Where can I get that kb oil pressure boost plate? I saw a post on here about one somewhere. My oil pressure is 9-10lbs at idle hot but it does go with rpms. I just got this car and have talked to a couple of other people with GN's and they said they don't have much oil pressure at idle. Is this true., or did I just get a car with a bad engine. 87 GN with 100k miles.
oil pressure boost plate
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malibuick231
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booster plate
i have a booster plate on my car now but had a melling high volume kit on my 86 and i liked it better. the booster plate doesnt seem like it does much after the engine heats up. plus you can get the melling kit at any parts house just make shure your clearence is right when you put it back together.
i have a booster plate on my car now but had a melling high volume kit on my 86 and i liked it better. the booster plate doesnt seem like it does much after the engine heats up. plus you can get the melling kit at any parts house just make shure your clearence is right when you put it back together.
9-10#s for a stock pump is about right. Normal is 10#s per 1000rpm, however that seems a little scary to me. The KB booster plate is nice piece, I have had one before and had 17psi hot idle, and about 40#s at about 2000rpm. The melling kit is an 1/4" extension housing you install on the orignal housing, but it uses the original wear surface for the new gears, as I recall,,,, I have one but choose not to use it. Pump cover to gear clearance is what gives you the oil pressure, off course.
I'm pretty sure Melling also makes a booster plate too, available at most Auto parts places, but I think the "ports" didn't line up wonderfully. The KB piece is better, IMO. Also, any plate will require some modification to the pump cover(it's not difficult with a moto tool.)
HTH
I'm pretty sure Melling also makes a booster plate too, available at most Auto parts places, but I think the "ports" didn't line up wonderfully. The KB piece is better, IMO. Also, any plate will require some modification to the pump cover(it's not difficult with a moto tool.)
HTH
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That is the reason T/A Performance has the booster plate made to their specs, the usual parts store ones also are sometimes also not very flat. T/A also has a gasket shim kit available so the exact pump-to-plate clearance can be set.
P
PowerV6
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you might be able to gain a few extra psi by keeping temps @ 160....my car loses oil pressure as Temps get higher, at one point when hitting 200 it gets scary, once i got the car to stay @ 160...oil pressure stays @ 15psi @1000 rpm, still not the best but just an idea
No leaks on either of my 2 cars and both have booster plates...I did get the front covers on both reworked by T/A Performance so whatever they did to seal the pump cover works...I don't see why you couldn't give them a call and ask how they seal it...
malibuick231
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booster plate
all the booster plate does is restrict the bypass and by that you get higher oil pressure thats why it drops off so much when the oil heats up. the best thing would be a high volume cover but they are about 180$ i think. so you can get the high volume kit from melling that does the same thing for about 25$ as rar as the pump cover just get a flat surface and sand it out or go to a gm dealer and get another one ithink they are about 50$. you will get less pressure drop when the heats up. to use the booster plate you use your stock gasket and the one they send with it. mine runs 30 psi at 1000rpms and 50 psi at 2800 rpms at170deg but i also have done alot of work to my cover and i only have about 15000 miles on the car.
all the booster plate does is restrict the bypass and by that you get higher oil pressure thats why it drops off so much when the oil heats up. the best thing would be a high volume cover but they are about 180$ i think. so you can get the high volume kit from melling that does the same thing for about 25$ as rar as the pump cover just get a flat surface and sand it out or go to a gm dealer and get another one ithink they are about 50$. you will get less pressure drop when the heats up. to use the booster plate you use your stock gasket and the one they send with it. mine runs 30 psi at 1000rpms and 50 psi at 2800 rpms at170deg but i also have done alot of work to my cover and i only have about 15000 miles on the car.
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Re: booster plate
Having done LOTS of covers/pumps for Buick motors over the years, I would have to dis-agree on the "best thing" is a high volume pump. We can obtain similar oil pressure readings by "blueprinting" and modifying a stock cover. Gene already said this above. Actually, I have seen what you quoted with stock, undisturbed pumps on good motors.
Done properly, the plate does not restrict bypass. Since the gears now ride on a steel surface, it helps pressure. It is important to be sure the gaskets and plate line up properly so flow is not disturbed.
The HV pump require more HP and still does not increase flow if the cover is not modified. This added drag has been known to take out many Buick cam gears, hence, new cam required. It is also very hard on distributors and cam sensors.
If low oil pressure is a problem, the reason is usually something in the motor. Or did Gene say this too?
Since the pump cover is now a dis-continued dealer item, a good booster plate make even more sense.
Having done LOTS of covers/pumps for Buick motors over the years, I would have to dis-agree on the "best thing" is a high volume pump. We can obtain similar oil pressure readings by "blueprinting" and modifying a stock cover. Gene already said this above. Actually, I have seen what you quoted with stock, undisturbed pumps on good motors.
Done properly, the plate does not restrict bypass. Since the gears now ride on a steel surface, it helps pressure. It is important to be sure the gaskets and plate line up properly so flow is not disturbed.
The HV pump require more HP and still does not increase flow if the cover is not modified. This added drag has been known to take out many Buick cam gears, hence, new cam required. It is also very hard on distributors and cam sensors.
If low oil pressure is a problem, the reason is usually something in the motor. Or did Gene say this too?
Since the pump cover is now a dis-continued dealer item, a good booster plate make even more sense.
malibuick231
Member
- Joined
- Apr 23, 2002
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i agree with most of what you said
i agree with with what you say on the suface ware but i also said your clerances had to be right in the post above. i have never seen a high volume pump do damage to the cam or the cam senser. there are plenty of cars here with modern muscle covers they have the same gears as the melling kit. they run higher oil press than i do on older engines. i also agree that low oil press is caused by internal ware because the stock cover is good for a 100000 plus miles or this many car would not run this long the way i see it the plate or a high volume kit are to enhance oil press or try to extend the life of a worn out engine.
i agree with with what you say on the suface ware but i also said your clerances had to be right in the post above. i have never seen a high volume pump do damage to the cam or the cam senser. there are plenty of cars here with modern muscle covers they have the same gears as the melling kit. they run higher oil press than i do on older engines. i also agree that low oil press is caused by internal ware because the stock cover is good for a 100000 plus miles or this many car would not run this long the way i see it the plate or a high volume kit are to enhance oil press or try to extend the life of a worn out engine.
