What's considered normal oil pressure?
08-10-2015, 10:54 AM
#1
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Join Date: Sep 2011
Location: Florida
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What's considered normal oil pressure?
Hey guys, as some of you already know I just ordered a new Auto Meter oil pressure gauge for my fox. I've only used the stock one, so I'm not sure what I should expect to look for. What is normal for idle and driving when it's cold vs. when it heats up? I'm using 10w-30 oil. I've tried to look for some answer, but am coming up short. Are there any other factors that come into play when it comes to what is considered normal? Thanks for your help in advance!
08-10-2015, 05:09 PM
#2
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it really depends on the bearing clearances. but a stock motor cold should be 30psi-ish and warm could go to 20 at idle. expect around 10psi more for every 1000 rpm.
my stock motor had 15-18psi at idle and went to 45 at 6k rpm on 10w30.
my stroker has 20psi hot at idle and goes to 65 at 7k rpm on 15w40. on 20w50 its slightly higher but not much.
my stock motor had 15-18psi at idle and went to 45 at 6k rpm on 10w30.
my stroker has 20psi hot at idle and goes to 65 at 7k rpm on 15w40. on 20w50 its slightly higher but not much.
08-11-2015, 06:35 AM
#3
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Many variables as stated. My brother's stock motor (not sure on bearings just internals) has about 50 psi. My dart block motor with .0015-.0020 rod and main clearances has 40 at cold idle and 20 at warm running 10w-30. Kinda worried me at first since as you can imagine a dart based motor aint cheap. After some reading I found that 20 is okay on a SBF at idle. The 10psi/1000rpm is a good rule of thumb though.
08-11-2015, 07:14 AM
#4
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Ok. Thank you both for that information! I don't know what the bearing clearances are. I do not have 100% of the specs of the motor. It now has 700 miles on it, and it's a 331 stroker build. The guy who built it spared no expense and did a very good job, but I'm not sure about what pressure I should be expecting. I'm also running 10W-30 in it, so I will be keeping a close eye on what it is when I first put in the new gauge. I just was not sure what the rule of thumb was.
08-11-2015, 07:23 AM
#5
D.R. THE PATHETIC DORK
Join Date: Jun 2007
Location: West Virginia
Posts: 30,863
okay, now it's time to take it to the track and get an et on it and see how well the guy who built it did............will it be a 331 with 302 power??? or will it be a 331 that lives up to it's potential??.........time now to find that out!!! 
08-11-2015, 07:27 AM
#6
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ALMOST THERE!!!! lol I've been waiting on this local tuner to squeeze me in. Every day that he actually can get me in... it freaking rains, and he wants a dry day to drive the car. When it's dry, he's busy or never picks up. lol Damn Florida. But, I've heard from two different people (one with a twin turbo Supra and one with a turbo fox) "this is the ONLY guy I let touch my car besides me."
She drives good, but I'm still running low 11's during half throttle, coasting in the 13's, hot starts suck, and the idle is at 1,100. So I'm waiting for the tune before the track. Everything else is good to go.
She drives good, but I'm still running low 11's during half throttle, coasting in the 13's, hot starts suck, and the idle is at 1,100. So I'm waiting for the tune before the track. Everything else is good to go.
Last edited by yurizx6r; 08-11-2015 at 07:31 AM.
08-11-2015, 07:39 AM
#7
D.R. THE PATHETIC DORK
Join Date: Jun 2007
Location: West Virginia
Posts: 30,863
don't expect tune to lower idle to much, expecially with cam overlap.......mine was able to get it around 1000, any lower and surging.......at 1000 it lopes good and hot starts are fine, no surge ever......as far as cruise.....my wideband is all over the place.........a tune won't address that unless specifically asked for, a tune goes after WOT 99% of the time as the ecm and o/2's work as adaptive strategy for regular driving.....to address that, you'll need to spend a lot of time with a stand alone tuner and do it yourself with something like the moates quarterhorse
08-11-2015, 07:58 AM
#8
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Right. The last Bama tune I had (yes I know lol) the idle was good at 1,000, but not always reliable (it would drop sometimes on stops). That's why I'm like "I'm waiting for the guy with the laptop getting real time data to do this right." Two different guys with builds way more expensive than mine tell me that's the guy, then that's the guy for me. I'll be patient to make sure it's right. No need to rush.
08-11-2015, 01:52 PM
#10
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My dart motor is a 331 and it runs pretty good. Feels about like my Boss. I think it still has some potential in it since Im tuning it myself using a holley dominator efi. If yours is built correctly it should run. Mine idles around 1000-900 depending on temperatures. Took me a while to get it running right at low and cruising rpms but it loves to run. I built it as a light weight road race motor that will turn 7k rpms all day. Itll pull all the way to that and then I run out of gear. Havent went pass that yet since I havent taken it to the track.
Alright back to topic.
Alright back to topic.