ATC250es Oil cooler options

[djm0242]

Hey fellas I've been toying with the idea of installing an oil cooler on my ATC 250es for a couple years now. I've searched the site, but I can't seem to find any concrete results with pics and proof of success. Anybody have any simple solutions? I've seen some Chinese oil cooler kits for sale on EBay for near nothing. Before I blow money I'm hoping to get some ideas. I'm sure it's been done before. I don't want my bike to have a silly suspended radiator on top of my handle bars. I'm hoping for a clean look. Low mount near the front of the engine with no stretched oil lines to swing back and forth every time I turn the handlebars. I've seen some neat stuff out there for bikes like a 600R that have an adapter that plugs into the oil filter housing. Ideas are appreciated! Pics and actual success are desired! ;)

[atcmatt]

Cool idea but is it really necessary? It's a utility trike, not a performance machine? Keen to see some setups though all the same.

[djm0242]

Well here in TX it gets really really hot. I use my bike to pull a Swisher 60" 500cc deck mower over 2.5 acres of grass. That takes a long time. Any relief I can give this engine will only make it last longer. When it gets hot after about 30 mins of cutting the valves start to make a little chatter. I'm just trying to keep her healthy. :)

[atcmatt]

Yeah fair point. Gets hit here too in Australia and I know what you mean about the chatter. I cringe when I hear that! Well let us know how you go ay, will be interesting!

[barnett468]

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Exactly what engine oil are you using?


I thought about your problem and here’s what I came up with . . Since you are probably only going 5 mph at the most when mowing the lawn, you would have insufficient air flow for the oil cooler to actually cool the oil . . You really need around 15 mph of air speed to begin to have much of an effect, and even then it would not be a lot.

Since these are air cooled engines, in your case, I think the best thing you can do is increase the air flow, which in fact is actually far easier than trying to plumb an oil cooler into that engine due to its design.

Below are the 3 options I would look at with of course the biggest being the best . . You would need to check to see if your system supplies enough amps for them.


300 cfm . 5.1 amps . waterproof
Type: Low Profile - 12V Pusher
Height: 7.24" (184mm)
Width: 7.02" (178.2mm)
Depth: 2.03" (51.6mm)

https://webstore.spalusa.com/en-us/product/0162/products/fans/low-profile/30100403/va22-ap11-c-50s-6-5-s-12v.aspx


407 cfm . 6.7 amps . waterproof

Type: Low Profile - 12V Pusher
Height: 8.27" (210mm)
Width: 7.95" (202mm)
Depth: 2.05" (52mm)

https://webstore.spalusa.com/en-us/product/0164/products/fans/motorcycle-atv/30100393/va14-ap7-c-34s-7-5-s-12v.aspx


726 cfm . 7.4 amps . waterproof

Type: High Performance - 12V Pusher
Height: 9.74" (247.5mm)
Width: 9.36" (237.8mm)
Depth: 3.83" (95.4mm)

https://webstore.spalusa.com/en-us/product/0155/products/fans/high-performance/30102053/va02-ap70-ll-40s-9-p-12v.aspx

[djm0242]

Wow thanks for all that! I'll check it out! I run fully synthetic 10-30 Valvoline.

[barnett468]

Wow thanks for all that! I'll check it out! I run fully synthetic 10-30 Valvoline.

no prob, you're welcome and i guarantee you that a fan will cool your engine more than an oil cooler in your case.

what brand of oil?

your oil is too thin for your app if you hear engine noises

i would use a pao or ester based oil or blend of the two and at least 15w-40 . . both of these types of oil usually have a higher viscosity rating at high temps than group III synthetics or regular mineral based oils.

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[leevarnado]

here's how they do it on a trx300 fourtrax.i was going to do it but then you wont be able to use the kicker.

http://forum.highlifter.com/As-requested-TRX-300-Oil-cooler-mod-pics-m4512877.aspx

[barnett468]

here's how they do it on a trx300 fourtrax.i was going to do it but then you wont be able to use the kicker.

http://forum.highlifter.com/As-requested-TRX-300-Oil-cooler-mod-pics-m4512877.aspx

unfortunately that doesn't help because he does not have an external oil pump cover.
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[djm0242]

Wow man! that's a good one. Made it look easy. Should work well. I'll definitely consider that one! Not sure I'm too worried about using the kick start. I wonder why I can't just use a tube cutter and put an oil cooler in-line?

[leevarnado]

you can tap into the oil filter cover,it will work just fine that way.also you can tap into the oil line that runs to the head.jagg makes an billet oil filter cover that already has the fittings on it.

[barnett468]

you can tap into the oil filter cover,it will work just fine that way.also you can tap into the oil line that runs to the head.jagg makes an billet oil filter cover that already has the fittings on it.

Exactly where is the oil pump cover you are referring to?

http://i.ebayimg.com/00/s/MTIwMFgxNjAw/z/BeEAAOSwhglTwf7x/$_57.JPG

[barnett468]

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Jagg? Thanks for the info! Where do I find it? :)

Where are you going to find the 15 mph or higher air speeds you will need to make it useful even if you did put one on?

