Hello all! I think I have an oil pump replacement in my future for my Camaro but I thought I'd see about getting a second opinion on this.

Engine:

1968 307
​​​​​​1985 Camaro HO heads
Edelbrock intake and carb 600Cfm
Timing gear driven
Lunati voodoo cam mild
5qt oil pan
Stock oil pump (I believe)

I have put about 400 miles on the engine since I built it

When I run the engine, my oil pressure pings to the max. I've been having oil leaks around the back of the motor by the edge of the oil pan.

​​​​​I hooked up an aftermarket gauge that reads 120psi for oil and I am getting 95psi at cold idle and when I drive it it will go to about 105psi. Warmed up the engine keeps that oil pressure it never goes down.

From what I have been researching up on is that the relief spring in my oil pump might be stuck. Or maybe I might have the oil pickup screen too close to the bottom of the pan?

Any ideas? I plan on doing the work this weekend so I'd appreciate any and all feedback. Thanks everyone!


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Sounds like a stuck relief valve. The spring itself can't "stick"; but the valve it pushes on, surely can. So yeah, unfortunately it seems like there's some oil pump work in your future.

You can probably un-stick it and re-use the pump, but pumps are cheeeep, so ... I would however recommend getting a IS-55E drive rod, to replace the stoooopid plastic sleeve that's about the only other thing about a SBC or BBC oil pump that ever fails.



To fix the oil leak permanently, take off the rear main bearing and put a VERY THIN (emphasis on THIN) schmeer of RTV on the driver's side of the rear main cap register surface, since pressurized oil is present in a passage that crosses that divide and is contained, or not, by it. Work just a little bit into the corner of the "step" to keep it from seeping. See the diagram below for a crappy but still useful representation of the oil passages at the rear of a SBC block.



You can see how the passage from the oil pump output up through the rear main cap, crosses the mating surface of the cap to the block. DEFINITE potential for a leeeeeek.

 

This is what I got and i was thinking the same thing it is not too expensive to go all new. Thank you for your info and I will go thin on the rtv for sure where you told me to be

 

This is what I'm going with

Thank you for your reply and tips I will post back and let you know how it goes!

 

Unhappy to report that I still have the exact same problem. A new oil pump did not solve it

This is frustrating...

 

Sorry to hear
Hope you get it solved

 

I've never heard of an engine having too much oil pressure with a standard oil pump...