Establishing oil level on K1800 R400 QED dry sump engine?

[Sam Livingstone]

First post here (member for many years though...); occurs to me that I'm not 100% sure how to be sure that the oil level on my K1800 R400 engine is exactly as it should be...

There is a post from a few years back ("DRY SUMP OIL LEVEL") that covers this - but I am supposing that any steel-rule type dip-stick measure is dependent on the specific tank (mine is a Pace motorsports cylindrival aluminium tank - engine build by QED).   

Grateful for any advise on this..! 

 

Sam

[7 wonders of the world]

If your running the Pace DS tank at the end of the passenger footwell the level check is straight forward, with the engine running and oil hot the oil level should be 10-15mm below the top baffle in the tank when viewed thro the oil filler cap on the tank  -  easy as that.

[ECR]

Agree ...

But its often difficult to see the level with the engine running.If so, turn the engine off and check immediately (the drainback is negligible)

[Paul Mason]

Can be a little tricky (possibly as my eyes are poor) but have a torch handy to shine through the top of the tank

[Sam Livingstone]

Great - thanks for this all; very useful...!

Sam

[TomGaval]

I have a QED built Kseries with the Caterham bell housing oil tank, so not quite apples to apples, but the method I use to determine the correct oil level is to fill it until it pukes into the catch tank.  Works well for me.   Tom

[blueyedbiker]

I was once told by a wily old race engineer that the oil feed in the bottom of the tank to the HP pump should be central, ie the tapping should have a tube which brings the pick up into the centre of the tank.  Under sustained, high, lateral or longitudinal G forces (Gerrards at Mallory) the oil level in the tank will be more or less vertical, therefore as long as the tank is more than half full when all the galleries are full you should always have the oil pick up covered.  It worked in my old K powered Mallock.