HAVE QUESTIONS? WE GOT YOU.

Welcome to our Frequently Asked Questions page, where we provide quick answers to common inquiries about our car parts, ordering process, shipping, and warranty policies. Whether you’re a mechanic, auto shop, or DIY enthusiast, you’ll find the information you need to keep your project moving smoothly.

What stroke will our pans clear?

All of our steel oil pans will clear a 4 1/8” stroke, depending on which rods are being used. We suggest to turn the motor over by hand to check for any interferrence.
What front oil pan seal does your pan use with the timing cover?

All our steel pans use the thick front seal. Our aluminum pans use silicone seals.
What should the clearance be between the pan and the oil pickup?

You can calculate the clearance by measuring the internal pan depth and measuring the distance from the block's pan rails to pickup bottom. The difference between the two measurements will provide the pickup to pan clearance. Gaskets will add some additional clearance. We recommend clearances for all pans to be 1/4" - 1/2" depending on the thickness of the gasket used.
Why use a louvered windage tray?

Windage trays are louvered to reduce windage horsepower loss and to provide quicker drainback for oil thrown from crankshaft at high rpm. The louvered design allows oil thrown from rotating assembly to drain into sump without splashing back.
What is the drain plug size?

Our drain plugs use a 1/2-20.
What is the bigger hole on top of our kickout oil pans?

The bigger hole is for an oil temperature sending unit. It is a 1/2" NPT.
What gasket do you recommend?

All of our steel Small Block Chevrolet oil pans use the thick front seal gasket. You will have to make sure you get the correct gasket for the year block you have (SBC 1986-2003 one piece rear main seal vs SBC 1957-1985 two piece rear main seal).

We recommend the following gaskets:

SBC 1957-1985 two piece seal: https://allstarperformance.com/sbc-oil-pan-gasket-set-all87220/ (you will have to cut out for dipstick notch if it is in oil pan core)

SBC 1986-2003 one piece seal: https://www.summitracing.com/parts/nal-10108676

We recommend this gasket for our Chevrolet LS1 oil pans: https://www.summitracing.com/parts/fel-os30693r

For our aluminum Small Block Chevrolet oil pans, we suggest you use RTV silicone in black or gray. You can also use the thin side rail gaskets with the silicone.

Here is an in-depth article about gasket selection:

https://www.speedwaymotors.com/the-toolbox/sbc-thick-and-thin-oil-pan-gaskets-which-do-i-need/28651
What studs would you recommend to use on your fabricated aluminum valve covers?

We recommend using:

- 1/4"-20 x 1-1/2" Hex Drive Cup Point Grade 18-8 Stainless Steel Socket Set Screw (Fastenal # 73264)

- 1/4"-20 Zinc Non-serrated Flange Nut (Fastenal # 11649-07122)

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