Crazy high oil pressure on today's cars?

[Bonnewagon]

The 5w30 was an attempt at added mpg

L67ss- that and rubberheads that have the shifter in DRIVE before the starter even disengages. I used 20-50 successfully by warming the motor up first. The '99 2.2 has a plastic collar connecting the oil pump drive shaft and it can shear if you don't.

 

[MrSony]

Steve- maybe- but remember when the average V-8 had about 10 psi at idle?

My 350 after the rebuild had 50psi cold and 23 hot at idle. 😛 Even with the rod knock.

 

[pontiacgp]

[QUOTE="Bonnewagon, post: 548478, member: 4748" The '99 2.2 has a plastic collar connecting the oil pump drive shaft and it can shear if you don't.[/QUOTE]

what???

 

[Bonnewagon]

Warm it up.

 

[L67ss]

I tried a quart of 20w50 once when it was low and it was free....oil psi dropped like 7-10 psi lol

 

[Bonnewagon]

Oddly- both 20-50 and 5-30 showed 70 psi at cold start. But the 20-50 had more pressure at idle when hot. Both were Mobile 1.

 

[jeremyandthemonte]

I used to own a 2003 sunfire with the 2.2 and I think the oil pressure is so high because I think they are zero tolerance engine unlike a old Chevy where you skip a tooth you will be slightly okay

 

[DRIVEN]

My Quad4 runs really high pressure too. I suspect many "modern" engines run high pressure but you've probably noticed most newer cars only have warning lights in place of gauges. Mine varies quite a bit from cold to warm though.

On a side note; When I was going to tech school one of my instructors was a former funny car driver. He was telling us about the quest for extra power. He said during testing they took oil pressure as low as 7psi and found that it would survive a pass. Not great for longevity but fine if you're rolling in new bearings every 1/4 mile😀.

 

[L67ss]

On an engine like my 3800 anything less than 25psi will start eating the bearings at an alarming rate lol

 

[olds307 and 403]

Actually I noticed our old 2011 work truck with the 5.3 LS barely hit 40 psi warmed up. The new 2016 is only a bit better. It is probably due to lower highway rpm and 5W20 oil being used. Also these trucks take what 8 liters? The cleaner running motors, synthetic oil and bigger capacity has really stretched oil change intervals as well. There is no gauge on the 3.5 in the Challenger, curious where it stands.