important when these bikes were built (70's and 80's) because in severe service the oil additive packages went away really quickly meaning 10-40 oil turned into 10W oil after a few hundred miles.

Oil additives are a lot better today, and if you really want something tough: just get a true synthetic and you can get it as hot as you want. The engine parts would melt before the oil breaks apart.

yeah you are right, luckily i live in scotland where the temps rarely exceed mid to high 80s! so no need for coolers here, although i have a cooler on my 350 chevy as it has marginal cooling at best!