Engine Height

[fastlane99]

I bought a Rocket late last year then bought an engine off another guy straight out of his car. When I put the engine in the oil pan sits very low, about 4" off the ground at correct ride heights. I know this is lower than whatever the last guy had because it hits the skid plate and pushes it down a couple inches. Is the 4" clearance too low? Do I need to move up on the midplate? The motor is mounted in the bottom holes, this is where the previous owner had his mounted. I know it may affect the roll center so I was unsure what to do if anything. Any help is appreciated.

[hpmaster]

Won't effect roll center but you need to call rocket and they will get you on track.

[LM14]

What pan are you running compared to the guy that owned the car last?

SPark

[fastlane99]

Not sure what brand the previous owner used, obviously I have a deeper pan than he ran due to it hitting the skid plate. The previous owner of the engine advised me that he used the same bottom holes in the mid plate on his rocket but Im not sure what year the car or mid plate was.

[hpmaster]

Height of motor is set in large part by the weight and make up of the engine, aluminum, iron, heads and block and the combinations. I have talked to the folks at Rocket in the past about engines and their set up specs and I am sure a short conversation will get you fixed up.

[Brian Gray]

Rocket plate? If so it sounds like you have the one with 4 holes. Don't forget to space your front mounts equal to the mid plate. Ea hole is 1/2" so if you're in the bottom hole which has the engine setting highest in the car make sure you have the correlating amount of spacers in your front mounts. This may help your clearance but keep in mind your motor is also a big chunk of ballast as well.

[fastlane99]

Rocket plate? If so it sounds like you have the one with 4 holes. Don't forget to space your front mounts equal to the mid plate. Ea hole is 1/2" so if you're in the bottom hole which has the engine setting highest in the car make sure you have the correlating amount of spacers in your front mounts. This may help your clearance but keep in mind your motor is also a big chunk of ballast as well.

I misspoke. The mid plate is mounted using the top holes of the 4 so the motor is at the lowest mounting position just to clarify.

[MM90]

So are you running the same type of engine the previous owner had?

[hpmaster]

What is the engine heads and block made of? Aluminum? Steel? Is it a stock block or a Little M? You have almost 100 lbs differance between a Lil' M and a stock block. Do you have a 60lb crank or a 42 lb crank? Wet sump? dry sump? A 7 pound aluminum dry sump pan or a 20 pound steel wet sump pan with 9 quarts of oil setting in it? Until all these questions are answered no one, not even Rocket can give you any guidance.
What every chassis needs is to have weight at a certain height to handle correctly and produce side bite. Too low it may shear off the tire patch, no side bite, too high it may make the car roll over excessively and require heavier springs to calm down and then again adversly effect handling. As a basic rule steel up aluminum down so if you are all the way down you better be using an all aluminum dry sump motor even then you need to call Rocket. Just my honest opinion.

[fastlane99]

Yes it is an all aluminum dry sump, almost identical in cubic inches as the previous owner. Pan apparently is the only major difference.

[FlatTire]

All of what hpmaster said is very valid. However for a simple answer to your question....4" of clearance from the pan to the ground is not enough. Your pan might end up with a hole in it or as dented up as a fat girls thighs.

You can either spend more money and change the pan or raise the engine up.

I don't have a rocket but the bottom of my pan is about even with the bottom of the front cross member. It does have a ding or two in it as well.

This is the pan I run, its 5.5" deep. Its a pretty common pan for dirt late models. They also make a version of this for wider rail blocks, not sure how deep it is tho.
http://www.jegs.com/i/Moroso/710/21561/10002/-1?parentProductId=745512

[hpmaster]

I would 1. raise engine and 2. check out a better pan. I talked to my Rocket guy and he said you are not going to seriously hurt handling raising the motor an inch to an inch and a half. The last post is very good and I too have lots of clearance and still have dents also. That Moroso pan or one like it is pretty much what I would call a good standard.

[fastlane99]

Thanks for all the help guys. We are going to go ahead and raise the motor and see where we are at. If we still lack clearance we will change the pan. Appreciate everyones input.

[fastlane99]

With the engine moved up as far as the holes in the midplate allow, the oil pan is just about even with the bottoms of the frame rails now.

[hpmaster]

How deep is the pan from the block pan mounting rails to the bottom of the pan when on the engine? Just measured my dry sump pan it is just a hair over 5.5 inches. On my wet sump 9 quart pan engine it is 6.75 inches, and has been dented. Dry sump pan has been repaired once from hitting something LOL. Can't tell you ground clearance as car is on stands today and it is not a Rocket any ways.

[fastlane99]

Pan is right around 7". Talked to a reputable motor guy, the guy that is actually now taking care of my rebuilds and he said most all the pans he uses are around 7".

[LM14]

7" is a really deep dry sump pan. That's more of a wet sump depth. Most dry sump pans are 4.5 to 5.5" deep. Does your engine guy do a lot of dry sump engines?

SPark

[hpmaster]

Pan is right around 7". Talked to a reputable motor guy, the guy that is actually now taking care of my rebuilds and he said most all the pans he uses are around 7".

That's your problem, I agree with 14. As I said before I have a 9 quart WET pan that is not as deep as your DRY pan. The Moroso link is a good bet and it comes with several options for most all blocks and pump set ups. Lose your pan for a 5.5" pan, gain 1.5" of clearance, move engine up 1", your total clearance has to be between 6.5" and 7" and you should be good to go.

[fastlane99]

Found a shallow pan from a fellow racer in the area and changed pans. Raised the midplate an inch and shimmed the front mounts up to keep my angle correct for driveshaft. I think we got it. Are we missing anything else?

[hpmaster]

I would say go drive the wheels off it!