Building new motor.. would you stick with OE oil pump or go aftermarket?

[G.T]

i'm putting together a engine with the livernois 330ci Aluminum Shelby Shortblock.

Granted when done, the motor will have the potential to support some decent amount of power, but while i don't intend to go past an intake/tune and a smaller SC pulley any time soon, i might consider pushing it a bit further into the ~700hp region at a later stage.

So while i'm at it, i'm thinking now is a good time to upgrade the oil pump if necessary (given that the timing drive and front cover are removed)

Any recommendations for a tried and tested aftermarket oil pump that's more durable than the OE piece, or shall i just stick with the OE one?

 

[stkjock]

TSS billet gears are a must

the melling pump is a good unit as well

 

[G.T]

one thing i don't like about the factory pump is the lack of an O ring on the port where the pump meets the block, so if i'm to upgrade, i'd like to swap out the complete pump to one that's sturdier and has a precut groove for an O-Ring there.. the melling pump seems to have that

now i don't always think expensive is better, but for some reason i'm having such thoughts when i look at the TSS gears at ~$277 USD vs a melling complete pump assembly at ~$110.. this is kinda throwing me off :S

 

[Boozshey]

Where are you seeing a Melling's pump for $110?

Also you can get a GT500 Oil Pump with gears from TSS and the O-Ring...

Also did you know the Melling does not support our vtc and you'll have to get lockouts.

 

[94tbird]

i went with a gt500 oil pump with billet TSS gears. I think i will be perfect with this.

 

[G.T]

Boozshey: not sure if it's the same pump we're talking about, but going by the name and application, this is what i picked up after a quick googling around:

http://dagostinoracing.com/index.php?main_page=product_info&products_id=17782&currency=USD

Also worth mentioning this is a 5.4L 4v engine for a shelby, so no VCT to worry about..

 

[94tbird]

that pump does not have Billet Gears nor do i believe a stronger case. There is another Melling pump that is around 350 that has the billet gears. I would send that pump back and get the right one

 

[G.T]

that pump does not have Billet Gears nor do i believe a stronger case. There is another Melling pump that is around 350 that has the billet gears. I would send that pump back and get the right one

i didn't actually buy it..
when i said "this is what i picked up" i meant to say "this is what i found"

so what's the verdict? anybody out there with a built 5.4L engine can chime in?

 

[G.T]

so looks like i'll be going for the Melling pump..
any known issues with that on the 5.4L GT500 engine?
i ask because boozshey pointed out this could cause issues with the VCT on the 3v engine, so i wonder if there are known issues with the 4v..

 

[HARLEYDEALER]

I would go with at least an o ring pump. Here is a picture of my old and new pump. To me it appears that the stock pump had a very bad finish on the surface allowing oil to pass though. I believe this was the reason why my crank and rod bearing wore out in 5000 miles, I agree that I have push her hard, but not any harder than some. At 5000 miles I installed a mechanical gauge, due to rod rattle, my stock gauge showed a little low oil pressure but the mechanical gauge show only 10 to 12 pounds at the highest and that was at idle, higher rpm's showed 10 pounds. Bill

 

[HARLEYDEALER]

Here are few pictures of the main bearings.Not sure how that rear suspension picture got here. Bill

 

[Dread53]

I'm a bit confused on the 'won't support vct' comment. How does the oil pump have any relation to vct unless it's running lower pressure / volume?

 

[Boozshey]

i ask because boozshey pointed out this could cause issues with the VCT on the 3v engine, so i wonder if there are known issues with the 4v..

The billet melling pump is the one I was talking about. I also was ignorant to the fact this was the 4v... So sorry to lead you astray.

I'm a bit confused on the 'won't support vct' comment. How does the oil pump have any relation to vct unless it's running lower pressure / volume?

My understanding is that if you use the 4V melling pump you have to lock out your VCT.

 

[US-1]

Use an OE pump with the billet gears. Or just call TSS and get the oil pump assembled with the o-ring and billet gears.

 

[G.T]

HARLEYDEALER: that's the first thing i noticed when i took it apart, i thought i misplaced a gasket somewhere.. till i checked the service manual and the parts diagram and verified the OE application doesn't have one!

Dread53: my understanding is that VCT is pretty Dependant on the oil volume/pressure.. so any higher flowing pump could cause issues with it.

US-1: i was considering a TSS pump because of the O-ring advantage..
Then again the Melling pump comes with the stronger casing..

if the Melling billet gear pump came with an O-Ring on the pressure discharge port, i probably wouldn't have made this thread

 

[US-1]

Then again the Melling pump comes with the stronger casing...

The pump housing is not the problem.

 

[G.T]

The pump housing is not the problem.

Then TSS it is..
thanks bud, i really value your opinion

 

[US-1]

Be sure you LIGHTLY coat the o-ring with motor oil before installing the pump. Just enough so it is not dry. And 100 inch pounds on the bolts.