Oil level on aftermarket oil pan?

[Daniel Lorenz]

Hi,
can't find any instructions on my Moroso 20502 oil pan (front sump 7qt) what level the oil reading should be on.
If I "only" fill until the square part of the oil pan is full then i'm guaranteed to be below any moving parts with the level atleast, and could still get a reading from dipstick from 1/4 npt bung. (arrowed in red in picture below)
But if i raise the level, will the oil even fill upp in the oil stick so i can read a higher level?

How do I determine the correct level when the pan is already installed? (I do have a separate block being prepped for racing specs, so i could measure crank height on that if that is the way forward)

 

[David Garton]

Daniel, Does your engine still have the factory hole in the timing cover with the tube for factory dipstick? That would be the height to measure. Just because you add capacity the height level would still be as the factory spec dipstick would read. Hope this makes sense.

David

 

[Walter]

Exactly as David says! For the original (factory) setup determine the oil level relative to some reference point. (e.g. dipstick mark). Maintain this distance for the new pan. Key is to keep the crank shaft away from the oil and, at the same time, provide sufficient oil (aided by baffles, trap doors, etc.) to avoid oil pump cavitation. Depending on oil pan design you may get away with a lower oil level. All this assumes that the oil pan is all you've changed. If you run another crank shaft as well this has to be taken into account.

 

[Walter]

from my own experience: a larger (wet) sump must be combined with a proper baffle/trap-door design

 

[Daniel Lorenz]

Ok, I have followed your logics and measured the spare block and dip stick i got and the max level indication from the Ford mustang block is 105mm from oil pan surface against block.
Minimum level is 115mm from the same surface.
Measured this on the oilpan in the car and it translates to 20-30mm above the boxed section of the tray, and indeed means oil will sit above dipstick bung level.
Bad design if you ask me, but oh well.

@Walter it is indeed baffled properly to battle sloshing oil.

 

[Bill Kearley]

With a 50 gal oil drum under your engine you can still use the stock dip stick and oil pump pic-up tube.

 

[Walter]

Ok, I have followed your logics and measured the spare block and dip stick i got and the max level indication from the Ford mustang block is 105mm from oil pan surface against block.
Minimum level is 115mm from the same surface.
Measured this on the oilpan in the car and it translates to 20-30mm above the boxed section of the tray, and indeed means oil will sit above dipstick bung level.
Bad design if you ask me, but oh well.

@Walter it is indeed baffled properly to battle sloshing oil.

After looking at the Moroso 20502 oil pan I have another suggestion of how you may proceed (along my comment ``Depending on oil pan design you may get away with a lower oil level."): it is a 7-quart pan, indicating it should be supplied with 7 quarts of oil. What is the oil capacity of the original setup - 7 quarts or less??? In this case I would fill in 7 quarts and determine the new oil level (and the new dip stick marking) from there - provided proper distance to the crank shaft is observed. Will this solve your dipstick bung level problem?

 

[Michael]

After looking at the Moroso 20502 oil pan I have another suggestion of how you may proceed (along my comment ``Depending on oil pan design you may get away with a lower oil level."): it is a 7-quart pan, indicating it should be supplied with 7 quarts of oil. What is the oil capacity of the original setup - 7 quarts or less??? In this case I would fill in 7 quarts and determine the new oil level (and the new dip stick marking) from there - provided proper distance to the crank shaft is observed. Will this solve your dipstick bung level problem?

This how I did it last year when I replaced my pan with a 6.5 qt Aviaid. Started with 6.5 qts, made note of the level on the dipstick, which happened to be the min fill line. Then I prefilled the remote filters measuring how much I put in each, ran the motor for a few minutes and then topped it off to the beginning fill line. In my case it was just under 8 qts total.