On a stock engine with a stock exhaust manifold the exhaust manifold clears the oil filter without issues. But let's see what happens if we decide to modify this engine. Let's imagine we want to fit a different exhaust manifold with the goal of turbocharging the engine.
In many cases clearance becomes a problem and the manifold is hits the oil filter. Even a shorter oil filter often doesn't help much and installing a turbo charger is simply impossible.
The only solution in a scenario like this one to relocate our filter. In other words we remove our stock oil filter and mounting plate and replace with an oil filter relocation kit that allows us to put our filter pretty much anywhere we want to.
An oil filter relocation kit consists of two main parts. One part goes onto your stock oil filter location. And the other part houses your oil filter on it's new location and then the two parts get connected to each other.
Your stock mounting plate and oil filter are connected to the engine using a long union bolt. Obviously this bolt is too long for the relocation plate so the kit has a shorter version of this union bolt.
The kit also comes with two adapters to suit a wide variety of engines.
The adapter is fastened into the mounting bracket and then the hollow bolt is installed into the adapter. After that you can screw the entire assembly into the block as you would your oil filter.
The oil filter itself is of course installed into the other part of the kit and then you can you use the provided mounting brackets and holes to install the oil filter and housing at your desired location.
The kit that I'm using in this video is made by Manon Racing Performance in New Zealand which specialized in Toyota 4AGE performance parts. This kit is a high quality billet item with impeccable finish machining to ensure perfect fitment and maximum flow. It's designed to operate reliably under high temperatures and in harsh racing conditions. Thanks to it's extensive range of adapters it also suits a wide variety of engines.
It's also designed to fit -10AN or army navy fittings for a leak free easily removable connection. -10an is a large cross-section fitting which ensures optimum flow and is the recommended size for most applications.
However there is a problem with this kit, the fittings point outward at a right angle from the engine block wall and the AN fittings add to the profile of the filter which again results in potential clearance problems. Fortunately this can easily be resolved simply by removing the provided fittings and replacing them with banjo bolt style fittings. These then point the connection downward and dramatically reduce the profile of the relocation plate leaving more than enough room for the turbo.
An oil filter relocation kit also gives us the opportunity to install an oil cooler to reduce oil temperatures which can be something very beneficial in racing or other situations where we have high engine loads for prolonged periods of time.
When it comes to plumbing the oil cooler you have two options. Option 1 is to have the oil flow from the engine to the cooler then to the filter and finally back into the engine. Option two is to have the oil run to the filter first and then to the engine. Both options are acceptable in most scenario and each has its small benefits. Having the oil cooler before the filter means that the oil filter can catch any residual solder and other debris that can break loose from inside the cooler but it can also mean that you're sending cooler more viscous oil into the filter. If the oil is too cool and too viscous it will trigger the bypass valve inside the oil filter and reduce the amount of oil actually being filtered.
But fortunately there is a solution to this problem as well. If your oil cooler ends up cooling the oil too much you can install this which is a thermostatic sandwich plate. You can install it both under the oil filter or under the mounting bracket on the engine. Inside it the thermostatic plate has a proprtioning valve which sends more oil to the cooler the hotter it gets. The end result is an engine that gets to operating temperature faster but also doesn't overcool it's oil.
In general an oil cooler is not a good idea just because it cools your oil but also because it together with the hoses needed for the system increases the oil capacity of your engine which is almost never a bad thing. Having more oil to circulate though the engine helps ensure proper temperature control.
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