Pio

I don't remember what the oil pressure at idle was when my car was stock, right now its about 22 to 24 psi. The manual says 20 to 80 is normal, isn't that a very wide, perhaps too wide, of a range?

The manual also says depending on outside temps and conditions a reading of 6 psi might be considered normal.

What pressure do you have at idle?

Update - Post number 9:
I took some reading today on my way to work;

At start up the oil pressure shoots up to 70 psi - Oil temp 68*

Idle while cold - oil pressure is 35 to 40 psi. Oil Temp 100 to 120*

Once the oil is hot - 180* to 190* is when it goes to 22 to 24 psi at idle, it goes to 50 psi at 2K rpm and 60K at 3K rpm.

vegasdude

Mine is around 40, when water temps are at 216 or so in traffic......35

Dicecal

When my car is hot, idle oil pressure is around 32psi

outnumbered

Give us some more data. Outside temps, oil temps water temps.

At idle at normal operating temps, mine is 30-35 psi.

When very hot (275) oil temp @ idle I see 18-20. That is after a track session.

When cold or cold start up I see 70-75.

Pio

Outside temp is usually in the 60's AM's and Nights, mid 70's in PM (typical SoCal weather)

Oil temp 200+

Coolant - 190

When the car is cold it's around 40 to 50 psi.

outnumbered

Based on mine and others that have posted, yours sounds lower than normal even though the manual says it's normal.

You may want to have it looked at and documented.

06C6Z

Mine runs around 40 at idle...take it to the dealer for your piece of mind.

Z06Doc

The dry sump, for all it's advantages, makes me a little uneasy - if the circulating pump fails - ouch. As I recall, of the relatively few LS7 failures reported on CF, a couple have been due to a precipitous drop in oil pressure.

Pio

I took some reading today on my way to work;

At start up the oil pressure shoots up to 70 psi - Oil temp 68*

Idle while cold - oil pressure is 35 to 40 psi. Oil Temp 100 to 120*

Once the oil is hot - 180* to 190* is when it goes to 22 to 24 psi at idle, it goes to 50 psi at 2K rpm and 60K at 3K rpm.

Let me know what you think...

allanlaw

I think you're fine. If you see pressures at 10 or below then you can worry.

Redline Motorsports

Believe it or not but GM has always stated that 10-12 psi at idle is acceptable! Not something I like that's for sure. I think they also have a rating of how much pressure per 1000 rpms and its around 3-5 psi.

My Z is usually idling at 35-45 hot and goes up to 70-80 at peak power levels. I know there have been some reported loss of OP but the oiling systems in these motors is pretty good. As long as it rises at a decent rate you should be good. Like someone stated above; get it documentated at the dealer just in case!

Howard

vette-oholic

I thought PV=nRT, so pressure should go up as temperature does.. why is that not the case here?

allanlaw

Maybe the oil gets thinner as it gets hotter? I'm not sure the the technical reason, but it is an observed fact that the pressure will decrease with higher engine temp.

Michrider

Hot oil is thinner = less pressure. Old oil is also thinner.

You see a lot of variation, some of which I'll bet is caused by the varying quality and age in everyone's engines Some believe in frequent changes, I'll bet those would show a little higher pressure just due to being fresher oil.

I wouldn't worry about 22. If you see 5, call a tow truck.

Live2Redline

Just a little rule of thumb for any internal combustion engine.
10 psi oil pressure, for every 1000 rpm, and you are safe.

VINZVET

I noted my prressure today on my drive to work. It ranged from 40-80 V..

Pio

So does mine when driving around, but when warm (190*) at idle its about 22 to 24 psi.

Foosh

Yes, this is exactly the reason that pressures decrease with higher oil temp. Viscosity (thickness) is lower at higher temps, and pressure drops accordingly.

I was watching mine today with the oil temp between 195-205 (stop and go traffic), and it was pretty consistent at 39 PSI at idle. At 4K RPMs it was 75 PSI. The engine has 10K miles.

Of course, it's a "Larry Woodcock" engine.....................

YellowSubmarine

I took a drive through the wine country last weekend. Ambient temps in low 70s. Traffic through Santa Rosa was backed up, and oil temp went over 200 and pressure when at idle dropped to 22psi. That's on an engine with less than 750 miles. Oil pressure and temps seem normal.

Foosh

I neglected to mention previously that there's not much to be alarmed about here. At higher oil temps with the thinner oil that goes with that territory, it takes less pressure to push the oil to where it needs to go.

As a previous poster said 10 PSI per 1K RPMs should be more than adequate. I doubt you'll see even that low at idle in a LS7, unless something is wrong.