Here’s my story:
I live in NJ and ride into work in Philly. Coming home air temps can be 95 in the summer. I can get stuck in stop and go driving. I wanted to get an oil cooler. I asked a tech at the dealer about it and said it wasn’t worth it. He said because when I need it (in the stop and go driving), it’s not really working. He said all I would be doing is heating up 4 quarts of oil instead of 3.

I assume that even if it’s not working at peak efficiency it has to cool the engine better. Just the additional oil has to help. I figure that given the same heat source, it takes longer to heat up 4 quarts of oil than 3, right? This is logical, or am I barfing up the wrong tree?

So my questions are: Is an oil cooler worth the added expense? If you have one, do you think it works. What one would you recommend or not recommend?

Thanks,
GC

Your logic is sound grasshopper. Anything helps the temp. My reasoning is that they use them on the CVO models - must help.

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95"Big Bore,HD Flat Top Pistons, Andrews TW-26G ,
SERT, Feuling Super Oil Pump, Feuling Lifters
HD Adjustable Pushrods, Big Boyz Ported 9.5, FAT CAT 2in1

That tech needs his ballzz run up a flagpole.....

You are thinking correctly, and you should do it....

No matter what, even if it is stop-go traffic, you are allowing the oil to flow through a small radiator to slough off the consumed heat that it is taking away from the motor...

And dumping it into the atmosphere....

If it gets real bad (Which I doubt), you can install 2 CPU (Computer) cooling fans.....

Wire them up as pullers vice pushers, and use a black filter.....

I expect to pick up my 07 softail custom in the next week or two.The problem is sert#32107-01F will not be supplied to me because of compatability issues with 07 HDI models,so while i wait for the G version to be released and the V&H big radius 2-1 to become available i will have to ride the bike around stock,also have 07 SE a/c but wont fit until other parts arrive.It gets into the 100 degrees regularly here in australia and am wondering if the oil cooler #26157-07 would be of any benefit to me.BTW i read your last post shovlhead bob and that is what has me thinking this way.We are expecting especially hot dry summer this year,currently is spring time and hotter than usual already.

Well I live in Memphis Tenn and the temps can go from 40º cool to 110º in one day. It doesn't do it everyday but I have seen it happen.

I installed a Billet oil cooler from Wimmer Machine.

I also have a oil temperature gauge so i can tell you some numbers. It reads the temp of the oil as it comes from the cooler going to the engine.

On a 78º day my oil by the gauge was running 200º. When I would stop at a light or stop sign the oil temp would go up a whole 8 or 9º. When I got home i opened the oil filler spout and checked the oil temp in the engine. It was 233º.

So you can do the math, but by my numbers it is doing its job. I put the thermostatic adapter from Jagg on to route the oil to the cooler. It starts to open at 175º and is fully open at 185º. The oil will always warm up before it goes through the cooler.

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Lee

2007 Heritage Classic
Black Cherry

Well i ordered and paid for the new HD #26157-07 just to be on the safe side.Can only be good for motor right! Especially for $600AUS

Harley sends bikes to Arizona, Texas, Florida, etc. for Rough Service Police Duty with NO oil coolers! You do the math. Your bike is NOT doing it's job if the oil only goes to 185. It works RIGHT loke Harley intended it to.

The PD also beats tha pants off them then trades them in ,or in a lot of cases leases them and turns them in at the end of the lease so why should they care about these bikes?
The moco wants to get these bikes out there and make as much profit on each unit that they can. It would cut into their profit too much to install oil coolers on them. Why do you think that the bikes now have less chrome on them and more painted parts? It's all about profit. Oil coolers will help any bike that is ridden in hot temps.
If you saw the markup on the HD parts you would be amazed. There is a 100% markup on most things. Where do you see this kind of markup in the retail area?

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Don't take life too seriously, no body gets out alive.

The only way to know if you need an oil cooler is to monitor your oil temp for a bit and make up your own mind. When the TC motor came out, everyone was scared to death of not having a cooler because the "experts" talked about how hot they ran. I just about bought a cooler before my '00 came in. When I got the bike, I carried around a thermometer and checked my oil temps. Leaving Myrtle Beach BW in stop and go 95 degree temp, my oil never went over about 210. I forgot about the cooler. That was 62k miles ago with nothing but dino oil in her. She still runs fine, no smoking, no oil use. I conclude that I don't need a cooler.

Yep, police bikes don't come with them. I ride an EG at work. It doesn't have a cooler or that near useless fan. Sure, the bike get hot. Some times it goes into that skip fire mode when it is overheated. The bike is an '03. After 4 years of abuse, it doesn't smoke or burn oil either.

The Twin Cams are pretty tough motors. However, if getting an oil cooler will make you sleep better at night, get one.

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2000 Road King Classic. Andrews 26G cams, SE Stage I, DFO, V&H True Duals with Samson Fishtail Mufflers.

1977 XLH, Nearly bone stock.

One thing to keep in mind when deciding if you need/want an oil cooler on your bike is that the oil temps taken in the oil tank ( where most of them are) are no where near the temps seen at the piston jets where the oil is used to cool the pistons also. Here it can get far in excess of 300*. Give this some thought as the dino oil breaks down at around 250* and the synthetics break down around 300*.

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Don't take life too seriously, no body gets out alive.