What do you all do when you know you're going to heat up your engine for a day? Do you pop your boot open and leave it on the latch? Pool noodles?
I'm planning on adding 1000 miles over 3 days this weekend. Through aggressive country, with temps ranging from 50 to 90.
What can I do to avoid pulling over in the shade too many times? I did 300 miles a couple weeks back, but it was cooler then.
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Am I naive in thinking this wouldn't be a problem? My VS has a 1915cc with a oil cooler with a fan. Cruised 70-75mph driving home from Phenoix and to Redding and back ,never saw the heat guage much above 1/2 mark.
50-70 degrees isn't a problem. Several folks have made a small metal spacer to keep the lid oven a couple inches. VW bug guys use a tennis ball to hold engine lid open a bit. I'd think 90 degrees in heavy stop & go traffic would be worse than 55-65 mph with fan spinning at proper speed to cool.
@Ryan (formerly) in NorCal - Hey Ryan, my 1915 would run a little higher temps cruising during hot days. There are a few ideas for propping the hood open when the temps rise. Here's what I did for mine. Click pics to enlarge.
1. Got a 10" length of 1.5" wide aluminum stock at Ace Hardware.
2. Cut a 3" length and bend it in middle to 90 degree. Drilled two 3/8" holes. Mounted this piece on lower hood latch as pictured (using existing bolt on latch).
2. With remaining 7" length, I bent lower 1.5" to 90 degree. Drilled 3/8" hole at lower bend and another 3/8" hole 1.5 inch from top. Installed with 3/8" bolt, lock-washer & wing-nut as pictured (note slight bend in bar). Wing nut makes it easy to install & remove the bar when needed.
3. Bend the bar at an angle (just above level of body, see pic) so that upper latch rests on bar as pictured.
4. With the proper bend in the upright bar, pull back the bar to insert the latch. the bend in the bar will keep proper tension so latch will not slip out when driving.
Keeping my project simple, I wrapped black electric tape around my bar to mask its appearance.
Hope you find this info useful. This set-up worked pretty well in keeping the engine temps down. I now have an external cooler on my 1915 (with fan connected to a key-switched under the dash). I still have this contraption on my car for those really hot days. 
The biggest difference I found was to make sure that your engine bay is completely isolated from the lower part of your engine, ie, exhaust pipes etc. This forces all of the air to come from the top through your deck lid. Any hot air coming into the engine bay from the bottom gets recirculated over the cylinder heads causing the engine to get hotter and hotter. Unfortunately this is hard to achieve with VS cars as they have a hole cut into the firewall by the air intake of the shroud. The air is cooler coming from the top - that is how it was designed! Once you get your engine bay sealed then deploy Jim's idea above for some unrestricted air flow coming from the top.
Another thing to note: If you have an external oil cooler make sure the fan is not recirculating hot air through it. The cooler needs to be in a location that gets lots of fresh cool air.
EXCELLENT!
I went a little simpler than Jim:
Ryan, here's another, slightly simpler version of Jim's hood prop that Terry Nuckels put in his car.
Rusty's right, too - the stock location where VS mounts their oil cooler isn't the best. Putting it in the wheel well will let it work much better. Talk to @Anthony if you want some help with that.
When the valley heat sets in, I like to get an early start and be off the road by noon. Forget about the engine - it's me that starts to overheat by then.
And while I was typing...
DAMN, that Nuckels is quick!
I made a hinge extension for my '59 coupe like the VW guys do with their hatches. It makes more sense than opening the rear of the hatch as it literally turns the smooth lid into an air-scoop, rams cold air into the engine compartment.
That said, I've not done that for the sake of esthetics on our speedster. I do, however, have a 4" flex-tube running from under the passenger seat that sends cool(er) air to the fan-shroud.
I also have a Setrab fan-pack oil-cooler in the driver's side (rear) wheel-well where the oil filter is also mounted.
I like Alan's idea using a remote plunger which opens the rear of the engine hatch but I would like to see something like it that opens (and closes) the front of the hatch.
Aircooled Bruce, are you listening?
My engine runs so cool now I think that I need a temperature controlled valve that shuts off the flow of oil going to the external cooler at lower temps. If it ain't one thing then it's another!
Rusty S posted:My engine runs so cool now I think that I need a temperature controlled valve that shuts off the flow of oil going to the external cooler at lower temps. If it ain't one thing then it's another!
Taking forever to warm up is typical of engines with an external cooler but no thermostat. I wouldn't think of doing it without.
