Can anyone tell me the scoop on the ACR oil filter adapter?

[Paolo Castellano]

What is the deal with the ACR oil filter adapter? Chuck Tator explained most of it to me, but I do not remember why it is not recommended for cold weather. Also does it really give 12 more PSI at high RPM's? Who has been able to measure this phenomenon? Paolo

 

[Vic]

Uhm, uh, duh, well, I just put one on 'cause I heard its betterer. er.

I didn't see any noticeable difference in the oil pressure gauge, after it was installed.

Maybe the biggest benefit is just knowing that its there, and that the ACR doesn't have a "leg up" on you.

 

[Viper Specialty]

Also- If you do a lot of HOT summertime driving where you use the A/C, it is not a good option either, as it will impare the use of the A/C by heating up the condensor.

 

[DEVILDOG]

<BLOCKQUOTE><font size="1" face="Verdana, Arial">quote:</font><HR>Originally posted by GTS Bruce:
I put it on my car.I like the idea of full flow through the cooler all the time.OIl is shunted from the cooler when the pressure drops as in idling,at a stop or in traffic to insure the ac works at full efficiency.Could also happen in a sustained high G corner.The ACR has it because in theory it will be run hard under club racing conditions when presure migh drop due to high engine temps and sustained G load.Worth about 10 PSI at high RPM.I also added baffles to the pan from JON B at parts rack to eliminate the problem of oil starvation in a high G corner.Expensive engine and a little cheap insurance. Bruce

<HR></BLOCKQUOTE>
Did the same thing for the same reason. Peace of mind is good when you're at WOT!

 

[Vic]

<BLOCKQUOTE><font size="1" face="Verdana, Arial">quote:</font><HR>Originally posted by Final GTS:
Also- If you do a lot of HOT summertime driving where you use the A/C, it is not a good option either, as it will impare the use of the A/C by heating up the condensor.

<HR></BLOCKQUOTE>

From what I gather by silkey's post, the plug opens up when the oil is at operating temperature, and routes the oil through the cooler. Admittedly, this assumption is loosely based on silkey's post, and he does not state that unequivocally.

It seems likely that this provides for a quicker warm up.

And if the oil runs through the cooler when its up to operating temperature, then it would also be open already on a hot day when you need to run the air, therefore the ACR adapter does not pose any reduction in air conditioning cooling efficiency any more than the normal adapter does.

EDIT GTS Bruce has posed some different points, that don't square with my take on it, and I will have to look into that. If the plug opens and closes based on oil pressure, then yes, the oil cooler would always be radiating heat to the front of the car, near the condenser, making the air cond. work that much harder.

 

[GTS Bruce]

I put it on my car.I like the idea of full flow through the cooler all the time.OIl is shunted from the cooler when the pressure drops as in idling,at a stop or in traffic to insure the ac works at full efficiency.Could also happen in a sustained high G corner.The ACR has it because in theory it will be run hard under club racing conditions when presure migh drop due to high engine temps and sustained G load.Worth about 10 PSI at high RPM.I also added baffles to the pan from JON B at parts rack to eliminate the problem of oil starvation in a high G corner.Expensive engine and a little cheap insurance. Bruce

 

[Hoosier Daddy]

?????? I had all that stuff installed and still had the engine go south.

 

[Jay Herbert]

It is explained pretty well in the installation instruction:

ACR Oil Filter Adapter:

Installation the ACR Oil Filter Adapter. Special thanks to Henry and Janni Cone!!ADDED 4/4/02

located at: VCA Illustrated Instructions

 

[GTS Bruce]

As per the shop manual.In an non-acr car oil is shut off to the oil cooler when oil pressure drops to 30PSI plus or minus 3PSI.This happens at idle to keep the ac working at max.LIke I said,overheat it,pressure drops and your oil cooler is turned off.Sustained G corner and pressure starts to drop off and your oil cooler turns off. Bruce

 

[Vic]

<BLOCKQUOTE><font size="1" face="Verdana, Arial">quote:</font><HR>Originally posted by Jay Herbert:
It is explained pretty well in the installation instruction:

ACR Oil Filter Adapter:

Installation the ACR Oil Filter Adapter. Special thanks to Henry and Janni Cone!!ADDED 4/4/02

located at: VCA Illustrated Instructions

<HR></BLOCKQUOTE>

Yep, that's the hot info..

Say, did you find this info with the "search" button?

 

[Ron]

<FONT face="Comic Sans MS">Perhaps repetitive, but as a summary:

If you drive in cold weather (oil could stay too cold to evaporate off moisture and fuel) and/or like cool A/C in traffic conditions, probably not a good swap. Otherwise absolutely.

