Oil Temperature Gauge

[moss6]

I am going to install an engine oil temperature gauge on my 06' LBZ. I know that there are two 1/4" pipe plugs in the oil filter housing casting that would work perfectly for the sensor if the sensor probe does not block any oil flow. I also notice that near the oil drain plug on the pan there is what appears to be a factory electric oil temperature sensor and wonder if it would be possible to tie in there with an electric rather than mechanical gauge. Where are folks installing sensors on this engine?
Randy

[JohnC]

Ideally you want it after the return from the oil cooler.

[DmaxMaverick]

The sensor in the pan is for oil level, not temp. I'm not installing an oil temp gage, but if I were, I'd install it further down the stream than the filter housing. There are several gallery port/plugs to choose from.

[moss6]

Any hint on where to find those ports?

[Mark Rinker]

Interesting - I am considering the same guage for my 2006.

I have noticed this summer that the oil thins out and pressure drops MUCH more with this truck, than any other. Since you are from TX, maybe you have had the same experience lately with hot summer temps?

Have seen low low 28-30# readings under full hot pulls like the last two days across ND, MT, ID, WA. Scary low in my opinion, when it usually reads 40-50# normally with same load, cooler outside temps.

What pressure are you seeing with your LBZ under heat and load? I know the gauges aren't super accurate, but when pressure reading is half of normal, you KNOW the oil is hot and thinning out badly...my driver saw the same thing I experienced with same truck/boat combo from FL to MN last week - he was concerned enough to pull over and call me.

[moss6]

Yeah, I tow a 35' fifth wheel that is about 14,000lbs and with ambients above 90 to as much as 110degrees I think the oil must be uncomfortably warm. That amoung other considerations is why I added a Setrab oil cooler in the engine oil circuit. Wish I had had a gauge before the install so I would have sort of baseline but didn't, but hoping there are others with gauges that can offer some input as to their temps. What I can offer as to results of the cooler is that oil pressure according to the factory crap gauge, is that it is noticeably higher even when I am not running the cooling fans. It will be interesting to see how much difference there is with the fan off or on.
I have added many modifications to the truck to take some of the heat load off all systems for towing heavy. I posted several times on another forum looking for help with the project and was mostly met with scorn or comments that I was an idiot wasteing money because an LBZ cannot run too hot no matter what you are towing or what the conditions are.
I plan on posting all the information on the project on this forum in the near futher after a bit more towing and tweeking....temp. gauge etc. Also I have a few more questions that I trust can be answered here. Hope the info is better appreciated here.
Randy

[jbplock]

The following picture from the FS2500 Bypass Filter website (http://filtrationsolutionsww.com/pickup-duramax.html) shows an oil gallery port that may work for an oil temp probe (labeled Pressure). I believe this port would be post filter/cooler. The view is looking from the ground up toward the engine block.

http://filtrationsolutionsww.com/images/Duramax.jpg

[moss6]

Thanks for the info, I'll check that out but from the picture it doesn't look like it's a NPT threaded port. Wish DmaxMaverick would share a little information on the other ports he talked about. Think I will also see if the dealership has a filter housing in stock so I can see if that will work.
Randy

[moss6]

From discussion with DmaxMaverick and Re: Oil temp gauge
moss6
Enthusiast Join Date: Apr 2007
Location: Lubbock,Tx.
Posts: 68



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"I thought about the drain plug also but the other thought of something snagging the sensor nixed that idea pretty quick. Now you have me somewhat baffled about the sump pan???........I thought I had a pretty good idea of what things look like under the truck considering all the time I have spent under it but you have me real curiuos and I'll see what I have missed tonight....two pans huh! Also will do some port hunting.....guess if anti-freeze comes out it's not an oil passage!
Randy"


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#6 Today, 02:56 PM
DmaxMaverick
Administrator Join Date: Apr 2001
Location: CA
Posts: 5,973



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"If you are set on a plug in the block, that's what I'd do. Pull it and see what's on the other side.

The crankcase (oil pan) is a 2-piece. Upper and lower. Pretty easy to pull/replace the lower (upper is pretty involved). You may have to remove a crossmember (bolts, no welds, not difficult) under/around the pan. It's different for 2 or 4 WD, but is simple either way. It's sealed w/o a gasket. Sealer only."
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Wow, what a magnifying glass (kidding) and flashlight can reveal or NOT. I see what you are talking about on the double pan; upper actually a casting extension of the block and a good rigid heat sink with the ribbing, also out of harms way for the susceptability of cast aluminum to breakage. I find that there is only one other port that is evidence on the block and that is above the factory oil pressure sensor and vertually inaccessable for sensor installation without major disassembly.
Reinforces my thougth that if you were to go to the trouble of removeing the steel oil pan, a weld on bung would be the way to go.
The oil filter housing which is also the factory oil cooler does have some possiblities but without one in hand (which the dealership did not have) a sensor install would be only guesswork and a possible catastrophe if oil flow was impeded.
Also very interesting in careful examination of the cooler assembly was the near abutment of the coolant tube to the driver side exhaust manifold; this has to have a very negative effect on the cooling system. I cannot believe that a route under the motor mount would not have been far better.
I also found the plug that jbplock so kindly pointed out in his post. This appears to be a good location for the sensor but some special tool will have to be fabricated in order for the sensor to be tightened into the port.
I cannot believe that a gauge installation can be this difficult, and because of that, I now suspect that no other Duramax has an oil temperature gauge; please prove me wrong.
Randy

[phill0072]

Glad to see it is not just my lly (06) doing this under load. On a hot day with a good load on "near gvw" pulling a hill the pressure will drop to 24-28 psi, I thought it was just the dash gauge being wrong so I hooked up a edge insight to see what the computer see's and the dash gauge is close to being accurate. I run amsoil 15-40 in the van and have noticed if I add a quart of lucas syn oil stabilzer the pressure will not drop below 30 on same pull, also noticed that flat land running oil pressure was about 5 psi higher than with out the lucas. The oil pressure has bothered me enough to start looking for a good oil cooler but it is hard to find one for a express van, if any one knows of a quailty oil cooler that may fit in the front end of a 06 express van please let me know. I drive about 110k a year so it needs to be of good quailty thanks.

