High Oil pressure causing leaks in 351W

[DirtDonk]

Got it. Sorry I missed your point.

 

[sprdv1]

I get your point, but me thinking that I have a 7 quart pan, I would put one quart of treatment and 6 quarts of oil. Maybe I'm not explaining myself very well.

you alright

 

[kat]

you alright

LOL, I think so. Other than I think I've been putting to much oil in my motor. Did I say something wrong??

 

[sprdv1]

LOL, I think so. Other than I think I've been putting to much oil in my motor. Did I say something wrong??

lol, of course not.. Never can ask too many questions, or learn something every day .. Applies to all of us

 

[ba123]

I get your point, but me thinking that I have a 7 quart pan, I would put one quart of treatment and 6 quarts of oil. Maybe I'm not explaining myself very well.

This is my 7 qt pan. It’s huge, has a drain plug on each end like someone else mentioned. Yours does not look like a 7qt but always hard to tell in pics.

It also needs a special pump extension because it’s so deep.

 

[Timmy390]

I know of no factory Ford 7 Q pan. My Shelby hold like 10Q's but that's a whole different animal. Not saying there isn't one but not even my 390FE has a 6 Q pan. It's a 5 but there was a service bulletin from ford saying run 6Q's and I have a windage tray so double gasket. 6Q don't overfill it.

The Fox guys all run 7 Q pans for high RPM's so they don't suck the pan dry or get foam sucked into the pump. The il can't drain back quick enough so they need more capacity.

As to the oil treatments.....run what you want. Never touch the stuff in any of my engines. In transmissions and rear ends? Sure but not inside my engine. I run all my new cars to and over 200K before trading. The last one (5.3L LS) had 214K on it. Oil changed per the DIC. Never gave me any issues. Just traded the wifes car. 200K and no issues.....

Tim

 

[kat]

I run a 96 van 351w with van pan and it calls for 6 quart with filter change.

Tim

Thanks for the clarification. But would over filling by 1 quart be considered overfilling? Would the 5/20 oil be to light? I live in Florida so it gets warm down here. The motor is a roller engine and that is the weight it calls for. Im just frustrated. Im thinking I should run a total of 5 quarts and see what happens. Hopefully, I will get to change oil next week.

 

[Timmy390]

Thanks for the clarification. But would over filling by 1 quart be considered overfilling? Would the 5/20 oil be to light? I live in Florida so it gets warm down here. The motor is a roller engine and that is the weight it calls for. Im just frustrated. Im thinking I should run a total of 5 quarts and see what happens. Hopefully, I will get to change oil next week.

Well if it says 6 quarts and you add 7 then you've put more in than recommended right To me it's over filled. Is that your issue? Probably not. Like I said in another post...I run 6 quarts in my 390fe and even ford said to do so.

I would do the easy stuff first. Reseal the oil pressure extension, verify your pcv is in good working order. Make sure your valve covers have the baffle around the pcv and verify the valve cover mounting flanges are flat.

Oil weight is is up to you. I run Rottela T4 15w40 in my W and my 390fe.

Tim

 

[kat]

Well if it says 6 quarts and you add 7 then you've put more in than recommended right To me it's over filled. Is that your issue? Probably not. Like I said in another post...I run 6 quarts in my 390fe and even ford said to do so.

I would do the easy stuff first. Reseal the oil pressure extension, verify your pcv is in good working order. Make sure your valve covers have the baffle around the pcv and verify the valve cover mounting flanges are flat.

Oil weight is is up to you. I run Rottela T4 15w40 in my W and my 390fe.

Tim

Thank you for all your help Tim. Since I have your attention, what oil dipstick are you using? Mine has a T Handle at the top. I BELIEVE it came with the oil pan.

 

[Timmy390]

Thank you for all your help Tim. Since I have your attention, what oil dipstick are you using? Mine has a T Handle at the top. I BELIEVE it came with the oil pan.

The really long one that came with the 96 van. Did I mention it's long? I bet it's close to 3 feet lol. Yes T handle

Tim

 

[kat]

The really long one that came with the 96 van. Did I mention it's long? I bet it's close to 3 feet lol. Yes T handle

Tim

Ok, thats the one Im using. Yes it is long, but easy to get to. LOL

 

[bmc69]

I put Lucas in everything I have driven for decades. And back in the 80s I put STP in every oil change. My 260k F150 that I put oil treatment in since new would disagree with you. But I do agree that the oil gauge in dash is probably not correct since hardly anything is correct in my dash cluster.

And I've been an engine builder for decades. What I said stands..you are NOT helping an engine with normal clearances by running a quart of Lucas in the oil.

As for you leaks....sounds like overfilling with oil has been tracked down as the cause? That sure will do it. A full extra quart is WAYYY overfilling. I run my 400s about 1/2 quart below the "F" line on purpose, to reduce oil leakage, but the 400 actually does hold 6 quarts plus a little more.

 

[Broncobowsher]

6+1 in a pan that calls for only 6 is overfilled.

