Oil Temps on V6

[jeffhoward001]

I tried to post in the V6 sub-forum, but it said I didn't have permission...

I have a V6 Durango, but some of the guys on that forum told me the RAM forum would probably be a better resource for V6 towing questions.

We have probably 4000 towing miles with a 3500 lbs trailer (fully loaded). I didn't notice until just recently that the oil temp was peaking 280 degrees over a mountain pass. Outside air temp was in the 80's.

My questions are: 1) Is 280-degree oil "normal" for towing with the Pentastar? I use a synthetic blend, but that still seems way too hot.

2) I'm surprised we didn't notice this before. I only noticed it this time because we got a CEL going over the pass. Had it scanned and it was a "cam position sensor signal intermittent" code. We didn't see it again until later in the trip when it was hot on a hill again, like clockwork at 275-280 degrees it threw the CEL. That scared me enough to really let it cool down before & after the passes.

Anyway, otherwise the truck runs fine and tows fine. Plus, we did 3000 towing miles last season with no issues, so I'm pretty confused. Is the cam sensor that's on the way out? Or is the super hot oil causing it to malfunction? Any other dumb reasons I'm not thinking of that's making the oil run so hot?

If it werent for the wierd canless oil filter set up, a cheap $100 oil cooler would likely be a simple fix.

Thanks All,

 

[PoMansRam]

What were your coolant and ATF temps showing when the engine oil temp read 280F?

 

[jeffhoward001]

Coolant stays pretty solid around 230. Goes over 230 on passes, but comes down quickly afterwards. Biggest difference is that the system appears to be managing the coolant temp so much better.

ATF stays under 200, only occasionally going over on the long passes. Once I started paying closer attention to the oil temp, the ATF temp was never an issue.

Any idea what Dodge considers *too* hot? They have the temp sensor, does it eventually complain?

 

[crash68]

How hard are you trying to pull up the hills that causes the 280°F oil? What's the road grade your climbing (if known)?

 

[jeffhoward001]

Here's the thing, I don't think it's the road grade because we did the exact same trip last year without any issues.

I've been watching the oil temp around town over the past week (no trailer, no load) and its consistently 230-240 degrees. Does that seem normal? I did a little research on the oil cooler, and with 110K miles, I'm starting to wonder if the cooler is clogged and very little oil is passing through the cooler. Check out the attached diagram. It looks like the system has a built-in bypass for the cooler (probably as a fail-safe if the cooler becomes a source of restriction).

Does that seem normal to hit 230-240 oil Temps cruising around town? I honestly wasn't paying attention before this issue so I don't have a great baseline.

 

[jeffhoward001]

One other question: Do any of the V6 guys on here complain about high oil temps?

 

[Burla]

You can't keep doing that, take foot out of gas and go much slower, or pull over and idle, you don't want to run a gas engine at 280f. You can run real poa/ester oil that can handle that temp, but I'd be more worried about how metal cools at those temps.

If the oil is 280f, you can also have metal much hotter than that in hot spots. Overheating the number one cause of warped heads and/or gasket issues. Number one I'd slow down and pull over at 260f and idle the temp down. Some guys on the forum towing with the Hemi pull over at 250f and do the same. The last thing you want to do it shut engine off at those temps, idle the temp down. And don't do anything that would cool engine quicker.

Is your coolant proper mix?

230f isn't that big a deal, does it get hotter with a hotter day would be my question. As in no load but when ambient temps get hotter.

 

[jeffhoward001]

Well, I guess anecdotally my question has been answered. The answer is "no", owners of V6 RAMs that tow do not have issues with the oil getting too hot. Being that we've done this trip several times before with no issues, that likely points to something wrong with the oil cooler.

Burla - We did not repeatedly run the vehicle at 280 degrees. I presume it hit that temp once when we got the first CEL in Arizona when it was 102 degrees ambient, then I observed the temp in the 270's degrees probably 600 miles later in the trip. At which point we did pull over and let it cool down.

So I guess we can consider this one closed out. I've read plenty of posts with people pulling 4K loads with the V6 RAMs and if they aren't complaining about the oil getting too hot, then it's likely something broken on our vehicle that needs to be fixed.

Thanks All!

 

[Burla]

Well, I guess anecdotally my question has been answered. The answer is "no", owners of V6 RAMs that tow do not have issues with the oil getting too hot. Being that we've done this trip several times before with no issues, that likely points to something wrong with the oil cooler.

Burla - We did not repeatedly run the vehicle at 280 degrees. I presume it hit that temp once when we got the first CEL in Arizona when it was 102 degrees ambient, then I observed the temp in the 270's degrees probably 600 miles later in the trip. At which point we did pull over and let it cool down.

So I guess we can consider this one closed out. I've read plenty of posts with people pulling 4K loads with the V6 RAMs and if they aren't complaining about the oil getting too hot, then it's likely something broken on our vehicle that needs to be fixed. .

Thanks All!

I'd just say when you do pull over idle down temp and not turn off, friendly unsolicited advice. If possible drive real slow for a spell before pulling to s top, then idle, just a few minutes.

Different pieces of metal in varying sizes cool at differing rates, even if it's the same metal, just a different size. This is what kills heads and head gaskets. The hotter the metal, obviously the worse the rates of cooling will be.

 

[Neil E]

The highest I've seen while towing is 228. This is in tow / haul mode and slight grades. I have a 6% grade that I drive everyday up and down, but never towed up it. I have seen 229 going up it during the summer without towing anything.