When I bought this 3g Acura TL 2006, I realized one thing. The engine runs hotter than any car I have ever experienced before. It robs horsepower, and I am trying to figure out a way to cool it down. I already have an intake but I need more. I even thought of creating a intake from the grille to the filtre of the k&n intake I just got...but their is little room to work with. Someone help please!

 

Get a vented hood or look at the ultimate cooling mod thread in performance section.

 

Your from Canada, are you affraid your engine will melt you igloo? Jk

now jokes aside, are you worried about heat under the hood or your water temp gets too high or both?

 

It may seem as though the engine runs really hot, but it doesn't. Front wheel drive cars are famous for this perception because there is so much stuff crammed under the hood that creates heat. Power steering pumps, A/C compressors (and condensers), brake systems, pre-cats so close to the heads. And don't forget the transaxle... it generates heat is is right there with the rest of the stuff. I don't know off hand what the spec for the thermostat is but I would imagine it's probably around 180 to 190+ degrees.

So the engine is not by itself in all of this heat in our cars. Just note your temperature gauge and make sure it stays at or slightly below the mid-point on the scale.

 

I want to add something about the factory gauge. On my cousins Integra typeR we installed an after market water and oil gauge (track car) and we noticed that in different driving conditions the gauge indicated temperatures fluctuations between 180 to 195 and the factory gauge didn't budge a hair. Actually, if I remember right when the temp reaches 150 the gauge is in the middle and won't move till 195-198 which is as high as we got it.

Another observation is that with the AC on the water temp goes a bit lower, so it clearly tries to compensate for the extra load and heat the ac generates by running the 2nd shroud fan and possibly running more fluid through thr rad.

 

By the way, the poor people in Canada live in igloo's, I live in an ice castle!

 

so what does removing all those plastic peices in the engine bay do? anything?

 

Thanks, good info. When the A/C is on, the radiator fan does activate more often, especially on really hot days and/or when in slow traffic. However, the water pump and thermostat control the movement of coolant through the radiator and therefore the engine, so that will only increase when the thermostat opens further.

 

I'm glad I'm not the only one that thinks so; I thought maybe something was wrong with my car at first! This top, has been discussed many times though...there seems to be no real "cure." One small observation I noticed these past few hot days...the a/c. When it's on, the car doesn't seem to bog down as much with heat; almost like the a/c's cooling the engine! but iono...

 

I am going to try ROYAL PURPLE Coolant Additive...and I have used Royal Purple oil, and will on my next oil change from now on...the stuff is that damn good!

 

Lol good comeback! I grew up in Sherbrooke which is 100km east of Montreal. My friend here always asks about my igloo and if I miss my sled dogs.
(he's joking btw)
ya I know the thermostat is mechanical but our observed temp fluctuation was quite drastic, I was surprised that only a 2nd fan spinning could affect this so much. Even with the car traveling at 50mph the temp dropped, which surpirsed me.
Anyways what my cousin and I do before an autoX run is when there are only about 3-4 cars ahead we turn the ac on and heater and interior fans to the max then before you set off, turn it all off.
Not really sure how much that really does anything, just makes us happy starting a run on a cooler engine
but we only bother on hot days.

 

Most modern OEM coolant temp guages are buffered to stay in the middle. It can take a 10+ degree swing either way to make them move. I've had the TL on the scanner and it stays surprisingly close to 198 degrees no matter what the season or driving style.

To the others....

Dave- RP is one of the worst oils for a high performance engine. Very low HTHS. I'm not sure what you mean by "that stuff is so damn good". Also, be careful what you put in the TL's coolant system as it's extremely sensitive to the type of fluid.

Also, didn't you install a K&N straight under the hot hood recently?

This topic has been researched and covered in great detail by Inaccurate in the "TL Diet" thread.

 

Yes I have a SRI, I love it, and it does increase torque which is very noticeable from the lower RPM'S where I noticed alot of lag before. The system works well and the filtre sits right above the oem induction tubing to bring in the cold air, similar to a CAI. It does the job, with noticeable power, and torque, but for when the car is idiling, I purchase a heat shield, which will work quiet well when it arrives....

 

The other thing I might fabricate with fibre glass is a induction from the front grille to the intake filtre....with the way the oem font bumper is, I find it is very pleasin to look at but does not draw enough air into the engine...

 

I've also heard that. Seem to recall an article by Road Rage several years ago about using Prestone or Peak or similar products not being suggested for the TL. So I keep two containers of the premix factory stuff in my garage all the time.

 

Royal Purple has been used on millions of vehicles, it is one of the best oil on the market...i dont know if I will use it for coolant additive...but..I will use it for my oill......check this link below,they exlain why royal purple is so good, and it has been tested as well from the likes of horsepower tv, chip foose...etc..

 

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=iZxiDsL36jA

 

Dave- you obviously have your mind made up already. You created another heat related problem by your short ram. The shield will make no difference.