Of note is that the new SRT-10 solves the problem of "do I or don't I" buy using a oil to engine coolant heat exchanger. Much better solution as the oil temp can now be regulated rather than just cooled and as an added benefit there is no airflow obstruction added to the radiator. Especially nice if you drive your Viper in the winter as oil will not be overcooled.

Not a Viper exclusive either as my Chrysler minivan with the towing package has a similar oil to coolant heat exchanger.</FONT f>

 

[GTS Bruce]

Oil cooled to the coolant temp?Yep that's an SRT-10.Not a real Viper. Bruce

 

[Vic]

<BLOCKQUOTE><font size="1" face="Verdana, Arial">quote:</font><HR>Originally posted by Ron:
<FONT face="Comic Sans MS">Perhaps repetitive, but as a summary:

If you drive in cold weather (oil could stay too cold to evaporate off moisture and fuel) and/or like cool A/C in traffic conditions, probably not a good swap. Otherwise absolutely.

Of note is that the new SRT-10 solves the problem of "do I or don't I" buy using a oil to engine coolant heat exchanger. Much better solution as the oil temp can now be regulated rather than just cooled and as an added benefit there is no airflow obstruction added to the radiator. Especially nice if you drive your Viper in the winter as oil will not be overcooled.

Not a Viper exclusive either as my Chrysler minivan with the towing package has a similar oil to coolant heat exchanger.</FONT f>

<HR></BLOCKQUOTE>

My wife's Caddy has a plastic radiator. Inside the radiator is another radiator, for cooling the automatic transmission fluid. After 5 1/2 years, that inner radiator cracked, (you no doubt are familiar with how plastics can get brittle with age). The transmission fluid got contaminated with water/coolant.

Inside the tranny are friction clutches, and the friction material is bonded to the steel plate with, drum roll please, Water soluble glue! The friction plates fell apart, neccessitating a very expensive repair. Too much modular engineering exposes any machine to catastrophic failures.
I like a separate cooler for this reason.

Also, in my opinion, the Cadillac Northstar is a "throw-away" engine. After 5 1/2 years, the Caddy has lost like 85% percent of its value. Its consuming oil now, despite using Mobil 1 since new, and allowing warm-up. To rebuild the top end, valves, valve guides, rings, etc, it costs more than half of what the car is worth. So what good is it to have an engine that requires no tune ups for 100,000 miles, if after that time it needs a rebuild, which costs almost as much as the car is worth? Modern engineering is primarily driven by economics, and in no way represents anything close to quality.

Disclaimer- Your experience may vary.

 

[JonB]

Get the ACR-OFA if you drive hard, especially on track, or idle a lot in traffic.

Best to route low-pressure oil thru the cooler 100% of the time, and increase all pressures 4-7 lbs. Do It. I would rather heat op the A/C condensor and save the motor.....no harm to the A/C, it just might trip offline til cooler

Cold weather concern? Use Mobil One 0-30 or 5-30 if you have the cold climate. Amazing stuff.

The OE filter adapter is but=re mechanical valve, not temp related. Some years were 17 lbs, some 25... but the bad news it that in HARD CORNERS, esp with 96.5-99 pans, the pressure drops so low the cooling stops! A bad thing.

Trivia: 1992-1993 Vipers already have no shuttle valve as they came w/ no A/C condensor ! In the old days 94-99, when there were no ACRS, we used 92-3 adapters !!!!

 

[Tom F&L GoR]

JonB, how'd you do that?

My '94 oil filter adapter has a triangular 3-bolt mating surface, the Gen 2 engine has a 4-bolt oil filter adapter. The Mopar parts list shows only adapters with thermostats (5245 577 for '92, 4886 501AA for '93-'96 RT, and 4886 503AA for '93-'96 GTS - I know, but that's how it's listed.)

Is there a part number for a non-AC Gen 1 adapter without a thermostat and how'd you get it on a Gen 2?

 

[1TONY1]

Can the NON ACR adapter be modified ? I would think so but would need to see both. Any pics ?

 

[SoCal Craig]

Uhm, uh, duh, well, I just put one on 'cause I heard its betterer. er.&lt;P&gt;I didn't see any noticeable difference in the oil pressure gauge, after it was installed. &lt;P&gt;Maybe the biggest benefit is just knowing that its there, and that the ACR doesn't have a "leg up" on you.

&lt;P&gt;

I bought it because Vic told me to... and I didn't want him to have an advantage over me

 

[NCVCA]

Hoosier Daddy

Cars that have "gone South" or come from the South are faster.

The Carolinas boys (and girls) are coming... Watch out!

 

[Viper Specialty]

1TONY1- They could not easily be modified, but send me an e-mail if you want pictures of both.