ONGRNGO

Hey guys I have a 1994 Z28 runs great, never a prob with it, the oil pressure just seems low, I have not had the car long but have a maint log that came with it, the car was really taken care of. Any thoughts?

Dan

FIREHAWK #07

iTrader: (1)

what kind of oil has been put into it???

satinleafct

iTrader: (1)

Does the oil pressure go up and down a lot? On my car at idle the pressure is really low, but then once I get going it moves up. I think it's just something GM's do because my friends s-10 does the same thing, and a few other GM's that i've driven have done it. I could be wrong though.

TwoFast4Lv

iTrader: (8)

Front Cam bearing is biggest cause of low OP

BRENTT94Z

iTrader: (3)

The typical rule of thumb on oil pressure is 15psi per 1000rpms
Most LT1s ive seen run around 35-45psi at idle!

buffman

iTrader: (9)

well if you idle at 550rpm then 7.5-8psi would be considered normal? I just run durablend 10w30...

Matt

BizZzatch350

iTrader: (33)

My buddy with a 00 LS1 thought my LT1 oil presure was low too. Mines run at like 20+ at idle, 35-40 driving around maybe a little more. I have higher oil presure now with 15w50 than I did with 5w30. Its been like this for the past 5 years that I have had the car.

BRENTT94Z

iTrader: (3)

Well, technically If you only have 7.5- 8psi would mean you have some issues somewhere.

buffman

iTrader: (9)

I usually get that after 30 minutes or so of driving. I also have 145k on the clock..

ohh and i forgot to add I get that reading from the plugged hole (autometer sender) on the oil filter adapter if that makes any difference...

TwoFast4Lv

iTrader: (8)

well there are alot of different idea's here. More then 10Psi per 1,000 RPM cost HP and is a waste. there are some real good engine books out there that cover this well. I have a pic of my dash on a dyno run with the OP Pegged at only 5,800!

I noW have it set to around 70-75 PSI when hot at 7,000. Less strees on the cam shaft gear and oil pump drive..plus 5-8 RWHP!!

I Idle around 25 PSI Hot. This is achieved with a Stock volume oil pump and a GM 'White" spring. Cheap, Easy and effective

ONGRNGO

I use 5W30 Mobil 1, Thats what I use in my 99 SS also. The car has good oil pressure when driving, just low pressure at a warm idle, like between the red dash and the first white bar (more twords the white bar side), Maybe that is normal, I am just comparing it to my SS, and that has way better oil pressure!!


Dan

METALBEAST

iTrader: (1)

On my engine in my Vette (which has about 2500 miles on it now) i run between 60-65 psi when its first cranked up. After warming up for a while it drops to the 40-50 psi range @ 2000 RPMs. Before I rebuilt it (with 103,000 on the clock) the pressure was around 50-60 psi cold and about 35-40 psi when warmed up @ 2000 RPMs. My Camaro has some miles on it and its pressure is about the same as my Vette when the engine had 103,000 miles on it.

96capricemgr

iTrader: (1)

That oil is your problem, M1 5w-30 despite GM specing it in the Vette is NOT a great choice for the LT1, try the 0w-40 or 5w-40 if you want to stick with M1. Other oils are fine in 5w-30 or 0w-30 but NOT Mobil 1 5w-30 or 10w-30.

Much more info and a great site for oil info
http://theoildrop.server101.com/ubb/...c;f=3;t=001797

The Vette needed synthetic because they didn't want to package in an oil cooler the 5w-30 was CAFE driven and the M1 part was marketting and supply driven. M1 5w-30 is a good oil just not a good one for this engine.

satinleafct

iTrader: (1)

Whoa, I just read that thread about the oil, I just got my lt1 a week ago, i was going to but mobil 1 5w30 but they were out of it so i used castrol syntec 5w30, what would you guys recommend I use???(brand, weight, etc.) It's a 97 formula with 43,000 miles.

96capricemgr

iTrader: (1)

The only Syntec I would recommend is the 0w-30 labled made in germany on the back lable. It quite possibly could be the LT1 wonder oil everyone mistakenly believes M1 5w-30 is. If you want to use the much easier to find Mobil 1 then the 0w-40 or 5w-40 truck and SUV are good choices. Amsoil Xw-30s are good too, Seen some decent info on Redline 5w-30 too. On that oil site go the the Used Oil analisis section and search "LT1" and do some reading. I go by "DJ" over there if anyone is curious or notices similarities between myself and that handle.

AnthonyConstant

my lt1 idles fine. BUT my v6, 3.4L idles like at 80psi...haha

i have no idea whats wrong with that pOS

METALBEAST

iTrader: (1)

I think everyone appreciates you posting that link 96caprice. Hmm, I am running Mobil 1 in my Vettes rebuilt engine (which as you know is recommended) and I am running it in my SS. Since I am going with a new engine combo this year in the Camaro, I think I may go with a different oil. I think I am going to stick with the Mobil 1 in my Vette however.

slowmofo

iTrader: (6)

wow a oil forum, all your oil questions answered!!! Nice find. I was gonna run M1, guess I'll try something else. Anyone use Castrol Syntec??

96capricemgr

iTrader: (1)

Like I said M1 is a good oil just the reommendation of 5w-30 is at question, this even holds true for the LS1s they like the LT1 seem to like a thick 30wt rather than the very thin M1 30wts. I will trust analysis and measurements of wear metal content in the used oil over the OEMs recommendation any day. Remember there are the same guys that brought us PWM, the LT1s wonderful spark plug wire routing, the failure prone AIR system(so troublesome in the b-body there is a TSB to defeat and program it out) the failure prone b-body EGR. It is not just GM that does stupid things like this someone at Ford thought 23psi in truck tires was a good idea. What I am saying is OEMs have different concerns and goals than we do as enthusiasts. On the oil site one guy ran M1 5w-30 for 15K in a 1.8t VW came out great proof it is a good oil, the LT1 reports also prove it is just not right in this engine. Look around one of the Impala guys posted a UOA for the German Castrol in his car just yesterday. Was in for 5K and the lab said the wear metal content looked more like 3100miles, to me that is proof that in this engine and for his hard use GC is a great oil.

METALBEAST

iTrader: (1)

I am definately going to go with another oil in my Camaro engine next year. I am just concerned about switching to another oil on my Vette with the engine being as new as it is.