Originally Posted by 74Widebody
I am new to this Forum. I reached out via Corvette Forum and received some info re ProBlend Race Engine additive. So here is what will be done...
...if anyone has an Interest in this project stay tuned.
Welcome to BITOG, and that's a good looking Corvette. I applaud you for using a dedicated break-in oil. While Lucas isn't my first choice, it's far better than not using a break-in oil. I don't agree with babying the engine through the break-in period though. I break-in my engines by beating the snot out of them. You need high heat and pressure to get the rings to seat, and there's a limited window to make that happen before you glaze the hone job. In less than 30 minutes after initial startup, my engines are at WOT and >4000 rpm. (tune depending)
It's hard to tell from the picture, but are you running any sort of vacuum spark advance? What is the spark timing currently? Spark advance plays a big role in engine coolant temperature. This is common in boosted setups where guys often lock out the timing rather low or use mechanical advance only. This, combined with a low compression ratio (again, for boost), will result in very poor combustion efficiency at idle and part throttle which causes high exhaust gas temperatures and a lot of residual cylinder heat. If you don't have it, I would add vacuum spark advance hooked up to a manifold source below the FiTech unit. This will allow it to advance the spark at times of high manifold vacuum (ie: not in boost) and retard it back when in boost to where it needs to be. The coolant temps will come way down and off-boost drivability will improve substantially.
I wouldn't recommend Havoline ProDS for that engine. What are the other specs of the engine? Roller or flat cam? How much boost? Bearing clearances? I'm also not a fan of using aftermarket supplements like ProBlend. If you need to add something to your oil, you need to use better oil.