20-25 Oiling Systems 6/19/13 8:55 AM Page 25
THIS ISSUE: PG 26 >> Performance Diesels
PG 41 >> MSMP Pt.1
PG 52 >> Super Comp Engines
Feature
the Melling oil pumps because of changes that have been made in the design of the pump itself. “Our high-volume 10296 performance pump for the Chevy LS flows 18% over stock, and delivers improvements in flow and pressure across the entire engine operating range, not just at hot idle.” Another option for the LS is to eliminate the stock front mounted gerotor pump altogether and use an external oil pump. TJ Grimes of Baker Engineering/Pro Cam said his company makes a Chevy LS wet sump oil pan conversion that retains a wet sump setup but uses an external pump like that from a dry sump system to supply oil to the engine. The oil pan is only 6-1/2˝ deep but is 13˝ wide and holds 7 quarts of oil. The modification requires blocking the oil ports for the original front-mounted pump. The conversion eliminates the long pickup tube that can delay flow to the stock pump and reduces the risk of oil starvation. Grimes says the trend is to make wet sump oiling systems work like a dry sump system but without the cost or complexity of a full dry sump system. “You can keep windage down inside the crankcase by using scrapers to pull oil away from the crank.”
Dry Sump Systems With dry sump oiling systems, the setup is entirely different than a wet sump system. Most dry sump systems use one to four or more scavenge pumps to suck oil out of the pan (and other locations on the engine), and one or two pressure pumps to feed oil back into the engine. Oil aeration is controlled by using an oil/air separator and routing the oil into a vertical storage tank before it is pumped back into the engine. The tank adds additional oil-holding capacity to the system to help keep oil temperatures down. The external plumbing makes it easy to add an external oil cooler as well. Pulling oil and air out of the crankcase also increases horsepower by reducing windage and drag on the crankshaft. The only drawback with dry sump systems is their cost, which can range from $1,500 up to $3,500 or more, depending on the setup. Bill Dailey of Dailey Engineering says his company specializes in high-end custom dry sump pumps and pans for racing applications. “A lot of people sell off-theshelf components for dry sump oil systems. We do too. But many racers want special mountings or designs to fit their specific race car. So most of what we do is custom work for racers.” One such product is a custom billet oil pan with an integral oil pump. “They won’t allow it in NASCAR, but where rules allow it, the setup provides a smaller and cleaner installation,” said Dailey. What kind of oiling system you ultimately decide to use in an engine you are building will depend on the application, your customer’s wishes and how much money he is willing to spend to keep his engine lubed. Lubrication is one area where you don’t want to take chances. ■
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