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I am having trouble finding an oil pan that fits my 97 LS1. I ordered the Holley 302-2 pan (swapping into 67 Camaro and need the clearance) but the holes do not line up. I called and asked their techs about it and they said that all LS engine are the same including the 97. Some pans specify 98 and up only so I assume the 97 is in fact different. Here are a couple pics showing the main difference. Am I crazy or what is going on? What pan can I use?
all of the bolt patterns are the same for the "LS" engine (car & truck) oil pans. I would be more concerned with the machine work the shop did if your 1997 LS1 was really bored .010"
There is a lot of info out there stating a honing of .004-.005" maximum on the 1997 & 1998 LS1 blocks
What are we supposed to see within the green circle? As said, ALL LS pans have the same bolt pattern. Are you putting it on backwards? Exactly which holes do not line up? Your pic shows us nothing. Put the pan on and THEN show which holes don't line up.
OP, there's a lot of blocks that were missing that hole (it wasn't drilled from the factory). I'm sure there's some block out there that uses that bolt hole, but a good majority do not, and a number of OEM pans are flat in the area (although the gasket still has the bolt hole).
Here are some better pics. So contrary to what myself and many other people have thought, LS engine oil bolt patterns are NOT all the same. The original pic I posted was showing that there was no hole where there is (on MOST LS engines). Hopefully these pics show that a little better. (the one with my finger pointing)
Also, on the other side one of the holes is halfway covered by the new pan which does not seem right at all to me.
Anyone else ever had this issue? Any aftermarket pans that will work for me?
Can you post a picture of the casting number. Some blocks aren’t drilled in that area.
Do you have a gasket that fits the block?
If your gasket holes line up to the block and your oil pan doesn’t then a you received a bad oil pan.
Last edited by jasons69chevelle; 09-07-2021 at 07:30 PM.
I'm not sure I understand the problem, as the pattern appears to match just fine, your block just wasn't drilled in that one area. Every aftermarket pan is going to have a hole there though. As for the other hole being partially blocked, what were you going to do with the hole? Looks right to me, and it's probably the best-fitting option.
08-27-2021, 08:23 PM
Oil Pan Question 