As for oil pressure and thickening additives... Oil pressure is the resistance to flow. In a normal engine with good clearances you have good oil pressure because the tight bearings are like your finger over the end of a garden hose to make it spray. The bearings are the restriction that makes the oil pressure. As the bearings wear the restriction lessens. Oil flows better through the bigger gap. Now you run heavy weight oil (or worn out engine goop) to slow the flow of oil out of the worn bearings. You are making up lost bearing material with thick oil that doesn't want to flow out of the bearing. So what about running the thickening additives to an engine with good tight bearings? You get really good oil pressure. Pressure from the lack of flow of oil. Oil isn't flowing like it should, backs up, pressure relief valve in the oil pump is bypassing oil. Some is still getting through the engine, but not the flow that it should have.

The thickening additives are fine for a worn out engine that has bearing so sloppy that normal oil flow bleeds out. No issues using it for that. Take that worn out engine and stretch extra life out of it. I have nothing against 100+ PSI of oil pressure either, so long as it is thin oil and actually flowing through the engine and not just excess pressure from the lack of flow.

 

[DirtDonk]

I’m not sure Lucas is actually a thickener in this case.
Is it?
Seems like it’s one of the thinner additives with solvents for keeping things clean. But I could be wrong since I haven’t really used it much myself.
But I’m pretty sure it’s not a “viscosity improver“ like STP or Motor Honey are.

 

[Timmy390]

I’m not sure Lucas is actually a thickener in this case.
Is it?
Seems like it’s one of the thinner additives with solvents for keeping things clean. But I could be wrong since I haven’t really used it much myself.
But I’m pretty sure it’s not a “viscosity improver“ like STP or Motor Honey are.

Lucas Oil Stabilizer is a 100% petroleum product (there's a synthetic version too) formulated to eliminate dry starts and reduce friction, heat and wear in any type of engine. It allows motor oils a higher degree of lubricity which reduces oil consumption and operating temperatures.

I don't claim to be smart not am I that said.....from the display at the part store counter where you turn the crank and that spins two series of gears stacked vertically, one with Lucas and one with just oil, the Lucas travels to the top and once you stop cranking it stays on the gears. The oil does not travel to the top and drains back quickly.

That tells me the flow characteristics with the Lucas is sticky and thicker or not...if it's sticking to everything as it flows it has to in turn cause more pressure due to the sticky resistance right? The statement "formulated to eliminate dry starts and reduce friction" means it sticks to everything as in doesn't drain back completely leaving a thicker coating then untreated oil.

None of the guys I know that race use any additives other than for breakin. They all use synthetics.....

Tim

 

[jamesroney]

To me it's over filled. Is that your issue? Probably not. Like I said in another post...I run 6 quarts in my 390fe and even ford said to do so.

I'm with Timmy390 on this one. I once changed the oil on a 1973 Mercury Capri with a 2.6L V6. I was 14 years old. It was a team effort for myself and my older sister. I did the filter, and drained the old oil. She added the new oil and recycled the waste oil. She didn't know how much to put in the engine. So she asked my dad, and my brother. The oil filter was smaller than a normal FL-1A, and there was a debate and some argument before it was determined that 5 quarts was the "correct" amount. (The specification was 4 LITERS) My brother (begrudgingly) added 5 full quarts to the crankcase per the directive from my dad. A short time later, unknown to anyone....my sister added 5 full quarts to the crankcase. This resulted in 10 full quarts of motor oil. Turns out that the metric to English conversion was not so easy back then.

Never leaked a drop. Ran perfect in the driveway. But every once in a while, under the right circumstances, the motor oil level would flood the PCV valve, and fill the exhaust with oil. Not just a little bit of oil, but OMG, what happened, did someone try to smoke out all of the mosquitos with a white cloud of in-penetrable vapor? It drove my dad absolutely nuts. We could NEVER figure out what was going on. Only did it sometimes, but when it happened, it was epic. Neighbors would come over and ask "what's wrong with that car?" This went on for a while.

Finally, about a month later, my dad decided to change the oil himself. 5 quart drain pan, and 10 quarts in the engine. You know how this ends. I will say that regardless of how sticky or viscous the oil might be, 5 quarts of oil on the garage floor will pretty much cover the whole thing. You do not have enough rags in your garage to sop it up.

I'm still not sure exactly how this ended up being my fault, but I sure heard an earful...

 

[DirtDonk]

Great story, James! Definitely a “family thing“ that many have experienced.

 

[kat]

Well seems my oil breather baffle has broken off. I'm lucky it didn't do any damage. I'm hoping these things are interchangeable from a stock one. These are Scott Drake aluminum. covers.

 

[bmc69]

I’m not sure Lucas is actually a thickener in this case.
Is it?

Hugely so.

 

[DirtDonk]

I'm hoping these things are interchangeable from a stock one. These are Scott Drake aluminum. covers.

Highly doubtful. But will be interesting to find out for certain.
The factory valve cover probably has not only a different design, but probably different mounting points as well.
But it's been a long time since I've flipped one over and taken a peek.
Let us know what you find.

Paul