Fuel Cooler

hondarider552

Getting faster
May 28, 2008
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I have a 1/2" B&M cooler that I have in the garage ready to go on when I get the truck back next month, going to mount it up front of the stack after the fuel filter.
 

Mike L.

Got Sheep?
Staff member
Vendor/Sponsor
Aug 12, 2006
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Fullerton CA
I have a 1/2" B&M cooler that I have in the garage ready to go on when I get the truck back next month, going to mount it up front of the stack after the fuel filter.

Normal fuel temps run from 130 F to 150 F depending on weather and load. Install dual fuelers and you will be at 175 F or higher.
In 100 F weather with a big load, pulling a grade; you will see 225 F or higher. At that point the ECM pulls fuel and timing and makes it hard to pull the load.
Rick Lance did some testing and logging for me years ago and he saw 227 F in his truck under load. He installed a cooler I sent him and brought the temp back to 180 F. He installed the cooler right after he saw the 227F and continued on so it was a valid test. It pulled the load a lot better.
 

hondarider552

Getting faster
May 28, 2008
10,627
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Arizona
my cooler will be that easy to install inline sicne I do not have a factory fuel filter and just looped the in/out from the FICM to the inlet of bottom CP3. Can take the cooler and some fuel line and do it on the side of the road :D
 

sickdiesel

New member
Apr 22, 2010
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i run the 1/2" B&M cooler on my white truck as well.

Without it i saw temps north of 250* :eek:
 

juddski88

Freedom Diesel
Jul 1, 2008
4,656
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Chesterfield, Mass.
with the Setrab cooler but without the fans hooked up, at Denver during the DPC I saw 290 degrees after my 5th run at Bandimere. I hadn't shut the truck off longer than just to flash a tune revision in a few times in a 90 minute time-span. That log reminded us that we had forgotten to max out that limiter:(
 

Chevy1925

don't know sh!t about IFS
Staff member
Oct 21, 2009
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Phoenix Az
Dustin, what do you see for temps now?

Right now Steve has my fuel temp limiters off (I told him too). I have not logged it but I'm curious what I'm going to see pulling my rig loaded down up to silverton co. I'd rather not add another cooler to the front of the cooling stack and I'm out of room on my front bumper to put it there. Only place logical is by the factory one and have a fan/fans on it
 

x MadMAX DIESEL

<<<< No Horsepower
Dec 30, 2008
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Lexington, Ky
Post your testing and your results. Your answer kinda sounds like a beer answer.

I just know fuel run through a cooler doesn't do shit for power. Atleast for our computer engines. Could be to cold, to find a "sweet spot" but what I tried didn't enhance anything. No graphs, just seat of trousers
 

Bread

New member
Jun 7, 2011
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Its a pretty simple concept...... The bigger the pool the longer ( or more energy) it takes to heat or cool for that matter.

Yes, it is a simple concept. The fuel tank will act as a partial heat sink, more so when it’s cold. But over time the tank will heat up and lose effectiveness. It will take more time with a full tank, but none the less it will heat up and not do much to cool the fuel.
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Take a look at the fuel cup I’m speaking about. The return line (right) literally dumps hot fuel right back into the pickup (left) while being supplemented by fresh fuel from the bottom. The ratio of fresh fuel to recycled hot fuel is determined by the flow rate of the pump, and unknown:
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The cup clips into the sending unit/bowl cover:
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And then the bowl covers the entire assembly:
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As you can see, the little cup is the biggest enemy to the fuel tank heat sink effectiveness. If you separated the return line and dumped the fuel elsewhere in the tank the concept would work better. But then you’d have fuel starvation problems when the tank runs low.
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You are wrong. The quantity of fuel in the tank has a lot to do with fuel cooling.
I have done extensive testing on this.
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I’d love to see your extensive testing/data linking fuel tank volume, and fuel temperature, while also noting air temp, and engine run time. Fuel volume WILL certainly have an effect, but it will not be substantial. I’d be interested to be proven wrong or right either way as these are just my own observations.

(Please note that although this IS a factory Duramax fuel tank pickup assembly, I have modified the mounting flange and hoses to suit my installation. That's why it looks strange)
 
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RedHotGMC

stock
Jan 16, 2012
339
2
18
Northern Utah
Before I put a cooler on and cruising down the freeway in 110* ambient my fuel temps ran 210-220 empty, after cooler it stays around 170. I have a transfer flow tank that blocks the factory cooler :mad:. When I come across a 6spd cooler ill replace the factory one.