Pros N Cons of Dry Sump Oil System

[FCguy]

Well I've been wondering about dry sump oil systems lately. What are the pro's and cons of one?

So far I've come up with this:

Pros: Better Oiling... from what I've been able to tell
Super small oil pan = better motor mounting (lower)
Being able to prime the oil system before startup (I think)
Modular (placement, upgrading, different setups)

Cons:
Not cheap
Setup/fabrication needed if not a kit for a particular car (pump, lines, filter, resevoir, ect.)
Pump braket (some Ive seen were belt drivin pumps ... so it needs a braket)

But from what I've seen Im suprised more people arn't doing it... Even on track cars, bad ass builds, and even other applications. Like cars in mags that have EVERYTHING done dont have a dry sump oiling system... Why not? even when R32 skylines blow the motor due to HIGH G force cornering starving the oil pump. They go with a high flow pump, longer pickup, different oil pan, and oil pan plates/baffels. Why not go the full monty and get a dry sump? O well enough ranting... any race car techs able to enlighten me?

[FCguy]

does nobody on this fourm know?

[99SI]

I have heard, although, I am not for sure that w/ a dry sump you run the risk of spun bearings for the simple fact that the crank does not travel through the oil. Although it makes better power by freeing up parasitic loss and doesn't encounter windage you run the risk of a bearing getting dry. Again, that is strictly for a street car. On a race car it makes sense and some of the higher end cars are going dry sump. The new Z06 vette uses a dry sump oiling system, as does the Porsche turbo, Ferrari, etc. Cost is prohibitive as you mentioned. I have looked at it myself but have not gone below the surface to really weigh the pros and cons. For a street application, I would say that a good knife edged lightened crank and possibly a good quality aftermarket oil pan w/ baffles would probably be just as efficient and be more reliable. Sorry you haven't gotten more responses to this, I felt like I would throw that limited bit of info on the table. I don't think that the oil pans are neccesarily any smaller in volume, they are just flared out b/c the pan stays free of oil during operation. The volume is usually higher than the stock oil capacity I believe. Good luck if you decide to go w/ it, it would definately be trick.

[Cool Cat Racing]

Dry sump systems work fine on street cars as noted by the number of OEM's that use it. The main problem for most is the cost of everything and the fact that most dry sump pumps don't last as long. Its better on a new build because you can pressurize the oil before ever turning the motor over. As for the skylines not using it, the diff is part of the oil pan making it hard to keep located properly and still use a dry sump pan. For the cars using a RWD setup many do go with dry sump but the GTR's work well with baffling and good oil pumps. If the car works fine without the trouble of dry sumping it then why bother. The power gain isn't enough to bother when you can pull one more psi and do the same.
Ryan