1. Home
  2. Volkswagen, hot (Aircooled)
  3. Template for Oil Cooler L-Bracket Seal in db& Hot VWs May 2009 Issue

Template for Oil Cooler L-Bracket Seal in db& Hot VWs May 2009 Issue

Template for Oil Cooler L-Bracket Seal in db& Hot VWs May 2009 Issue

In the May 2009 Issue of db& Hot VWs there is an article called =91Going to the Dogs=92 on page 66.

It also has a template provided by Wolfgang International for making your own oil cooler L-bracket to help seal off the oil cooler in a Type I doghouse fan shroud to help the engine run cooler.

Here is a link to help describe it:

formatting link
The "Hoover Bit" To insure proper sealing and anti-vibration to the upright doghouse oil cooler, VW installed a small "L" shaped bracket that has come to be known as the "Hoover Bit", named in honor of Bob Hoover, a major contributor on the various VW mailing lists. In the past, most people ignorant of this important piece of hardware simply tossed it away, thinking it was just a hunk of metal that didn't need to be re- installed, just in the way, an additional step to be eliminated. Without it however, it results in a crucial loss of cooling air in the fan shroud and cooler "doghouse". And we all know what happens when you lose cooling air. VW hasn't made this piece of metal for a long time and finding one in the recycling yard is like.....well, you know the story of the needle in the haystack.

Reply to
Jim347a
Loading thread data ...

Reply to
Jim347a

probably.. as long as you can keep the air inside where it needs to be... that little part was nearly impossible for me to find years back... I had one on my engine at the time and needed one for a new engine I was building... i searched high and low in a few local junkyards and even one that was nearly exclusively ACVW's... they must have hidden all the sealing frame/Hoover bits with the thermostats/brackets/rods/control vanes, because they were all missing.... anyway on that engine I ended up sealing that area with *gasp* silicone caulking... was great until I needed to remove the shroud... would have been even worse if I had decided to pull the shroud in the car...

Reply to
Joey Tribiani

Not really, because if you look closely at the piece of sheetmetal that covers the oil cooler(not talking about the scoop or the 'elbow') you'll see there is an attachment point at the bottom. When I build the bracket the hole for that attachment point is drilled and tapped after installing the bracket and setting the shroud in place. It holds the sheet metal up against the cooler so that the air from the blower goes through the cooler instead of around it.

I use the foam tape that autozone/checker sells for sealing up camper shells on the oil cooler, couple strips across it front to back until it is thick enough to touch the opening in the shroud. The 'hoover bit' seals up the part of the shroud down where the throttle tube goes through, and the two other pieces of tinware ensure the air that has gone through the cooler exits the engine compartment.

Good luck with it.

Chris

Reply to
Hal

---------------------------------------------------------------------------=

--------

Only partly so. The proper name for the thing is the 'Sealing Frame' or something similar; it is the metal foundation on which you are expected to apply the sealing foam. But the other thing it seals is the blower housing itself (!) See that flappy piece of tin-ware that covers the oil cooler? Look closely and you will see a NOTCH along its lower edge. Now examine a real 'sealing frame.' There is a threaded hole for an M6x1.0 tin-ware screw (or whatever).

At wide open throttle your blower puts out enough pressure to push that flappy little cover out of position, creating a BIG hole. The air that SHOULD be going through your oil cooler simply escapes AROUND it.

So the 'sealing frame' fulfills TWO functions; providing a foundation for the sticky-sided foam tape used by Volkswagen, AND providing a THREADED FASTENER to hold the flappy bit of tin-ware in position.

But it's your ride. What you put on it... or leave off... is up to you.

-Bob Hoover

Reply to
Bob Hoover

MotorsForum website is not affiliated with any of the manufacturers or service providers discussed here. All logos and trade names are the property of their respective owners.