[djm0242]

Hey B- wrong engine dude :) by the way, while I appreciate the thought that 15 mph is needed to make a huge difference. Oil coolers don't generally make a HUGE difference. I have coolers on the transmissions of both my vehicles. I also have oil coolers on both engines. The trip outside of the engine sheds heat whether or not you are traveling at any speed. This keeps the oil from thinning too much. You don't have to change oil as often either. When you do pick up speed the heat is transferred more quickly. Oil coolers are awesome, especially when you live in a sub-tropical climate.217650

[barnett468]

Hey B- wrong engine dude :)

ok, thanks . . i was using my phone before and couldn't see your engine size clearly, but irregardless it will still need air flow to work properly.

[Mickey Dunlap]

I build a kit for the Big Red that I'll be putting on my Big Red 350cc big bore. The problem area on most of the Honda air cooled ATC/ ATV's is the cam and rocker arm area because they have a problem of the chroming that is only .006 thick cools off faster then the rocker causing the chrome to crack and then take out the cam. So my kit feeds the 40* cooler oil to the place it needs it the most, the head. Kit's run $85.

[leevarnado]

those are easy to barnett.
Exactly where is the oil pump cover you are referring to?

http://i.ebayimg.com/00/s/MTIwMFgxNjAw/z/BeEAAOSwhglTwf7x/$_57.JPG

[leevarnado]

http://i389.photobucket.com/albums/oo333/leevarnado/IMG_20150629_193758_830.jpg
http://i389.photobucket.com/albums/oo333/leevarnado/IMG_20150629_193829_843.jpg
http://i389.photobucket.com/albums/oo333/leevarnado/IMG_20150629_193809_647.jpg
http://i389.photobucket.com/albums/oo333/leevarnado/IMG_20150629_193820_521.jpg
http://i389.photobucket.com/albums/oo333/leevarnado/IMG_20150629_193844_101.jpg

[6speedthumper]

I can tell you that the factory Honda fan for my 300 Fourtrax made a HUGE difference for when I tow my bush hog. I've used it when riding, but not too often. The hardest part was finding the factory fan! Lol.

[barnett468]

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lol...you are da man . . great photos . . thanks.

yes i knew it "could" be done on the 200 [ok i got it right now] also, but obviously my main concern was air flow in addition to ease of installation.

it looks like the oil cooler could even be mounted under the rear rack where the open space is, and the fan, or fans, could be mounted against it blowing upward . . this will not take up any space on the top of the rack this way, and in fact, with the thickness of the rack, you could actually put something directly over them and they would still cool well.

if i were to do this, i would probably run a fairly big one like around 12" x 6" with two spal fans for his app.

the big size will not only obviously cool well but it will cool a lot of oil at one time plus it will increase the oil capacity . . also, the long length of the line will add to the capacity slightly.

my concern would be about the ability of these tiny oil pumps to handle this size of cooler so far from the pump etc.

http://www.louisianasportsman.com/classifieds/pics/p1325018962370045.jpg

[barnett468]

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As far as the best cooler for this app goes, it would be a flat tube type which uses thin tubes like an engine radiator . . This is because the amount of area used for cooling is substantially more than the round tube type . . They also flow more than enough oil for this engine irregardless of its speed providing the pump can handle it . . Most of these small cooler can be had for less than $100.00 from summit racing or ebay.

http://static.summitracing.com/global/images/prod/mediumlarge/der-13504_w_ml.jpg

http://static.summitracing.com/global/images/prod/mediumlarge/fss-53022_ml.jpg

[djm0242]

Hey thanks! Yeah, I'm really looking for the adapters and such that can easily be used. I think I already know what cooler size. I'm not sure I'll go with fans given the load on the battery. It just needs a little help I bet 20-30 degrees cooler would make a world of difference. You don't want a cooler to be too big. In the winter you'll starve the engine of oil. Also someone made a good point earlier that the oil pump can't really be designed to handle too much more oil flow. When you look at the tiny diameter of that oil line you can kind of imagine why they did that was to increase the pressure.

[barnett468]

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unfortunately you will not drop 30 degrees below ambient temp with a small cooler and no air by just using radiating heat . . it just wont happen i guarantee you.


also, unless your weather gets down to maybe 20 degrees in winter, you can still use the 15w-40 weight oil i suggested . . it will flow just fine if it is a high quality oil . . thats what it is designed to do . . if you are worried about it then you can get a 10w-40.

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[barnett468]

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sorry...your oil temp will not drop 30 degrees.

[barnett468]

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an oil cooler is no different than the radiator in your car . . although this is an extreme example, just imagine what would happen if you took the fan belt off of your cars engine then pulled your mower at 5 mph in the hot sun.

[djm0242]

Ok so I finally did it!
227540 227541 227542 227543
I spent a lot of time on several details. I wanted a large cooler that would be fairly indestructible. I wanted it to receive an adequate amount of air flow. (It is located next to a large spinning wheel...) I wanted the most durable steel braided high temp oil lines. These won't pinch or break or melt easily. See what you think- it clears everything nicely with very little risk to damage. These tube style coolers are made of "weapons grade" aluminum (supposedly). Keep in mind I swap out my tires to smaller OEM rims for grass cutting when I'm not out riding. These are my big 14" SS212's and even with 2" spacers on they come within 2" of the cooler.

227544

227545

Here are some additional pics with all the plastics on and fenders down.

Just an additional update- this adds .8 quarts of oil to the system. I ran the bike pretty hard for about 30 mins and the cooler was barely warm to the touch. The true test will be when it's 100 degrees out pulling my weight plus my mower. It was 52 degrees yesterday when I tested.

[djm0242]

http://youtu.be/NKzdj2RdQH0
Made a video on the oil cooler check it out.