What is your cold start oil pressure?

[VanWagon]

Quick poll of the audience. I recently rebuilt a 2.1L WBX and added a Mansi oil pump. I used 20w50 during the break in period, but with winter coming decided to lower viscosity to 15w40. Warm pressures are where I like them, but I am curious how high of an oil pressure to tolerate on cold startups before worrying about leaks, too thick to lubricate properly, etc. Without too many tangents can you post your idling waterboxer oil pressure during a cold start:

oil / oil pressure / ambient temp

For example, mine is:
15w40 / 75psi / 40F


Thanks in advance.

[NorCalbuggy]

I've got about 70 psi at 55 deg. using 10w-60 synthetic.
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"Steam seems to have killed all gratitude in the hearts of sailors"

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[?Waldo?]

HOT oil pressure is what you should be concerned about. Cold oil pressure isn't really relevant/useful provided it is above zero. I've seen both healthy and unhealthy engines have cold oil pressure in the 70-100+psi range.

[VanWagon]

[E1]

[VanWagon]

[djkeev]

Same..... 1990 2.1 up in the 70's

It settles into the upper 20's ..... 30 ish once warmed up at speed.
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[zerotofifty]

I get about 60 or 70 psi at idle when cold, 20w 50 oil, Brad Penn.
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[dieseltdi]

My AHU TDI conversion on cold days can get above 90psi for brief moments (its a diesel thing I think) but on normal days it is about 65 and settles when hot to just below the 30 psi mark.
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[Wildthings]

A decently tight engine can run year around with a 0w40 or 5w40 synthetic oil, less chance of blowing a filter or causing an oil pressure switch to leak. Prior to going to synthetic, I used to run 10w30 in the winter and straight 30wt in the summer and have never experienced undue engine wear. There is a reason oils like 20w50 have close to disappeared from the shelves.

[djkeev]

[jlrftype7]

[dobryan]

10W-60 should be 'thinner' at cold temps than 20W-50.
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[E1]

No oil pressure gauge on this van yet, but had one on our first van and would get 65 lbs. at startup, and 30-40 driving, sometimes high 20s when really hot but that was rare and the engine was pretty worn and having leakdown the entire 57,000 miles we drove it.

Mobil 1 15/50 synthetic, but rarely driven much below 40F.

JLFR’s comment about 10/60 is interesting, and makes sense to me for both temperature needs of the spectrum, as does the use of 0W in the dead of a cold winter.

I’ve long been fascinated by Wildthings preference of low-weight oil in summer, partly as his overall knowledge far exceeds mine. I’ve long been a user of heavy oils and all our cars have been run pretty hard, often for twenty or thirty hours straight, and always without excessive engine wear or issues.

So while I’ve no doubt of the benefits of heavy oil under stress, I do wonder if there’s any correlation of heavier oils being a factor in leaks, especially when cold.
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[Wildthings]