Rusty, my system has a Mocal sandwich plate that won't send (much) oil to the cooler if the oil isn't 180 degrees. Once it hits 180 it opens fully and sends oil to the cooler. The Setrab fan comes on when the oil exceeds 180.
Al, I set-up a thermostat and flappers to help with cold-start warm-up, wouldn't have an engine without it.
Lookin' good, Rusty!
...that's a good looking sandwich plate Rusty!...
When do you all decide to pop it open?
Before installing oil cooler, I opened the lid when temp gauge was at the 3/4 mark.
With oil cooler, temp does not reach that point as easily, but if it does, then I would pop the lid.
Since adding my Setrab external cooler with fan-pack and thermostat my temperature gauge never gets above the halfway mark. Usually between 1/4 and 1/2 but closer to the 1/4 mark. I don't pop my lid and my engine bay is sealed up pretty good with no hole in the firewall.
RYAN:
I have the same thing as Robert with a thermo that kicks the cooling fan on at 190 degrees.. Engine Compartment stays cool as well, do to it being well insulated.
Example: Just drove to Visalia to have Pat do my annual Before SLO Valve adjust, Tune up and oil change.. Was 1:30 pm and 98 degrees. Dove home at 5:30 pm was even hotter, and I know this because I felt like a piece of toast when I arrived home, Engine temp never went over 200 on both trips.
I never pop my deck lid open while driving..
You will be in SLO?
Lets take a look at your car then, I will show you something that Troy and I talked about the other day re cooling and a theory he came up with.
DAMN Rusty that sandwich looks delish!!!!!...................
Tebs
Your idea of using a "pool noodle" is the fastest and simplest way to temporarily fix your problem....Just a piece duct taped to stay in place....easy to remove too....Bruce
Will Hesch posted:I made a hinge extension for my '59 coupe like the VW guys do with their hatches. It makes more sense than opening the rear of the hatch as it literally turns the smooth lid into an air-scoop, rams cold air into the engine compartment.
That said, I've not done that for the sake of esthetics on our speedster. I do, however, have a 4" flex-tube running from under the passenger seat that sends cool(er) air to the fan-shroud.
I also have a Setrab fan-pack oil-cooler in the driver's side (rear) wheel-well where the oil filter is also mounted.
I like Alan's idea using a remote plunger which opens the rear of the engine hatch but I would like to see something like it that opens (and closes) the front of the hatch.
Aircooled Bruce, are you listening?
Will, any pics of your lid hinge?
ALL:
Keeping your engine cool can be so simple..
Here is your best option:
*I prefer two 7 lb'rs but a 20 lb bag will work just as well...
Tebs
*NOTE: This is a joke and not to be taken seriously. Anyone whom follows Tebs suggestion is doing so at their own risk, and might be considered whack or just plane stupid.
Tebs ESQ. 
It's late, but I had some time to kill as I monitored some work stuff. Just enough time to throw a Terry Vent on my VS. Thanks @Terry Nuckels!
Teby S posted:ALL:
Keeping your engine cool can be so simple..
Here is your best option:
*I prefer two 7 lb'rs but a 20 lb bag will work just as well...
Tebs
John Steele put what was purported to be a 1776 in my JPS (back in 2000, before I knew anything)-- built with all the pride a minimum-wage "mechanic" could muster and the least expensive Chinese parts available.
It ran pretty darned hot. If the engine was shut off on a 90+* afternoon, it was not uncommon to be compelled to relax until the fuel was done boiling in the lines.
This process could be shortened by several hours by buying a couple 7 lb bags of ice, and arranging them lovingly around the engine. In the one summer I owned the car, it became something of a ritual: drive the car somewhere, shut it only once the proximity to an ice-source was established, buy ice, shut off car, arrange ice, eat dinner/etc. It was part of the magic of owning a car built by a man who's primary skill was talking about how awesome he was.
I sold the car for 1000 reasons. The need to plan my route around the proximity to a Party Time Ice cooler was only one of them.
I had my JPS Coupe with a 1776 built in 2013 and have about 12K trouble free miles on it. I drive in the mountain west between April and Nov and in temps between 50 and 100.....But, I am old and slow and avoid extreme weather. The car has never overheated or even approached the red zone on the gauge.
In the summer, I most always drive (for fun) between 6 am and 9 am and the car is in the garage and I am in the pool by the time it gets hot. You know.... only mad dogs and Englishmen go out in the noon day sun..... 
Mad dogs, Englishmen, and a flatlander with a four month long driving season.
A point of correction: my JPS was built in 2002, not 2000.
Bill, I'm sorry but that was 40 years ago and back then I was too poor to own a camera.
