Nosheruk

At present I have a 160 stat in my cooling system and it sits happily at 160 no matter what temp is outside so no issues.
After reading up, i am looking to change it to a 180.
Question is, how much of a difference is a 20 deg operating temperature going to affect oil pressure?
I do have pretty good oil pressure too.
Stock 1978 L82 pace car.
Thanks

Jebbysan

Next to nothing. Why are you changing it?

Jebby

Nosheruk

From what i have read on here it will run better at 180 deg.
GM designed it to run at 180 to 195 ish temps and It will burn off moisture etc in the oil and cause less engine wear.
I have a Dewitt rad on so should not have any cooling issues.

regards

Norman

HeadsU.P.

What that fella Jebby said ^^^^^^^^.

I am a firm believer, to start cooling an engine as soon as possible within reason, >150>160* on those old non-computer cars.
Everyone knows it won't stay there (160) but at least you began cooling early.

And if a engine truly ran better at 180-195 you would see everybody getting their engines nice & hot in the drag strip staging lanes.

7T1vette

The theory that "the cooler and engine runs, the longer it will last" is merely a THEORY. There is some truth in it, until the cooling goes too far. Higher temps help boil off any condensed water in the engine block/oil pan. It also helps reduce drag by lowering oil viscosity. You are correct that Chevy Engineering designed the SBC engine for 180* operating temps. So, in my mind, that is the optimum temp for the engine with the conditions being used by those designers.

Today we have synthetic oils which have very low viscosity [relative to recommended orgainic oils of the 1970's], but which greatly reduce engine wear and improve life. So, what temp you choose to operate your engine should take those factors (and others, I'm sure) into account. If you are still using 10W30 organic oil in your engine, 180*F is the right place to be (IMO).

Rescue Rogers

If your temp gaue is correct and it is running at 160* , leave it an get a temp gauge and see what your oil temp is. Cool water temp would suggest cooler cylinders and that is good for compression and efficiency. Hot oil is good for gettiing it moving through the bearings and keeping them cool. If you watch the hotrod shows and look at the Dyno gauges they try and keep the engine temp below 150 and the oil temp above 200. As they increase temp the HP goes down, merely because of thermal expansion in the cylinder head. It becomes hotter so it wont suck in as much air fuel charge naturally. Think of a storm coming in on a windy day.....

CanadaGrant

You say you are running a Dewitts rad. I also use one on my 69 427 and if I run a 160 stat, it runs at 160 degrees. If I run a 180 stat it runs at 180. I also think that running a 160 stat is too cool if your motor will actually run that and with the Dewitts, it probably will.