engine bay temps
 

we have done engine bay temp test for our hose supplier company.the newer boats run very high engine compartment temps do to lack of venting. we have had many people have vapor lock conditions wonder about how this happens. well look at your engine compartment venting. we tested engine compartment in craftsman race trucks and saw temps up to 650f at the carb at speed. when you open the hatch you get a hugh drop in temp.so if you have a problem run a thermelcouple close to your engine and check when your running, you will be suprised at what temp you see.

We have a thermistor on our data recorder in the race boat we run 10-14 F above ambient. I realise this is optimised but if you do the correction factor a 500 hp engine would only make 300 or less hp at 500 F
Steve

well one thing is for sure the P/S cooler is going to be the least of your worries if you running those high engine room temps !!!! that means the engines breathing that as well....

The only way engine room temps get that high is if the boat is on fire. Most automatic fire suppression systems pop at 165 degrees and some at 212. That is a LONG way from the numbers you spouting and they don't typically go off every time the boat is ran.

Great place to cook your sunday afternoon roast while boating with the family. Never thought of that.

Paper burns at 451F. Many plastics melt at 300-350F. You will receive a 1st degree burn over 130F.

JB-Fse: Race trucks? We are talking marine applications with *water-cooled* exhaust - not open, dry headers.:picard1: Of course underhood temps are higher in those applications. However, I am very surprised that you have air temps actually near or above 600F at the carb intake. I would think that air temp would melt ANYTHING plastic - including wires, accelerator pump cams, carb seals. Heck, that would even boil the gasoline in the bowls... Think about it. It doesn't make sense. I think those temp readings of yours are caused by a poorly functioning thermocouple, or it was bolted to the exhaust manifold. 500F? 600F? Really? I don't think so...:rolleyes::rolleyes:

P.S. coolers are typically used to keep oil temps well below 175F. Heat is primarily generated by the vanes and bearings inside the pump while the pump is spinning. The oil is not really circulating through the hoses and ram. The cooler's primary purpose is to extend pump and seal life and reduce heat related pump failure by allowing the warmer oil to cool against the relatively cooler ambient temp.

Engine room temps have been known to get near 120F, but as WFO stated, if there are fire suppression systems inside, they usually kick off at 165-212F.

Bottom line....If the OEM supplies a cooler for your application, USE IT. If it is failing as many times as you claim, then there is a reason, and you need to solve the problem. Is it corrosion? Is the cooler vibrating and cracking? Did something hit it? Did someone stand on it? These things should last forever...

Thanks for your opinion/advice. My power steering cooler has failed several times fo several different reasons. The stock merc 454/502 steering coolers are super thin and have a tiny tab soldered on the middle that attach it to the back of the bell housing. The hoses hold it more than anything. I have had the cooler get damaged twice from someone twisting the water hoses on too hard causing it to crack at the mounting bracket or just putting too much stress on it when rxring the motor,instead of finding something heavier duty at the time we just simply bought another one and stuck it on there. A couple other times I have had it just start leaking I think from stress although again this time,My son changed out the water pump right before the cooler leak developed which I'm sure stressed the cooler when pulling/twisting on the water hoses.
I have no place left in my bilge to mount anything extra so if it really doesn't do anything I would like to get rid of it completely. I have it out right now getting silver soldered and I'm going to run it for over a week on vacation at end of month but if it ever goes bad again and I'm not looking at ruining a whole week long boating trip from having the power steering pump "fail" then I will just bypass it to see what happens as I ran it already that way without any problems,Smitty

I do not have a PS cooler in my boat and its been that way since I got it and most likely since the engines were installed in 2000. I was told that with full hydraulic, you don't need a PS cooler.

I have a full hydraulic twin ram system also that I recently had problems with. Turned out that the filter supplied with the system is way to fine for the flow required and eventually began to stop up. This blew out the bearings in the pump and exploded boiling power steering fluid all over the engine at 5500rpm.

I replaced the pump with a spare and found the steering to still be somewhat heavy. Went boating and destroyed the bearings in that pump in less than twenty minutes, fortunately the belt jumped off this time.

I ended up calling AGR Racing in fort worth, they specialize in twin ram steering systems for rock crawlers which is basically the same system we use.

He told me that Saginaw pumps are only rated for 5500rpm, that with our pulley size we are running them harder than that.

He also said that a filter on the high pressure side was self defeating as it would not allow the flow required, and in any case there are at least one magnet inside the Saginaw reservoir that should be sufficient to pick up any trash.

He also said that a cooler and synthetic power steering fluid(from redline or royal purple) would be required is he was going to warranty his pumps for this application.

I bought the metric "P" style super pump from them (1500psi)
it comes clear coated. Discarded the filter, flushed all the lines and cooler. Transferred the reservoir and pulley.

I now have power steering that can be turned lock to lock with one finger at any engine speed. I also picked up a consistent 100rpm

We found a very easy way to flush and bleed the system. Remove the belt and use a 3m pinstripe removal wheel in a cordless drill against the pulley. It turns the pump at just the right speed to flow without aerating the system.

The rubber wheel wont hurt the finish on your pulley. I also believe that the system bled a lot faster due to the absence of that in-line high pressure filter.

http://www.agrperformance.com/produc..._GMC&model=101 model 807256 $170+ shipping

He also said that a remote reservoir should not be necessary with a properly cooled system, but that he had no problem with them.

With my new setup i ran about twenty minutes at 5500 and found the power steering pump to be around 110*F which considering the air was 100 is excellent. Previously you couldn't hold your hand on the pump.

Since you are having it soldered up, perhaps some better brackets can be made to support the cooler. Ideally, it should be supported on the ends - and with beefy brackets. Also, I would highly recommend that you fabricate brackets to support the hoses at least 3-4" away from the cooler. This will force any flexing motion to the point of the bracket strap, and not on your cooler fittings. Really, this thing should last forever if it is protected from excessive mechanical vibration/movement.

Good Luck!:cool: