Hi Guys, Just a few questions for advice: 1. Anyone know the reliability of a RB30 oil pump? 2. With the engine pulled apart, is there any way to check if the oil pump is still good? 3. Is it a common rule of thumb to change it while the engine is apart? Engine done 300,000Ks. 4. Any oil pumps to recommend? What price is fair for a good oil pump? (Was supposed to get my engine back last week, but mechanic busy... So I better decide quick) I hope to hear some advice soon, thanks heaps.

there reliable to inspect them simpy strip them and look for bite marks or deep scratches on the housings if theres none then pack it and put it back in ready for another 300,000 lol Some original photos have not been recovered yet.

They are a pretty reliable item but, the internal dynamic metal seal wears so the idle pressure can drop and the spring that provides the relief can shorten so you get less max pressure. The only real way to test them is to attach a proper oil pressure gauge as the factory sender is woefully unreliable and if there is a fault will read high ! If its for a n/a motor its likely ok to take a punt and have the mechanic re-assemble the motor but if its a turbo then best to get a recond pump as they arent that expensive either way best to verify idle pressure (when hot) and max pressure with a proper gauge...

thanks heaps guys. my pump was ok, but not perfect, so im gna order a pump either gts-t or gtr depending on price. cheers.

get recoed turbo pumps for like 150 these days thats all you need

Where can u get vlt oil pumps ?

after a day at heathcote my oil pump is shagged. i think its from too much limiter abuse. So where does one get the reco gear sets from?

Beg pardon ? Oil pump is dead simple set of two gears and a spring relief, wont get shagged by a limiter What makes you think your pump is not working, got a fully working sender ? Some original photos have not been recovered yet.

or get an rb25 unit keen to know where to get these VLT gearsets from? can they be slotted into an na pump? Some original photos have not been recovered yet.

no, the gear sets dont swap. there are about 8 different RB pumps and they all are slightly different we use new pumps on all our engine jobs at work as the sintered meatal gears can shatter with no warning. the warranty implications are such, its not worth a proper shop using an old pump if a new one can be bought. on perforamce RB engines, we widen the drive flats on the crank, to liower the risk of gear shattering (common on RB's once pressure is increased). PM me if you need help to get a new pump at a sensible price

my pump is shagged from limiter abuse as the pump has 15mm flats only being driven by 4 mm flats on crank. pretty common problem - do a search. (actually, i think you have already posted comment about this in another thread.) remedy is to machine crank and fit collar. this has caused backing plate to become chewed from the weird thrust loading the worn flats have caused which is a place for the oil pressure to escape. that was easyily fixed, however welding crank is next. and the gear meshing faces look a bit pitted too, so if i can get new ones while its apart it would be handy.

my oil pump from my old turbo engine got shagged after 30 000 km, still dont know how.. i haven't had time to pull the engine apart. I got an NA motor for now and just finished converting it to turbo. anyways the shop that rebuilt my motor told me that they get a new gear sets from nissan, i cant remeber if he said they were $150 or $250 for the gear set.

Quote: Originally Posted by ngdaanke Hi Guys, Just a few questions for advice: 1. Anyone know the reliability of a RB30 oil pump? 2. With the engine pulled apart, is there any way to check if the oil pump is still good? 3. Is it a common rule of thumb to change it while the engine is apart? Engine done 300,000Ks. 4. Any oil pumps to recommend? What price is fair for a good oil pump? (Was supposed to get my engine back last week, but mechanic busy... So I better decide quick) I hope to hear some advice soon, thanks heaps. Hey mate, what path did you end up taking with your VLT build? I remember you asking afew questions a while ago.

we weld up the nose of the crank then re-machine the wide flats so they drive the wide pump like used on RB25/26. This usually fixes that problem The RB25 NI pump has the greatest capacity and highest relief valve setting (higher pressure). it is also the most expensive at nearly $500 (in stock at my work). I have not found any problem with stock pumps on minimally modified engines provided they have the wide drive flat. Once you start to regularly rev the narrow flat type beyond 7000, then the crank harmonics kill the narrow drive pumps by shattering the innner gear. The solutions we have used are better balancing, better harmonic damper. I once saw some steel pump gears that supposedly came from old GpA race engine, but that was a 1-off. Wide drive pumps and crank conversions are the only proven solution

terry, do you plug off one of the oil inlets on the rb30 heads?

Depends on how much REVS you are giving your motor too. I run a Stock pump and spin mine to 8500rpm. Putting a set of big cams in it , so i am going for a DRY SUMP set up. Mine held 637HP but i dont think it will hold more then that.

Quote: Originally Posted by brett_32i my pump is shagged from limiter abuse as the pump has 15mm flats only being driven by 4 mm flats on crank. Some confusion here, limiter abuse is not related to pump failure but, the difference in mating surface will kill the pump, the loading surface is so very small for what are large hard but brittle gears... The only way to be sure you dont put point loads on the flat surfaces of the pump is to:- a. Grind the crank so the flats match as far as possible b. Place a shim of spring steel between them I have seen the collar setup and frankly I dont like it, it is a lot better than having a narrow crank flat and large gear but its not reslient, there is still a chance of gear failure as the relationship between the moving parts is too rigid - well in comparison with doing it properly. In the factory situation the flat on the crank is precision ground to CNC tolerances and that wont need anything to take up some slack. When grinding a flat aftermarket the level of grinding precision, either tangent or depth from center of crank wont necessarily be as good and the collar faces the same issues, the probability of a failure is less with a collar but imho it wont go away fully and can be lessened even further if its not a tight fit and has some spring reslience etc...

I have confirmed there are no new pump gears available from anyone who commonly supplies the engine reconditioning trade. complete new pumps range from $390-$500 depending on exact model. VLT pumps are obsolete with Holden (like almost everything VL). I can easily organise any engine parts you might need thru work. We have welded up lots of these cranks for performance Skylines and not had a problem with pump meshing. Some "slackness" is required in the drive. This arrangment is not uncommon. The widely raced Toyota 4AG engine is identical (wide drive) in concept and even they break the occassional gear when accidentally over-revved. In "normal" race use, they dont fail. FYI, a customer recently bought in a supposed "N1" pump bought over the net from a US trader. it was not a high volume N1 pump at all, just a plain pump. BEWARE!! Terry

Thanks for the info terryo, Here is a pic that can be used to identify the pump volume as it relates to width of gears:- The various pump thicknesses are:- VL has gear thickness of approx 12mm VLT has gear thickness of approx 14.8mm N1 has gear thickness of approx 16mm Some original photos have not been recovered yet.

i don't know about anyone else or how much research they have done but a vl turbo pump is the same as a r32 gtr pump (same part numbers from holden to nissan as holden uses nissan part numbers for nissan parts just bought one like 6 months ago) the na motor is different part number but i never heard of the pump gears shattering or of any oil pump failures i replaced mine as a cheap form of insurance and i only had a na one hope it's some help.. p.s Im a holden mechanic and such have a access to holden parts finder