355 oil pressure question

I have owned three Ferraris and my observations on oil pressure: It will be highest on cold start (will come up within seconds of starting)...as the car warms, the oil pressure will slowly drop. Warm idle, oil pressure can be 25-45psi...on full rpm runs to redline, oil pressure can rise to 85-95 psi, typically.

Oil pressure varies with temperature and rpms.

Hot lower pressure

Cold higher pressure

Low rpm lower pressure

high rpm higher pressure

Make sense?

 

At normal operating temps, water 190 oil 210 my oil pressure at 3000 rpm or above is on the first line after 70 lbs thats proberbly 95 lbs ,at idle 1000 rpm it is on the first line thats proberbly 35 lbs .

 

Fully make sense! The hoter the oil is, the lower the pressure is.
For instance, one can notice that at idle the oil pressure is very close to ... the lowest gauge level. It's especially true when the engine is at normal operating temperture.

So don't be afraid if the oil pressure fluctuate. It shows that the both the oil pump and the gauge are working fine. From my standpoint, if the oil pressure is at 3-5 bar at 4000-5000 rpm, then everything is fine.

Christophe.

PS: Like you, I was very upset by having very low oil pressure reading with a hot engine at idle when I just pick-up my first Ferrari at the garage !!!!!

 

I had to replace the sending unit on my 98 because the gauge first fluctuated and then just quit. Since putting the new unit on the oil pressure drops much lower at idle. Runs about or just past the center of the gauge on the road, a little higher on start up. I believe that as long as the red light in the gauge does not come on at idle you are ok but that is only my opinion FWIW.

 

Mine behaves exactly as Fazzaz1 described: "the oil pressure drops much lower at idle. Runs about or just past the center of the gauge on the road, a little higher on start up."

-Michael