'71 Running hot?

To anyone who knows,

I recently purcahsed a 1952 MGTD replicar, really a '71 VW engine & chasis with a fiberglass shell. The "kit" car provided an oil temperature gauge which uses a sensing dip stick as the thermocouple device.

My question; What is coinsidered a "normal" operating temperature for the 1600 cc engine out of its stock engine compartment? My temp gauge reads ~ 240 Deg. F, worst case! Should I be concerned?

Any help is appreciated.

Since VW never put a factory oil temp sensor on that air cooled engine I've never seen a published spec on it. If you only see that temp on a very hot day, idling for a while then maybe I wouldn't worry. If that's a common reading then I wouldn't like it, I'd be more comfortable if it stayed under 200F when driving on a normal (80F) day. You might want to check a few things, if there's alot of oil/grime build up on the engine then clean it. Otherwise you may be having cooling fan or air circulation problems. Was the thermostat & flap assembly removed from the fan housing? Is the air prevented from coming out of the underside & getting sucked back up into the fan again? The compartment should be sealed from the cooling air recrculating & have a good source of fresh air to get in.

Since VW never put a factory oil temp sensor on that air cooled engine I've never seen a published spec on it. If you only see that temp on a very hot day, idling for a while then maybe I wouldn't worry. If that's a common reading then I wouldn't like it, I'd be more comfortable if it stayed under 200F when driving on a normal (80F) day. You might want to check a few things, if there's alot of oil/grime build up on the engine then clean it. Otherwise you may be having cooling fan or air circulation problems. Was the thermostat & flap assembly removed from the fan housing? Is the air prevented from coming out of the underside & getting sucked back up into the fan again? The compartment should be sealed from the cooling air recrculating & have a good source of fresh air to get in.

First, thanks for the reply. The engine seems to be void of the thermostat and flap assembly, but I'm not real sure what to look for. There is a "pan" of some sort under the engine and some sort of fan housing on the top front. I imagine that the MG shell does not provide for a really good fresh air supply as did the original factory design. Also, bear in mind that I live in deep south Texas and temps in the high 90's to low 100's is not uncommon. Since the weather has somewhat cooled over the last 3 -4 weeks, I've noticed that the temp gauge is now reading just slightly above 200 Deg F and the ambient air temp is still in the mid 80's. The engine is free of all dirt and grime. What do you think now?

You might want to consider some type of external oil cooler for those "hot" days, if I saw it hit 240F I'd shut it down. There are cheaper kits that take off from the stock cooler, most people look down on them as a poor system. They work, but not all the oil flows through them (it doesn't all flow through the stock cooler either). The other alternative is a "full flow" system. This requires the case to be taken apart & specially machined. A plug is put in the main oil pump passage an all oil is forced to flow through your cooler of filter or whatever you want it to flow through. You also leave the stock cooler in place. It may not be something you're ready for yet as basically you would be rebuilding the entire engine. For the short term make sure the engine seal is intact & air can't get back up into the fan intake. It needs to be forced out at the bottom by the muffler and not able to get back to the backside of the fan shroud. Is the rear tin in place & all holes sealed & are the air tubes from the shroud for the heater boxes well sealed?

That is the number one problem with kit cars is the cooling issue.I am suprised who ever built it did not add a extended oil cooler.Most kits recomend that and a deep oil sump to help with cooling. Both are fairly inexspensive,and can be easally added on. but keep in mind the placement of the oil cooler. Also I may suggest a spinoff oil filter adaptor kit. Its like the ones most cars have. That also helps a little with cooling plus adding extra oil capacity as well as the bigger oil sump. Hope this info helps. With all 3 of these added you should not have any cooling issues again,unless were you live gets really hot during the summer. Then Maybe..