. What he said.
oil Pressure
Thread Starter
Melting Slicks
Joined: Nov 1999
Posts: 2,924
Likes: 361
From: Mayer, AZ
oil Pressure
I have a 2026 Stingray, and just curious what you guys (gals) are seeing for oil pressure when cruising at say 1500RPM or 2000 RPM. Are you seeing a difference? Mine seems pretty low and doesn't respond/change much when reving/cruising. 31 - 34 is all I'm seeing during the break-in drive yesterday. All the temps seemed normal.
Last edited by tome; Dec 10, 2025 at 10:44 AM.
Thread Starter
Melting Slicks
Joined: Nov 1999
Posts: 2,924
Likes: 361
From: Mayer, AZ
Safety Car
Joined: Jun 2006
Posts: 4,007
Likes: 1,488
From: Ashland, OH
I have a 2026 Stingray, and just curious what you guys (gals) are seeing for oil pressure when cruising at say 1500RPM or 2000 RPM. Are you seeing a difference? Mine seems pretty low and doesn't respond/change much when reving/cruising. 31 - 34 is all I'm seeing during the break-in drive yesterday. All the temps seemed normal.
Side note- both my 22 GT500 and 25 Dark Horse would go OVER 100psi at cold idle and driving and then drop to the high 30s hot idle.
Race Director
Joined: Mar 2007
Posts: 11,445
Likes: 8,609
The oil used in the Stingray is 0W-40. The 0W means (more or less) that when the oil is cold it has the same viscosity as a SAE 0 oil at a cold reference temperature. The 40 means that when the oil is warmed up in your engine (a reference temperature is also used for that) it will have the same viscosity as a SAE 40 oil at that same reference warm temperature. It is no "thinner" than a warmed up SAE 40.
The oil pressure in the C8 hovers around 30 psi regardless of temperature, or engine rpm because it is very well regulated to be what the engine requires by a variable displacement pump that is computer controlled. Its not that the viscosity of the oil does not "generate" a high oil pressure, it that the C8 engine does not require a higher oil pressure.
The oil pressure in the C8 hovers around 30 psi regardless of temperature, or engine rpm because it is very well regulated to be what the engine requires by a variable displacement pump that is computer controlled. Its not that the viscosity of the oil does not "generate" a high oil pressure, it that the C8 engine does not require a higher oil pressure.
Corvette Stories
The Best of Corvette for Corvette Enthusiasts
Every 2027 Corvette Engine Explained
Joe Kucinski
Designer Imagines A Corvette That Looks More Like a Corvette Than the Corvette
Verdad Gallardo
10 Ugly Corvettes That We Still Kinda Love
Joe Kucinski
Top 10 Most Expensive Corvettes Ever Sold on Bring A Trailer
Brett Foote
10 Things Every Corvette Owner Needs (2026 Edition)
Michael S. Palmer
8 Most "Only Corvette Owners Understand" Quirks and Problems
Pouria Savadkouei
10 Reasons the C6 Z06 is Still A Performance Benchmark After 20 Years
Joe Kucinski
How Much Horsepower Every Corvette Engine "LOST" in 1972
Joe Kucinski
Top 10 DOs and DON'Ts for Protecting Your Convertible Top!
Michael S. Palmer
E-Ray, 3LZ, ZER, LIFT
Joined: Sep 2007
Posts: 35,044
Likes: 12,410
From: NE South Carolina
You have a variable rate oil pump. It is designed to give you the minimum amount of oil pressure needed to cause the least amount of drag to give you the maximum mpg possible. Pretty common on a modern car.
Side note- both my 22 GT500 and 25 Dark Horse would go OVER 100psi at cold idle and driving and then drop to the high 30s hot idle.
Side note- both my 22 GT500 and 25 Dark Horse would go OVER 100psi at cold idle and driving and then drop to the high 30s hot idle.
Yep, like everything else in the C8, Alternator voltage etc it's controlled by a computer NOT the old max pressure bypass spring in meshed gear oil pump. All to reduce wasted energy.This is Pic from my C7 that had the similar. It's a variable volume pump not just when pressure gets to a limit a spring bypasses oil to the inlet like geared pumps of old! That still wastes energy.
Pic from C7 but C8 engine oil pump is similar. Not the old meshed gear pump with a fixed max pressure bypass spring and passage. It's truly a variable volume pump. So at cursing speeds with modest throttle, where less oil volume/pressure is needed even as rpm increases, the outer pump housing moves, and vanes pump less volume. When needed for WOT high hp it provides more volume resulting in higher pressure. Red shows how sliding vanes move as outer race moves.
Last edited by JerryU; Dec 14, 2025 at 10:23 AM.
E-Ray, 3LZ, ZER, LIFT
Joined: Sep 2007
Posts: 35,044
Likes: 12,410
From: NE South Carolina
FWIW if you are looking at the Battery voltage on the dash meter (really the alternator voltage.) Like oil pressure no longer a voltage regulator that limits how high a voltage the alternator could produce. All controlled by a computer! You may see a step change in voltage from ~14 volts when the computer is allowing the voltage to get to 80% battery charge capacity. Then it can jump to 13 volts just enough to power the sound system etc BUT not enough to change the battery past 80%. GM says for fuel economy as changing beyond 80% takes more energy and is not as efficient at charging to 80%. Most car manufactures are doing that to get the best EPA mpg rating!
Drifting
Joined: Sep 2020
Posts: 1,423
Likes: 639
From: Columbia SC
Why I ask about where the engine oil pressure sensor, is the PF64 engine oil filter has a pressure relief valve set to 22 psi. So if the oil pressure at the filter is 30 psi, most oil will bypass the filter media.
Race Director
Joined: Mar 2007
Posts: 11,445
Likes: 8,609
But I don't think that sensor alone is what is use to regulate the oil pressure. Oil pressure control is more complex than that.
"An oil passage from the camshaft bearing permits oil flow to the upper rear of the primary oil pump.. Oil is pumped through this passage and provides hydraulic pressure to the first stage oil pressure cavity in the primary oil pump. Hydraulic pressure in the first stage pressure cavity regulates engine oil pressure and can help reduce the load on the engine during normal operating conditions. " In other words its a direct feedback of hydraulic pressure to the pump that regulates the pressure, mechanically. But that's not all. There is also an engine oil pressure control solenoid valve (I think mounted on the oil pump housing somewhere) that also has a role in controlling oil pressure. It is controlled by the ECM "based on Engine Speed, Calculated Engine Oil Temperature, Engine Oil Pressure, Engine Run Time. When the solenoid valve is commanded Off, oil pressure is higher. When the solenoid valve is commanded On, oil pressure is lower"
Race Director
Joined: Aug 2016
Posts: 12,840
Likes: 10,252
From: Garden Valley CA
The oil pressure reading uses ambient pressure as a reference.
Drifting
Joined: Sep 2020
Posts: 1,423
Likes: 639
From: Columbia SC
Ahh .. thanks RKCLR .. I see what you mean. The filter would have to contaminated enough to reduce the press on the other side of the media by 22 psi. What the inlet absolute pressure is not relevant. .. I hated fluid dynamics..