Blue Ribbon Oil Cooler Kit Instructions

Blue Ribbon Oil Cooler & Hose Upgrade Kit

The Blue Ribbon upgrade kit features an improved oil cooler and stainless steel braided lines. These upgraded lines are manufactured with low restriction, high grade stainless steel attachment fittings and aircraft quality extruded Teflon - providing extraordinary temperature and pressure qualities along with exceptional abrasion resistance. The finished product provides superior oil cooling performance, combined with the security of a high quality construction. This upgrade kit is a direct replacement for the problematic factory system and fits the truck perfectly. Installation of this kit is a straightforward "in-the-driveway" type of job, requiring only basic hand tools. The Blue Ribbon system features only premium quality components and is warranted against shortcomings in materials and workmanship for 5-years. Warranty is limited to replacement of defective kit-components. It does not apply to any consequential failure.

Begin the installation by assessing your ability to access the rear cooler fittings in the block. You may have the tools and small hands needed to do the work without removing the exhaust crossover pipe. Next, remove the front universal joint retainer straps and lower the front driveshaft to gain additional working space, if needed.

Place an oil drain pan under the oil filter and remove the spin-on oil filter as well as the cast aluminum (4x4 only) oil filter adapter to gain access to the oil cooler hose-to-block fittings.

The kit includes new seals to be used in the reinstallation of the oil filter adapter. (The seal kit contains seals for both 2WD and 4x4, so you will have seals left over)

Next, disconnect the factory oil cooler lines by releasing the snap ring retainers at the block fittings. Then remove these screw-in fittings from the block ports. (Tip- memorize the routing of the OE lines under the motor mount and away from the exhaust manifold. It will be best to duplicate this routing for the new lines)

If you truck is an earlier model year that had oil cooler lines going OVER and AROUND the exhaust manifold, it will be converted to the later model year routing of going between the engine oil pan and motor mount area.

Screw the new 45° Stainless fittings onto the new cooler. Do not torque at this time. Hand tight only.

Remove the park lamps and the grill from the front of the truck to gain access to the engine oil cooler. Disconnect the original oil cooler tubes and remove the oil cooler (keep the hardware from cooler, they will be used in the mounting of the new cooler).

• Remove the front skid plate (4X4) to gain additional access to the oil cooler tubes. When the factory tubes have been removed from the truck, you'll want to install the new oil cooler using the factory mount tabs.

The next step is to install the kit-supplied 90° oil hose fittings into the block ports. (Your kit contains 2 sets of fittings. Each a different size. 1 set for 506 blocks and 1 set for all others. Depending on your application you will have extra fittings left over) Apply Teflon thread sealing tape onto the threads of the two threaded 90° fittings before installing them into the block ports. Install the forward fitting first and tighten it pointing forward. Next, install the second fitting into the rear port, again tightening to point forward.

NOTE: Leave the protective plastic plugs on the ends of the hoses to prevent getting dirt inside them during routing / installation. The best routing is to follow the OE routing under the motor mount and away from exhaust manifold.

NOTE: When attaching the oil cooler lines to the fittings in the cooler -- do not allow the fittings to further turn in the cooler as it is tapered and will cause the cooler to split and leak.

The shorter of the two hoses is connected between the forward block fitting and the driver-side oil cooler fitting. When the hoses are in place, install the special hose routing clamps and any zip-ties before tightening the 4 hose-to-fitting nuts. Keeping the 45° fittings loose so you can adjust the alignment of the hose to your desired liking is a good idea. Once you have chosen the alignment of the hoses, then tighten all fittings down.

NOTE: When attaching the oil cooler lines to the 45° fittings in the cooler --You must put a wrench on the cooler to prevent from twisting when tightening the 45° fitting to the cooler and the cooler lines to the 45° fitting. Failure to do this can cause the cooler to split and leak.)

The next step is to reinstall the oil filter adapter. It should be thoroughly cleaned prior to installation of the service replacement O-rings. This 4x4 oil filter adapter is 'indexed' to the engine by a tab which fits into a hole on the filter mount of the block. The big bolt retaining the filter adapter is torqued to 47 lbs. ft.

With a new oil filter in place, it is time to start the engine and check for leaks. The engine should be run sufficiently long to check for leaks at all 4 hose ends. Now check and replenish the oil supply. In most cases, this usually requires adding about 1.5 quarts to replace the oil lost. When everything checks out, the grill is reinstalled and the truck is done.