Re: 1951 288 oil pressure

Posted by DrewLA On 2015/10/3 11:35:53

You're probably good to go. 35 psi idling right after startup isn't really a good test - until the engine is warmed up and the oil is to temperature, it's going to be thick and the pressure is going to be higher.

A few notes:
-10W-30 is the correct viscosity oil for these engines under most operating conditions and temperature ranges provided they aren't yet worn out. This oil didn't exist when your engine was originally manufactured, but if it had, that's what Packard would've recommended. In fact, after multi-weight oils had been on the market for a few years, Studebaker-Packard mentioned it in a service bulletin, and you can also reference the myriad of lube charts for your car and see that the lube manufacturers recommended 10W-30 as well.

Under no circumstances would I use an oil with a lower viscosity oil at operating temp, e.g. 5W-20.

You could, if you don't intend on driving the car in colder weather, go one step higher on viscosity. Many people on these forums (myself included) have had excellent results with mixed-fleet oils because they contain higher levels of anti-wear additives and more powerful detergents than current spec spark ignition oils. Mixed fleet oils are those intended for both diesel and gasoline engines, such as Chevron Delo 400LE, Mobil Delvac, and Shell Rotella Triple Protection. 15W-40 is a commonly used viscosity in these oils, but 10W-30 is also available in mixed-fleet brands. You can do a search of these forums to uncover a lot more information and discussion on engine oil recommendations.

-I am guessing here that you don't have an oil filter on your engine? If that's the case, pressures are going to be a few psi higher for you than many of us are seeing.

-17 psi at idle in gear is perfect, I probably wouldn't change a thing. You could, of course, be idling a little fast, in which case you'd see higher pressures than the factory spec'd. Check your idle speed once the engine is warmed up and set it to 375 rpm with the transmission in High and the parking brake on. That's a little slow for my taste, but if you want to compare your engine performance to factory specs, you need to set the engine to their recommendations. You can always go back to a slightly higher idle speed after you're done testing...