Yes, in park I don’t think having an oil pump in front is a big deal. Most every newer engine has an external oil pump in front. I think we (Buick guys with external front mounted pumps) have a pretty good handle how to improve the system for our purposes ( higher rpm/power than factory intended. The Buick pump is fine, it’s in the front, big deal, so is the beloved LS. Traditional Chevy V8’s have the pump in back and starve the front
Pretty much. The Mopar version seems robust enough, but the oil passageways into the pump are shorter/more direct than Buick's version. A submerged oil pump doesn't have to "suck" oil through long pickup tubes, and perhaps drilled and gasketed passageways. A 5-inch pickup tube press-fit or bolted to the pump, and under most conditions the oil level may be high enough that it more-or-less self-feeds. Other engines with a distributor-driven pump up front--Cadillac and Mopar B--RB--use an iron-bodied pump. The pump body expands much less as it warms-up, contracts much less as it cools off. If the aluminum pump body has clearance to the gears at Forty Below in January for Grandma on the farm, it's gonna be sloppy-loose when Junior runs the thing at the drags in July. Buick COULD have cut a groove in the block to use as an oil passage, instead of using the wear-surface of the cam bearing. Insane. Chevy screwed-up the same way, but fixed the problem in a few model years. Buick let it go on forever with their aluminum, small-block, and big-bock V8s. (Well, they began grooving the block on the V6 in...'86?) Adding to the problem is the overhung distributor-drive gear on the front of the cam, which adds to the load on that front cam bearing. Fixing those three things would have gone a long way towards making a better engine--an iron sleeve in the timing cover pocket for the pump gears, a groove in the block behind the front cam bearing, and adding another bearing in front of the camshaft to straddle-mount the distributor gear instead of letting it hang free and leverage load into the front cam bearing. A submerged oil pump would be better still. There's a heap of engines with crank-driven "front" oil pumps like the LS...starting with the Vega 2300, far as I know. The Buick V6 and the "Pontiac" Iron Duke did that, in later years. Those oil pumps spin twice as fast as a distributor-driven pump, maybe that makes priming them easier. I don't really know. A real oddball is the Rolls-Royce V8 from 1958 or so. Oil pump is gear- or chain-driven off the front of the crankshaft, at less than crankshaft RPM. They cut the RPM of the oil pump because "it was too noisy".
I'll bet some whiz kid could create a planetary overdrive that would fit between the oil pump drive gear and the distributor that would turn the pump faster. If there is room in the front cover, it wouldn't take a lot.
Just a point of interest, I run Amsoil Z-Rod 10/30 in my convertible, flat tappet 455. I had the oil analyzed a month back and even though the oil only had about 550 miles on it the stuff had also been run over the winter (ie , engine runs but no miles put on car) multiple times and was in the car for just over a year. Its a rough life, sits a lot, runs without driving car, then I run it aggressively over the summer.... Results were very good. I supplied a small sample of fresh Z rod oil too as they had never tested that particular stuff before so they did that as a baseline, the used oil had n0 oxidation and held up exceptionally well taking mileage into account, they were all quite impressed in the lab (friend works there and we did it just for interest sakes). Nothing to point out here other than Amsoil does make good stuff. I've had no issues.
That's what I am talking about. Amsoil is great synthetic oil. I use it too, 10w30 Zrod oil in my 455. VET
I am sure it's great oil. Their oil does well in extreme conditions too. Luckily my engine does not see those extreme conditions both in operation and in climate.
I think oil is like a lot of things, pretty much can't go wrong with any of them as long as you change it in good time and pick the right viscosity. Used to run GM dinsour oil (5/30) with a bottle of ZDDP in both cars, that worked fine too but figure the others give a little better protection for when they sit so much and the zinc is blended, not just added. Just so happens friend is an Amsoil dealer so I get a bit of a price break there and that helps. I run Valvoline VR1 10/30 in the stage 1, just because that engine has seals in it that are 25+ years old, probably not an issue but synthetic might not be the best choice.
That's a wive's tale. Amsoil makes Zrod 10w30 that is made specifically for our old classic cars with original Rope seals too. VET (Navy)
I would too, but my engine was rebuild just 3,500 miles ago. So everything I very fresh. I changed out the front crank rope seal to a neoprene. The rear rope seal is excellent, no leaks. VET
Understood. That is a good choice. I posted a video of my original 430ci in members rides 68-69 Cars today it runs quite smooth