191,000 and still ticking :D:D
06 chevy express van with lly

[Mark Rinker]

I have also observed that Rotella thins out more than Delvac, resulting in lower oil pressure readings under hot loaded towing.

[moss6]

Glad to see it is not just my lly (06) doing this under load. On a hot day with a good load on "near gvw" pulling a hill the pressure will drop to 24-28 psi, I thought it was just the dash gauge being wrong so I hooked up a edge insight to see what the computer see's and the dash gauge is close to being accurate. I run amsoil 15-40 in the van and have noticed if I add a quart of lucas syn oil stabilzer the pressure will not drop below 30 on same pull, also noticed that flat land running oil pressure was about 5 psi higher than with out the lucas. The oil pressure has bothered me enough to start looking for a good oil cooler but it is hard to find one for a express van, if any one knows of a quailty oil cooler that may fit in the front end of a 06 express van please let me know. I drive about 110k a year so it needs to be of good quailty thanks.

191,000 and still ticking :D:D
06 chevy express van with lly

Phil,
I am not familiar with the undercarriage on the van but but if the frame rails are as tall as those on the 2500 trucks a Setrab 920FP will mount between the rail and the drive shaft. That is what I installed on my truck and only run the fans under the worst conditions; I still want to install a temp gauge to keep up with things and see how many degrees difference with the fans off or on. I heard somewhere that ideal oil temp. was about 195 degrees and would like to keep it around that. I also installed an auxilary radiator (Setrab 920) without fans behind the air dam so that might be another good location for one as an oil cooler on your van. For a sandwich plate the only one that I found that would accept -10AN fittings which you need for the oil flow of the Duramax is an Earl's. Even with the Earl's I suggest you open up the ports a bit as they are tad less than 5/8" that the -10AN's provide. Be careful not to damage the thermostat seat when opening the ports.
Randy

[moss6]

I have also observed that Rotella thins out more than Delvac, resulting in lower oil pressure readings under hot loaded towing.

Love the Delvac, price went up to $112 per six gallons though.
Randy

[moss6]

Update

Not finding any good option that I really liked I went ahead and bought another drain plug which I drilled and tapped to 1/8" npt and installed the temperature sensor there.
After a trip to Colorado last week I find that I am quite surprised at the temperature range of the oil.
Keep in mind that I have the additional Setrab oil cooler on the truck. I would love to see what the oil temps on a stock truck....hint hint.
I find that when not towing the 14,000lb fifth wheel the oil temperature will stay at a pretty constant 200 degrees. Towing flat with not too much wind load the oil stays at about 220 degrees. With a good wind load the temp. will go up to around 230 degrees. The highest temperature I saw on this trip was pulling up La Veta pass, an 8 mile streach at and average of around 7%, the temperature hit a max of just over 240 degrees as I neared the top and stayed there until cresting (this at 60mph). EGT's, I tried to and did keep in the low to mid 1300's.
Interesting also is that it makes very little difference if I run the the cooler fan or not, it looks like it only cools the oil an additional 1 to 3 degrees with it on for an extended amount of time. My suspession is that the cooler placement is getting far more air than what I thought it would get there and that I probably did not need the cooler with the fans. I believe that it is likely that if I remove the fans and their shroud the cooling might actually be improved and I may test out that idea.
What's a stock trucks oil temperature??????
BTW oil pressure now is always above the 1/2 mark, what it is I haven't a clue with the stock gauge.
Randy

[moss6]

Update

Not finding any good option that I really liked I went ahead and bought another drain plug which I drilled and tapped to 1/8" npt and installed the temperature sensor there.
After a trip to Colorado last week I find that I am quite surprised at the temperature range of the oil.
Keep in mind that I have the additional Setrab oil cooler on the truck. I would love to see what the oil temps on a stock truck....hint hint.
I find that when not towing the 14,000lb fifth wheel the oil temperature will stay at a pretty constant 200 degrees. Towing flat with not too much wind load the oil stays at about 220 degrees. With a good wind load the temp. will go up to around 230 degrees. The highest temperature I saw on this trip was pulling up La Veta pass, an 8 mile streach at and average of around 7%, the temperature hit a max of just over 240 degrees as I neared the top and stayed there until cresting (this at 60mph). EGT's, I tried to and did keep in the low to mid 1300's.
Interesting also is that it makes very little difference if I run the the cooler fan or not, it looks like it only cools the oil an additional 1 to 3 degrees with it on for an extended amount of time. My suspession is that the cooler placement is getting far more air than what I thought it would get there and that I probably did not need the cooler with the fans. I believe that it is likely that if I remove the fans and their shroud the cooling might actually be improved and I may test out that idea.
What's a stock trucks oil temperature??????
BTW oil pressure now is always above the 1/2 mark, what it is I haven't a clue with the stock gauge.
Randy

Correction
After doing some extended driving yesterday, not towing, I find the temperature actually staying at about 190degrees.
Sorry for the mis-info.
Randy