Finally installed the oil cooler kit from Autotech on my '98
VR6. It went in reasonably smoothly. I am getting a bit too old to
be crawling under the car on ramps; Next house will have a garage
that can accommodate a lift !

Back to the installation ... The seal for the oil/coolant exchanger
comes off without much drama. A 10- inch adjustable wrench does the
job. Some oil will flow out as you remove the large seal. So, keep
your head  clear ! Then you should install the threaded 1-inch pipe
(part of the kit) through the oil/coolant exchanger and into the
block. Some oil on the threads is probably a good idea.

I first loosely attached the hose adapters to the sandwich plate
and positioned them in place  just to get a feel for the type and
the direction where the adapters should be positioned. I did this a
few times until I decided to use a 90 degree adapter and a straight
adapter on the sandwich plate and the other straight and 90 degree
adapters for the oil cooler. I then applied grease to the adapters
and tightened them up. I used an adjustable wrench and a vice. I
guess two adjustable wrenches will work.

Next you should attach the hoses to the oil cooler and install the
cooler. My 6-inch cooler would not fit at the left side of the car
near the left fender. I decided to place the cooler vertically on
the outside and at the left end of the AC condenser with the hoses
attached. I used the 90-degree hose adapter at the top and the straight
adapter at the bottom. Hoses coming out towards the right side of the
car (looking forward from the driver's seat). I fixed it in place using
the tie wraps provided with the kit. The fit is nice and tight and it
looks like the tie wraps will hold with no rattling or extra movement.

I then set out to install the sandwich plate. By this time, my
shoulders were acking and at 10:30 PM I was tired. So, I must have
spent 20 minutes to get this done. Some oil on the rubber seals is
probably a good idea. It did finally get done. But, I was worn out !

So, I woke up early the next day and installed the hoses on the
sandwich plate Installing the sandwich plate without the hoses attached
may have been a mistake. Because I spent a LOT of energy to finally
get he hoses on the adapters. I also used hose clamps just to be
sure they stay in place. I routed the hoses with a decent curvature,
attached them to the chasis with tie wraps and it was done.

You may want to try installing all the hoses first and then placing
the sandwich plate and the cooler. I did not see enough room for my
hands to tighten the sandwich plate with hoses attached. That's why
I installed the hoses afterwards.

I started the car and drove to the nearby convenient store and bought
a coffee. I checked for leaks. Left the car in idle for another 5
minutes and checked for leaks again. Checked the oil level and added
a quart. By then I had to head to work. So, took another  another
quart with me in case of a leak. Got to work, checked for leaks
again. checked the oil level. All was fine.

As for results ...   without the cooler, after about ten minuts of
driving on a hot day, I usually saw temperatures in the range of
215 to 235. I have seen temperatures as high as 253 in my car on
long drives on hot days. It is still early to make a statement on
the temperature with the cooler. I have not seen temperature above
214 yet. Then again, I have not taken the car on a long drive yet
either. I will provide better data next week.

Sorry for the long winded mail. I hope it helps those that want to
do this.

MOe