You should know that using videos made by the manufacturer is likely going to be very biased. I go by real world results and RP in the engine has shown less than average teardown results. They use the old ball wear test which means nothing in real life. There is no part in an engine that simulates it. The fact is, teardowns have shown it doesn't work well and the HTHS is very low for a given viscosity. You can go ahead and waste your money, it doesn't matter to me. For the same price you can run Redline which is a grp V ester with an amazing add package and real world results have been amazing. RP seems to be popular in the import world because the import crowd seems to be more interested in pretty labels and purple dyed oil.

 

What about switching out the two engine fans and putting high performance fans? I have been doing some research on different types fans. They are kind of pricey, summitt racing has a nice set up for about 250.

 

Not necessary. The TL's fans move a lot of air and they're controlled by the computer. If you installed aftermarket higher flow ones, it would just reduce the duty cycle as in the fans would shut off sooner as the water temp got down to temp quicker. Plus the air coming off the fans is anywhere from 150-200 degrees.

If you could get a fresh air source that could get around the radiator and not through it, that would likely help a lot.

 

I'm surprised by your opinion on Royal P motor oil.. Do you mind passing along any links you may have so I can do some further research? I was going to do an oil analysis after my next fill. From my research I've seen nothing but positive user results. I did find two shops close to me that sold redline but the price was about $6 more / qt so I stuck with RP.

 

Sure thing. I'll have to dig them up, lost all my favorites recently. What it came down to is in a couple high performance engines (500+hp LSx) teardown results were less than spectacular. RP is not any worse than most other oils in the TL but for the price, there are much better oils.

The question may be, does the TL stress the oil enough to make a difference?

As for UOAs, in my experience they're worthless for determining wear. IMO they should be used to determine amount of life remaining in the oil and potential coolant leaks.

I can go into much more detail if you want (I'm trying not to ramble as much as I usually do) but suffice to say I had two engines that were quickly failing, oil pressure dropping, sparkly oil, and the UOAs picked up nothing. There's a lot more to it but that's the jist of it.

 

Intresting. I figured fans that move more air would work better and improve the engine performance... Some of these after market fans pull 4,000 cfm.

 

I'm not trying to discourage you at all. I would like to see it done just to see what happens. It's just that the fans come on and off according to coolant temp and AC operation. If the primary fan ran all the time I could see a larger fan making a difference. The secondary fan runs whenever the AC compressor is engaged, so maybe there are gains to be had when the AC or defrost are running. Maybe a higher CFM fan will compliment the cowl mod like Inaccurate did.

 

tell me more about this Redline which is a grp V ester?

Is it oil? or a coolant additive?

 

Coolant addictives are bs, its an oil.

 

I'll start by saying Redline is overkill for the TL. With that out of the way....

It's an ester so it naturally cleans without lots of detergents.

It will hold up to extremely high temps better than anything out there.

It has a super high HTHS number for it's viscosity which is directly related to how well it protects. It's 5w-20 has a higher HTHS than most 30wts so you get the flow of a 20wt with the protection of a 30wt.

It has more anti-wear additives like ZDDP and moly than just about anything else out there. Usually a race oil or diesel oil will have lots of ZDDP or moly but not both like Redline has.

It retains it's viscosity and HTHS extremely well over an OCI. Unlike some oils that you need to change out after a hard day or two of autocrossing, Redline can be run for a normal change interval even with very severe use.

It's expensive but can be used for twice the number of miles so that offsets some of the initial cost.

 

Royal Purple is not as great as advertised. Maybe you're just a sucker for silly market schemes..

Haha.. tool.

 

fixed..

Definitely want to learn more about your findings. I'll be trading out the filter in couple thousand miles.. Maybe I can at least see how it is oxidizing during an extended interval.

 

+1 on the short air intake, that's just getting hot air.
You need to inclose that and run a snorkle to somewhere to find cool air.
The integra typeR has a factory cone filter, and we dynoed the car win and without the airbox. With hood open the airbox reduced hp, with hood closed we got better output with the airbox on.

Also, about hood vents and stripping off the plastic and rubber garnet near the base of the windshield that seals agains the hood, I thought that ontop of keeping leaves and other crap out when the car is parked, that it serves to cause some pressure under the hood and push air out through other escapes. Like pushing some air lower under the car to cool the tranny and the bottom of the engine. Is this incorrect?

 

Along with wings the size of a house. Yeah, those add at least 10 HP.

 

you're just saying that because you can't afford one for your car.

 

i hate cars or anyone out there, whats your opinion on the new castrol edge oil that has came out?

 

overpriced grp III oil.. love their commercials though..

 

Ok oil, but Majofo nailed it.

 

Yep, jealous as all get out. Looking for a few large pieces of galvanized sheet metal and some 2x4's to make my own wing. Thought I'd cover 1/3 of the tail end of the car with it. Maybe get 20 more horsepower. And cheap to boot!

 

awesome thanks guys for the quick response, ill just stick with mobil 1 then

 

You will be fine with any of them. Unfortunately, most "synthetic" oils fade into mediocrity. There are few truly great ones. Redline and some of the Motul oils are the only ones that really stand out from the rest. Unless you're using those two, you might be best off going by price.

 

thanks for the info. ill try redline or motul if i can get my hands on them lol

 

My friend Louis sells motul stuff http://www.ltbmotorsports.com/motuloilfluid.html

I personally use Castrol Synthetic.