Teby, and you thought it was all a joke, until the Iceman told you otherwise!
I can't really contribute too much to this discussion, but one thing Henry does with his 911 based cars is to create an opening behind the licence plate. I think it's more for allowing access when needing to change the fan belt, but I assume it also allows the fan to suck in more air. The licence plate holder flips down on a spring hinge.
Actually, the oil coolers are what keeps my engine cool, and a fanned oil cooler operating on a thermostat is a wise addition to any air cooled engine.
My experience with JPS has been very positive. The car took longer to build than I was led to believe but it has been a joy to own and drive......however...it is the only 356 replica that I have ever seen, much less driven..... so my judgement has been the product of a very small sample size.
I have no idea if it is the exception or the rule. ?? But I do feel the need to share my experience and do not question the fact that others have had a very bad experience.
There is a JPS/Jay Leno You Tube clip ....and Jay was very impressed with a Suby Speedster.....for what that is worth...
I'm really glad you got a good car, Bart. I didn't, but that was 10 yrs. prior to your purchase.
Will...I am listening....So many ideas/fixes for keeping cool ! But....back to basics...Rusty said it pretty clear. You MUST completely seal off the engine compartment so that the only air entering is through the engine grill (hibachi) ! Even then, because of the larger engine and higher RPMs we all pretty much use, there is still a negative pressure in the engine compartment above 70 mph or so. This is assuming that you are using a stock engine lid/grill with the "rain guard" underneath. That rain guard restricts air flow more that the hibachi grill. Rusty and I did manometer tests and determined that there is about 1.5 inches (h2o) vacuum at 70mph or at 3500 rpm floor idle. This means a restriction. We stuck a piece of pool noodle under the hood to hold it up and that restriction went away ! Rusty cut a hole in the rain guard just below the hibachi grill and installed a screen......problem solved ! I opened up the entrance area of the rain guards to the engine compartment slightly to get the same result. After 2 years of monitoring my cyl head temps and oil temps in a lot of conditions (So Cal) I'm confident that my heat is in control so I am going to remove the two ugly digital gauges hanging under my dash to get back to a simple looking, clean dashboard. Hope this helps someone. HEAT is the Enemy in these cars. Especially since we have pushed them up in Horsepower and RPMs. It is IMPERATIVE to TOTALLY SEAL the engine compartment as good or better than original.......Bruce
Bruce,
Would you mind posting a photo of the dremeled out side vents? I have the side vents, like all VS built cars, and have wondered about opening that area up a little bit to allow more air in. Not sure it's necessary for me but you never know.
Me too (what Robert said)!
Excellent Post Bruce!
Many years ago I removed the hump and replaced it with louvers, like the 356 C. If anyone is interested I can pull the photos from my trusty old laptop. They were available on the old site...
Terry Nuckels posted:I went a little simpler than Jim:
terry made one for me and it was awesome. I think terry has a template for it.
Terry Nuckels posted:Many years ago I removed the hump and replaced it with louvers, like the 356 C. If anyone is interested I can pull the photos from my trusty old laptop. They were available on the old site...
Yes, please.
Robert M.....Sorry, I don't have photos of my trim job on the rain guard on my laptop down here in Mexico and I'm not sure I took any either. But I can tell you this. I only trimmed about 1 inch of it back on both sides. It was just enough to open the area nearly/maybe 25% from what it was. The 1.5 inch h20 manometer restriction disappeared. I'm always surprised that sometimes just little changes make dramatic differences.
I know that some of you followed my Manometer testing a couple years ago but I can't say enough about how simply slick that little tool is for measuring pressure and vacuum. It never gets out of calibration and if I need to measure higher numbers, I change the water to mercury. It's just a cheap, accurate and simple diagnostic tool to have in my arsenal. When not in use I dump the water out and hang it up to dry Heck, the one I use even has check valves on both ends so if you reach limits higher than it can measure, you don't loose the water or mercury.
Here's an offer...If any of you guys in and around SoCal (I'm in Pasadena/Arcadia) need to measure pressure or negative pressure in your engine compartment.....wheel wells.....space between firewall and rear seat etc. call me and we'll try to schedule some test time. I won't be at the SLO Event this year but I did think of bringing the Manometer with me for members to do a little measuring....maybe next year.
I hope all you guys attending have a great time again and hopefully the guys who win my raffle donations enjoy them. I understand that Musbejim is now sporting a set of my Wind Wings.........Hasta Luego.............Aircooled Bruce
oh, the summer day time heat with the top down can get cooking especially if your stuck in traffic. One watches the temp gauge moving to the right and feel the ones head start to bake.
