Here we go again... Getting conflicting advice about how much oil to run. Being told on one side to run 8 quarts as it will help keep the oil cool. Being told on the other side to run 5 or 6 quarts in an 8 quart pan for more HP and to keep less oil on the crank. I'm a novice and would appreciate input and we are going though our first big build and on many subjects we are hearing conflicting advice from highly recommended professionals that have been making their living doing this for 30+ years.

Thanks,

I meet them half way and go 7

dont forget some of the oil is in the passages/filter,about 1.5qts.i run as much as i can as long as it wont get past the rings.i dont allways do things correctly either.

FIRST ... you have to confirm the size. And if it is TRULY 8 quarts ...as stated above ... 7 is a good #.

it depends on the amount of restricting you do on the top of motor,,i have always run restrictors, some dont ,
but i take the oil pan,, with windage tray, fill til right below, the tray,
i know the engine not running and will lower the oil level another,1'
that way there is room for the crank to scavenge off excess oil,
on my 8 quart, it usually 7 quarts, never went to 6, alltho, it may work for you .

Some engines have drainback issues and need all the oil they can get to keep from sucking the pan dry. Some can use less for a little less windage which can result in some free horsepower. Every combo can be different so there is no one good answeer. I'd start with 8 quarts and work down.

I run a Moroso 8-qt. pan and have raced w/6 quarts many times w/out issues in my 470 BB. Always had oil pressure at the stripe.........

I look at it like this. Unless you are going for a national record and you need that last .05 second, run what the pan is. You never know how much is the upper portion of the engine, why take a chance? I would rather go okay, no problems, than oh ####, I should have put the extra oil in the engine. Besides, it will help it run cooler.

When I raced, I would always run as much oil as the pan would allow. For example, I used a 10 quart pan of two designs on 330 to 345 cu. in. motors and always used a windage tray of several designs. Never had bearing issues even at 9700 RPM.

A friend of mine who had a Pro Stock Ford and who would do anything to win (He was also really smart and worked very hard at racing) once said to me "do you want to pump oil or win races". He ran two quarts in a 10 quart 351C pan with restrictors. He changed bearings after the final round.

Today, I think 6 quarts is plenty for any drag racing engine with a properly designed oil pan. I'd still use a windage tray.

For any engine going for very high RPM, I'd restrict oil to the lifters, add oil to the valve springs and make sure it returns to the sump.

As for oil, I swear almost anything that doesn't foam to much will work fine. That said I'd probably use something in the 30 weight range in a diesel formulation. Synthetic is fantastic stuff and I think it is a great deal for someone who only changes their oil every 20,000 miles, but I'm not sure it is that much different from general purpose oils today.

I have added oil to a engine on the dyno to see what your talking about, no HP or torque loss running one more quart than the pan size was. That was after running the motor to break in the cam and changing oil. Made 10 or 12 pulls and then did that test

There is a reason the pan holds a certain volume of oil...

If the pan with filter is 8 qts,then run 8 qts.

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I have added oil to a engine on the dyno to see what your talking about, no HP or torque loss running one more quart than the pan size was.

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Dont forget that the oil will behave differently with 1/4 mile G forces.

AS long as you keep the crankshaft from beating the oil, run as much as you can. I went from running 8 qts in a Moroso deep pan to running 10 qts in a Milodon pan and LOWERED the oil level in the engine by over a inch. Whatever pan you run, always run a windage tray.

Brian Dunnigan

Better safe than sorry, I'd go w/7 qts

You could install a bigger filter and run 7 quarts - which will lower the oil level in the pan. I've been doing it this way with no issues.