I'm building a relativly mild LS1 almost strictly for track use - road racing. I have read here and other places that one of the problems that the LS1 has is that a lot of oil gets trapped in the heads, and won't drain properly.

One solution I heard of was to Fab a drain from the back of the head to the bottom of the block or oil pan. That would be pretty easy to do.

In a SB Ford, it's common to use oil restricting push rods. The hole at the rocker arm end is smaller than the other end. Theis works pretty well, especially if you're using a high volume oil pump.

Does anybody use these oil restricting push rods for a LS engine?

 

You do realize that oil is the cooling medium for the valve springs, right? The more the better, especially in a sustained high RPM situation...

 

Of course I realize that. But you can get too much of a good thing. If all the oil is stuck in the heads, that doesn't help you, either.

Like I said, this is a common practice in SBF's. And I wondered if it was done on the LS motor. Or is it better to fabricate drains? Or, just don't worry about it, it's not a big deal?

 

I've been following LS engines since their initial release and never heard of drainback being a problem. If it worries you, add some external drains...

 

Since you'll be pushing your motor for extended periods on a road course anything that can help get the oil back into the oil pan a little quicker can only help and is worth doing. If you plan on using stock style lifters with gm lifter tray then you can start by drill some drain holes in the lifter trays for quicker drain-back, or you can or go with link-bar lifters. Another good option is to clean-up and smooth up the oil drain passages in the heads to include any areas prior to the drain ports that might slow the flow of oil to the ports. The smoother the flow the faster the oil gets back in the pan. If you've got the tools then your only cost is time if your plan to stick with stock lifter trays. I see no need to fabricate additional drains, just make the current ones better!
I'm not sure what pump you plan on running but IMO, I'd run either a ported stock GM pump, or a high pressure oil pump; not a high volume pump.
Improved Racing, also has oil pan baffle kit for various LS oil pans and has crank scrapers.
Just Google Improved Racing, and you'll find their website.

 

OK, so it sounds like it's not that big of an issue.

"Porting" the drain back holes is always a good idea on every engine (IMO). It's quick and easy, and might actually help. I have read about drilling holes in the lifter trays, I plan on doing that.

But if drain back is not that big of an issue, I don't see a need for additional external drains. Adds weight, cost, complexity, and potential failure points. KISS.

As for the oil pan, I keep vacillating between the Improved Racing baffles in a F-Body pan, and a custom made road racing pan. I'm leaning towards the custom pan.

 

Several companies also make pushrods with smaller orifaces on them to limit the oil going to the top end a bit. One of the members on this site has run these for over 100k on a boosted daily driven application without issue. You can also install roll pins in the OEM push rods to limit flow.

Aftermarket or HD GM oil pumps (found on the newer DOD equipped vehicles) also move alot more oil than the standard oil pumps. Pickup starvation is more likely when running these pumps.

 

3 Qrt Accusump, problem solved