So in essence, MALSAL is saying that all mini owners who has oil coolers are stupid?  wow! mal your conclusion is too harsh.  no wonder your mini is leaking profusely.   The issue about car needs to run at optimum temp is a complete BS,  just imagine if you live in edmonton canada or alaska where the temp is below freezing point, there is no way a mini can attain the optimum temp, so does that  mean your mini won't perfom well?? the optimum temp should be  localized in the combustion chamber only, thats why the radiator coolant is the best indication for it. 

now if you want to preserve the integrity of your oil seals ,avoid the oil from gettin too hot. USE OIL COOLERS.   these are the things Malsal is not aware of. but im doing my best to make him understqnd it. and enlighten his mind.

OK, I just found a starter motor that I can use which allows me to turn the selenoid part upside down.  I think that I will order it tomorrow.  As far as driving in cool temps. I live in northern Wisconsin and I plan on driving the Mini when it is 10 degreees F outside.  I have a MK III heater which may or may not work so well.  Back in the day, some 32 years ago when I had a 1967 Cooper S, I drove I-80 through Iowa, it was December 24th 1983 and the temp was, -26F!!!!  That's right, minus 26 degrees F.  A howling 50-60mph west wind and 100s of trucks and cars were pulled over frozen stiff.   I had a thermostat on the Mini oil cooler and it ran great and made it 120 miles to my destination.  I on the other hand was frozen stiff and the cold cracked the living S*** out of the finish on my Fender Bass guitar that was along for the ride.

Randy

1968 Morris Cooper S

I'd put the oil cooler on the shelf. I did that 8 years ago, even in 40C temps with modern oilks you do not need it for road use. And in winter, it prevents the oil getting up to a decent temperature. You can bung some cardboard in front of it, but why not just take it off. Just keep the cooler for originality if/when you sell it.

As malsal says, ignore Boison's Mini rantings. He has NFI. 

In an article in one of the KYMA magazines David Vizard discussed oil temperatures. I no longer have that magazine but I believe he said the optimun oil temperature was 170 degrees and that having an oil cooler prevented the oil from getting to that temerature. Personally I would leave it original if you could find an original set of oil lines.

If it were mine and i was wanting to keep it stock or as close to stock for daily reliable driving without welding/drilling extra holes and as you live in a colder climate i would just remove it and hang on to it. You could also flip it and make a set of brackets off the rocker cover so it mounts above the plug wires which i have seen done before then bag it (stop the airflow) in the colder months or fit a thermostat in the line.

Bull$hit.

Bull$hit on the cleaning too, maybe so in your snake oil additive world though.

Boison keep your unsubstantiated opinions to yourself or the scooter forums you belong to.

Care to back any of that up with published facts ?

Guys listen, i want to give you a wake up call... first of, i will suggest that you retain the oil cooler in your mini, you will benefit a lot from it. plus the colorful braided lines looks cute.

We all know that mini engines are unique,..unique in the sense that the engine and the transmission shares the same oil. now having said this, therefore the oil gets too hot because oil comes close to the combustion chamber, i mean compared to other conventional car where in trans and engine were separated,mini oil gets hotter. ... NOW, ever wonder why minis are notorious in oil leaks??  correct!, rubber oil seals don't like heat/in mini's case, extreme heat. You noticed that most of the common leaks originates from Main oil seal and differential oil seals, simply because these stupet seals are not meant to get in contact with extremely HOT OILl... In my own opinion, ALL, and i mean ALL minis should have oil coolers with fan, it will surely prolong the life of the oil seals. ,,plus it will the keep the overall engine temperature cooler.. less heat,less damage!!! copish!!??

But provided, if you want to attain the optimum cooling effect, once a year you need to clean your oil cooler, remove the two hoses, and soak some amount of kerosine or diesel inside the cooler overnight to dissolve all the gunk that has developed inside the channels.

you state that you want to keep  your mini original. an original mini did not have a jap starter nor braided oil cooler lines. put a thermostat on the oil line and move the cooler over. the problem you will encounter is the interference when you change your oil filter,  and/or the possibility of interference with the slanted slam panel support.

Fellow Minioids,  I'm in the prossess of restoring a 1968 Morris Cooper S with an oil cooler.  Now, I know with modern oils you really don't need such a device but I would like to keep my car original and it looks cool.  Anyway, I have a brand new Hitachi starter motor with the selenoid on the top.  It interferes with the oil cooler.  I would have to move the cooler 4.5 inches toward the left to get it out of the way.  It is probably more important that my car starts easily than have the oil cooler but I hate to remove it and take away those cool braided steel hoses.  Any suggestions or compromises that I can make.  There is no way to modify the starter to get it out of the way.  Also, I live in a northern climate and when it is cold out I really don't need the cooler.

Randy

1968 Morris Cooper S

1960 AH 3000

1963 AH 3000