I'd like to wish and yours a Happy Independence Day. While things aren't perfect... We do live in a nation I'm proud to call home. I wish you and your family a great 4th. May it be a day with family and friends, a day to reflect, a day to remember all that have fought for our freedom and still protect us. Enjoy the fireworks and the flag. Now for a quick 328 question. Since my 89 is new to me, today was the first day to drive it on the 4th of July. So, I took it to the fireworks stand! It is about 90 here, and the car's water temp stayed well below the middle mark, but I noticed the oil temp went up slightly when sitting around in town. My question is, where should the oil temp stay, and what is considered to hot? Car ran like a dream, and now it's back in the garage, don't want any fireworks to fall on it!!! Enjoy the holiday, and your freedom to drive your Ferrari, I know I am LOVING it. Thanks, Bob
On a hot day going around town, it will generally be 190-210. Climbing hills will make it rise also. Cruising at a good speed normally lowers it. Too hot might be 260 or so. The manual has info on max temps. Some people think modern oils can be run hotter but you have to really work at it to get to 250 anyway unless something is wrong. Dave
Remember that the side scoops on a 328 are functional. The right side is the air intake for the engine. The left side scoop is the oil cooler. There is no impeller fan on the oil cooler -- it depends on ram air. The oil will cool better when the car is moving than when it's crawling through traffic. Since the gauges aren't all that well calibrated, it's hard to say what's "normal" for a specific car. But, FWIW, in metro west MA, my 328's oil temp would warm to around the middle mark when sitting at a backed up traffic light, and then drop to the quarter mark after a couple of minutes at 45-50 mph. (In winter air, it would rarely get above the quarter mark, even when sitting.) Around Xtal City (DC area), it varies around the middle mark all the time. A bit over after creeping down three levels in a 5 mph underground parking garage. In moving air, the oil cooler is remarkably effective, given how much oil this car carries. Left to itself (shutdown after parking), the oil stays warm several hours. The radiator has fans to cool the "water" when you're stationary, but there's no fan on the oil cooler. But then, you heat the coolant, even when idling. You put less heat into the oil when idling. As Dave mentioned, high loads and low speeds will net your highest oil temperatures. (My oil is fully up to temperature by the time I climb out of the parking garage.)
If yours is an '89 and still have the original foam tube, chances are you have holes in this tube that causes your engine to get some of the hot air from the engine. Happy the 4th. BBQ is good
No fan on the 328 oil cooler? My 308 '83 Mondial has one. Bigger engine and no oil cooler fan, seems odd. Oh well.....
From the parts catalog, it looks like they added a larger oil radiator and fan on the QV for the cabrio only. Possibly because the well for the top interferes with the normal oil cooler locations. It doesn't show the location, though. Is the oil cooler mounted in the front on a cabrio, or in the engine bay? The larger oil cooler with a fan seems to be the arrangement for all the Mondial 3.2s -- but you rarely see a 3.2 that isn't a cabrio. Mine's an early '88, and I had most of the intake parts replaced during the engine-out "make it right" service in winter 2000-2001.
Thanks for all responses, sounds like mine is running normal, since it was around the middle mark ( 210 on the gauge), just never seen it that high, and this is the warmest weather I have driven the car in. I will check the tube and make sure there are no holes, just to be sure. The car runs like a dream, but this will be the first summer with it. Thanks and I hope you all have a great weekend. Bob
