Oil and cooler line change

Chemeng · Dec 1, 2012

End of driving season in Kentucky. Did an oil change and swapped out the oil cooler lines. Had a little seepage on the outlet line. Changing the lines is messy, keep some paper towels around to plug the cooler while you swap lines. Changing out the O rings is a royal pain. Had to use a pick to pull them out and getting the new ones to reseat was awful. The two on the engine block were almost impossible. Job is done and glad I don't have to mess with it for awhile.

Let's hope for a short winter so we can start driving again.

Allan · Dec 1, 2012

I've changed mine twice so far. Just over 50,000 miles on the car. Will probably need to do it again next year at the end of the season. This doesn't bother me as much as the power steering line issues though. :crazy2:

Steve M · Dec 2, 2012

Just went through this a couple months ago...they are a pain to install. I'm assuming you stuck with the OEM lines instead of the ones from Viper Specialty?

Matt162 · Dec 3, 2012

Why do you guys not just upgrade? Viper specialties has cooler lines and JT's has the power steering line fixes.

Sonoman · Dec 3, 2012

Matt162 said:
Why do you guys not just upgrade? Viper specialties has cooler lines and JT's has the power steering line fixes.

Re: power steering lines... who is "JT's"?

Steve M · Dec 3, 2012

Matt162 said:
Why do you guys not just upgrade? Viper specialties has cooler lines and JT's has the power steering line fixes.

The Viper Specialty lines haven't been out for all that long, so I'm guessing not many know they are available. Thankfully I ran across their post a while back so when I saw my factory lines leaking, I already knew what I was ordering to replace them.

JTS VENOM PERFORMANCE · Dec 3, 2012

Sonoman said:
Re: power steering lines... who is "JT's"?

we do the power steering lines sir, we also do lifetime oil lines also, I jsut dont have them advertised at the moment

Viper Specialty · Dec 3, 2012

Shameless Plug: http://viperspecialtyperformance.com/catalog/product_info.php?cPath=22_34&products_id=196

Have sold dozens of sets, being used on everything from Street cars to US-GTU.

We do not recommend the use of JIC [flare] type fittings on engine oil lines, which is what most people grab from local supply stores and use. They have a tendancy to work loose from engine rocking, and the internal rings used during construction have a tendency to gall, making removal... fun.

We are also working with the original manufacturer of the Power Steering Line Fittings to see what can be done to remedy the situation as cheaply as possible. There is a manufacturing defect that we are working to eliminate, and we hope to offer a simple exchange program- we send you new corrected fittings and line, you send back your old one as a core to be disassembled and re-used. No time frame on it yet, but we will let everyone know.

Allan · Dec 3, 2012

Viper Specialty said:
Shameless Plug: http://viperspecialtyperformance.com/catalog/product_info.php?cPath=22_34&products_id=196

Have sold dozens of sets, being used on everything from Street cars to US-GTU.

We do not recommend the use of JIC [flare] type fittings on engine oil lines, which is what most people grab from local supply stores and use. They have a tendancy to work loose from engine rocking, and the internal rings used during construction have a tendency to gall, making removal... fun.

We are also working with the original manufacturer of the Power Steering Line Fittings to see what can be done to remedy the situation as cheaply as possible. There is a manufacturing defect that we are working to eliminate, and we hope to offer a simple exchange program- we send you new corrected fittings and line, you send back your old one as a core to be disassembled and re-used. No time frame on it yet, but we will let everyone know.

I am first on the list for the P/S line fitting fix please. Seems like if the fittings were longer and had more than 1 o-ring, they would tolerate the engine movement and vibration better. -Thats how A/C spring lock fittings have been improved. Remember back when they only had 1 o-ring? Now they each have 3. .....Try that. Also with a longer fitting there's more support for the tube.

Kevan · Dec 3, 2012

Or you could just do them yourself (it's damn easy):

How to Build Braided Lines with AN Fittings:
http://www.srtconnection.com/forums/f22/diy-braided-lines-10668/

Viper Oil Cooler Lines:
http://www.srtconnection.com/forums/f22/diy-oil-cooler-lines-11623/
(change lengths to 24")

Wiretech · Dec 3, 2012

Great info there Kevan thanks for posting.

cowger · Dec 4, 2012

Kevan said:
Or you could just do them yourself (it's damn easy):

How to Build Braided Lines with AN Fittings:
http://www.srtconnection.com/forums/f22/diy-braided-lines-10668/

Viper Oil Cooler Lines:
http://www.srtconnection.com/forums/f22/diy-oil-cooler-lines-11623/
(change lengths to 24")

A couple comments / warnings: These are for a Ram truck, so if you're going to make your own, don't follow these directly. Also, I went this route and really struggled to get them to not leak oil, even with brand new fittings.

As someone who's been there / done that, I'd really advise you to take Dan's (Viper Speciality) inputs seriously up above. Probably best to just do it right, once, and be done.

Bryan

Steve M · Dec 4, 2012

cowger said:
A couple comments / warnings: These are for a Ram truck, so if you're going to make your own, don't follow these directly. Also, I went this route and really struggled to get them to not leak oil, even with brand new fittings.

