Engine cooling

Oil coolers

Engine oil coolers: the plate heat exchangers, usually mounted at the oil filter, that pass the heat of the engine oil to the coolant, made to the plate stack, the seals and the mounting of the original, for European and Japanese passenger cars, identified by OE reference.

KRONTEK oil coolers: a plate oil cooler with its filter housing, and a smaller stacked-plate cooler

Engine oil carries heat away from the pistons, the bearings and the turbocharger, and on many engines the sump alone cannot shed it. The oil cooler is a stack of thin plates through which the oil and the engine coolant flow in alternate layers: the oil gives its heat to the coolant, which the radiator then rejects to the air. On most modern engines the cooler is bolted to the oil filter housing, so the oil passes through it on its way to and from the filter.

The cooler is compact and reliable, but it depends on its seals. The gaskets between the cooler, the filter housing and the block harden with age and leak oil, usually at the back or the underside of the engine where it is hard to see. An internal failure is rarer but worse: a cracked plate lets the two circuits mix, and oil in the coolant, or coolant in the oil, damages hoses, seals and the engine itself.

KRONTEK oil coolers are made to OEM-compliant quality and as aftermarket spare parts: the plate stack, the seals, the ports and the mounting of the original, supplied with or without the filter housing as the original is.

The range covers European and Japanese passenger cars. Each reference is identified by the OE number of the original part; send that number and the vehicle identification number (VIN) and we confirm the matching KRONTEK reference.

For availability and OE cross-references, contact us by email.

Frequently asked questions

How does an oil cooler fail?
The seals between the cooler and the filter housing harden and leak oil onto the engine, or an internal plate cracks and oil and coolant mix: a milky deposit under the expansion-tank cap, or oil floating in the tank. The second failure contaminates the whole cooling system; the cooler is replaced and the system flushed.
Is this the same as the oil cooler in the radiator?
No. Automatic gearboxes and some engines use a separate cooler inside a radiator tank or in front of the radiator; the plate cooler on this page sits on the engine at the oil filter and uses the engine coolant.

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