7qt OIL PANS? running with only 4 qts of oil

[Timmyboy86]

I've heard the tails about running extremly low oil levels some as low as 3qts total and 4-5 is supposed to be safe what if your not just going straight not that i take hard corners or anything but has anyone run there 4qt engine on the street? i was told to continue to lower the oil level until i noticed a drop in pressure then add half a quart. so are racing pans worth the money or what?

[edvancedengines]

I think you are talking about a Super/Stock trick they use in the FINAL ROUND. It is worth a few horsepower. To me it is not worth the gamble.

I do like to run oil a little below the full mark with a big oil pan but that is just to get the oil futher away from the spinning crank. Has nothing to do with trying to make more horsepower. If it does I don't car. I seek better oil control is my reasons. It is probably woth a few more ponies though.

i SUGGEST THAT IF YOU ARE RUNNING A RACE ENGINE WITH LESS THAN 7 QTS YOU NEED AN OIL ACCUMALATOR FOR EMERGENCIES. Opps caps.

Ed

[mcracecars]

i was told to continue to lower the oil level until i noticed a drop in pressure then add half a quart.

If you notice a drop in oil pressure, then the pump has picked up air,and this air is going into the bearings. Since most oil gauges are slow to respond to pressure changes, the damage to bearings has started.

bearings + oil = :lol:
bearings + air= :cry:

[billhendren]

If your looking for a gain of 10/15 H.P. buy a good race pan,don't listen to anyone telling you to run the engine out of oil to find what level to use,that person doesn't know what he is talking about and will cost you a lot of money if you try it. Bill

[obsessedtruck]

I have noticed very good gaines in running a little lower oil level. BUT NOT THE 4 QT CAPACITY. For instance my 1000hp Big Duke motor i have deep moroso pan. I think it's 10qt total with a 2qt filter. I lowered down to a total of 8qts and had a 15hp gain at the wheels.. I would say it all depends what type of pan you have. But no way woul i run that as you were saying.. After a run check the dip stick. If it has air bubbles oil level is a little high..

[cepx111]

There is a guy at our local track that swears his car runs a tenth quicker, with 2 quarts less oil in a 7 quart pan, I dont know personally but I'm sure its worth some gains however I think his claim is a bit inflated.
If I had to make a desicion between the extra capacity, verses a quicker et or more power? I'd take the extra capacity, besides if your running a good pan with scrapers, windage tray, trap doors etc, the extra oil shouldn't be a problem.
I dont want to be the quickest, just the most consistent.
Charles

[Timmyboy86]

okay then so whats really needed for a pro street/strip car? i have the proform 7qt pan with a high volume pump and 5/8 tube (was told not to use 3/4) how many qts do you really need? or should i say how big should the pan be and how many qts should you run in it? is it just a question of the deeper pans always better or what? i thought about going to a moroso pan pt# MOR-20110 its a 8qt pan and 10 3/4 deep!!

[edvancedengines]

You don't want a pan on the street that canbottom out on dips or bumps.

Use what you have. Put in 6 qts of a good 15-40 oil, preferably Dello 400. Buy and install an oil Accumalator and use it. = no oil supply problems.

Ed

[fishman1]

I have a 7 quart pan and i run around 6 quarts in and do gain a little hp over 7 quarts but will not go lower as at 5 1/2 quarts at the end of the 1/4 mile when i slow down my oil pressure will drop to 20 psi and to me that is not good...so that is why i run at least 6 quarts and at the end of the 1/4 my oil pressure is still up at normal pressure when i slow down..

[Robert1320]

ENGINE OIL SYSTEM

Now figure at 8000 rpm.
Where is your oil?

1 Qt,1/2 per v/c = Valve Covers
1 Qt = Lifter valley
1 Qt = The oil filter
1 Qt = Oil passages in the block
4 QT
So you have about 1 quart in the pan.

Add in windage from all the leaks listed below

OK, there are many oil leakage points about 100 in a standard V-8 engine.

16 lifter to push rod points
16 pushrod to rocker arm points
32 lifter bores 16 x 2 ends
10 main bearing edges
10 cam bearing edges
16 rod bearing edges
2 distributor shaft leaks
1 distributor shaft to shim

Don't forget about 10 psi per 1000 rpm is good.

[raz1056]

What is the deal with more and more engine builders not putting dipsticks on race motors? I had a motor built by a shop in Houston and I had to make them put a dipstick in it and now I have a BES motor and it has no dipstick. When I questioned the plugged dipstick I was told the oil should be changed frequently enough you don't need to check it? GO FIGURE

[cobrajet428]

Alls been said! :P The reason for running a little less oil is to get the oil away from the crank. A good windage tray with a built in scraper will also assist in keeping oil away from the crank. With a deep pan with added capacity you can do this. I personally run 6 1/2 qts in a 8 qt Pro Stock Enginnering pan along with a Canton windage tray with scraper and a 1 1/2 quart capacity accumulator and low pressure switch. The trap doors, baffles and fins in the pan are for oil control to get the oil back to the sump and to keep it there during acceleration and de-celeration. An accumulator is always good insurance and may save your engine if something goes wrong by keeping things lubed for that extra time that it may take you to notice a problem. I would also install a low pressure switch on the ignition on any race motor for added protection. George

[chevguy65]

I run 4-4 1/2 qts in my car all the time and with a windage tray.

I have constant good oil pressure and have seen no ill affects.

[edvancedengines]

Posts: 15

Posted: Thu Jun 21, 2007 8:09 pm Post subject:

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What is the deal with more and more engine builders not putting dipsticks on race motors? I had a motor built by a shop in Houston and I had to make them put a dipstick in it and now I have a BES motor and it has no dipstick. When I questioned the plugged dipstick I was told the oil should be changed frequently enough you don't need to check it? GO FIGURE


Racing oil pans do not have provisions in them for dip-sticks. They most always have an over-fill plug at where the oil level should be though. If you have a racing engine and are racing it, you should be draining the oil at least after every race so the oil level should never get low if enough was installed in the first place.

Racing Blocks have no provision in them for a dip-stick either.

If you have a racing block with a racing oil pan and want to know the oil level for checking purposes you can add a dip-stick if the pan has a side kick-out by welding a tube for a dip-stick to be inserted in. Caution though dip-stick tubes usually will be a vacuum leak if using a vacuum pump system or can be an blown out in conditions of blow-by.

The previous is only an opinuion and may not be fact in all situations.

Ed