As someone who's been there / done that, I'd really advise you to take Dan's (Viper Speciality) inputs seriously up above. Probably best to just do it right, once, and be done.

Bryan

I've made plenty of lines in the past, and they can be a real PITA. The thing I liked about the Viper Specialty lines was that they didn't require an adapter...the swivel fittings already had the correct ORB ends on them, so you could just screw them into the block/cooler. To me, that is one less failure point, granted I've never had an adapter fail. Those fittings appear to be XRP, which run ~$60 each for the 45* and 90* fittings. That's $240 in fittings, and you still need the lines.

$295 ain't cheap, but Dan isn't making much of a profit on these given the parts used.

Matt162 · Dec 4, 2012

Kevan said:
Or you could just do them yourself (it's damn easy):

How to Build Braided Lines with AN Fittings:
http://www.srtconnection.com/forums/f22/diy-braided-lines-10668/

Viper Oil Cooler Lines:
http://www.srtconnection.com/forums/f22/diy-oil-cooler-lines-11623/
(change lengths to 24")

There has been multiple members on here that have used standard AN fittings for these lines and they seem to have nothing but leaking issues. If you get ahold of one of the double swivel ends used on the VSP lines you'll understand the difference.

Viper Specialty · Dec 4, 2012

Allan said:
I am first on the list for the P/S line fitting fix please. Seems like if the fittings were longer and had more than 1 o-ring, they would tolerate the engine movement and vibration better. -Thats how A/C spring lock fittings have been improved. Remember back when they only had 1 o-ring? Now they each have 3. .....Try that. Also with a longer fitting there's more support for the tube.

You are absolutely on the right path. The leaking/seeping is a result of the single o-ring design combined with vibration and dust/dirt. A dual or triple o-ring would keep the dirt away from the primary, or ideally, a dual o-ring and a wiper seal. There is a second defect as well though, which is the type of system used to secure the line.

Kevan · Dec 5, 2012

Weird.
70,000 miles on my truck and not a single drop of oil from any of the fittings I built.

Matt162 · Dec 5, 2012

Kevan said:
Weird.
70,000 miles on my truck and not a single drop of oil from any of the fittings I built.

I have an extreme feeling it has a lot to do with the engines movement in our vipers, not the trucks.

Kevan · Dec 5, 2012

Heh heh....probably not.
The engine movement in the truck is just as violent as it is in the car.
The ONLY difference is the length of the lines.

I am NOT taking anything away from Dan's parts. I know he sells quality gear.
I just thought I'd be a nice guy and post the option of doing it yourself.

Allan · Dec 5, 2012

Kevan said:
Heh heh....probably not.
The engine movement in the truck is just as violent as it is in the car.
The ONLY difference is the length of the lines.

I am NOT taking anything away from Dan's parts. I know he sells quality gear.
I just thought I'd be a nice guy and post the option of doing it yourself.

It is very lucky that it has worked out for you, lets just leave it at that.

Allan · Dec 5, 2012

Viper Specialty said:
You are absolutely on the right path. The leaking/seeping is a result of the single o-ring design combined with vibration and dust/dirt. A dual or triple o-ring would keep the dirt away from the primary, or ideally, a dual o-ring and a wiper seal. There is a second defect as well though, which is the type of system used to secure the line.

Please move forward on this issue. I have driven home from the track twice with no power streering or cooling fan because of this. Also tired of the car clean-up after the fact. And tired of people in the pits asking me "what happened" , "is everything OK" ..............after I have been passing them repeatedly before the stupid line blew.

Viper Specialty · Dec 5, 2012

Kevan said:
Heh heh....probably not.
The engine movement in the truck is just as violent as it is in the car.
The ONLY difference is the length of the lines.

I am NOT taking anything away from Dan's parts. I know he sells quality gear.
I just thought I'd be a nice guy and post the option of doing it yourself.

The length of the the lines absolutely is a major factor, as well as the angle of the fittings when installed. However, that is not really the major issue. The biggest issues arise after a few installations and removals.

JTS VENOM PERFORMANCE · Dec 5, 2012

doing the oil lines yourself can be done easily , the problem is you absolutly need a few things to do it correctly honestly, and if you dont have experience with AN lines or have alot of patience

they can be a bit aggrivating to say the least. And even then its well known that the AN fittings over time will tend to "seap' a touch , which is why our lines are crimped, I guess we have sold 2-3000

line sets with maybe one set that has returned which is why we can offer a lifetime warranty on our oil lines.

And we do our ps lines the same way , all crimped, even designed a new valve for the ps pump, replacing all the fittings in the rack the fan and the pump, Dodge has such a problem with them that many dealers

would call detroit and many dealers told us that detroit refered them to us. We have supplied alot of dealers here lately with both line sets.

But either way its good to have choices , Kevan offers a good way to save a couple dollars and do them yourself, Dan , and a few other vendors also offer quality options.

its good that enough vendors are out there to offer options for everyone

Oil and cooler line change

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