406 sbc oil pump noises
 

Hiya guys,

After replacing the oil pan, intake, and timing cover gaskets on my dad's built 406, we're getting some scary clicking/ rattling noises from (what we assume to be) the oil pump when we go to prime it. It is making good pressure but the noise is pretty concerning.

Here's a link to a video I recorded of the sound. https://youtu.be/wCaWiZHt0WE

We're going to pull the pan tomorrow and take a look to see if the pump is touching, but when this engine was in my dad's Nova we never noticed this sound.

What do you guys think?

Re: 406 sbc oil pump noises
 

is the pump pick-up touching the bottom of the pan by chance?

Gary

Re: 406 sbc oil pump noises
 

My first thought, too... check for rub marks on bottom of pickup and bottom of pan sump. Tack weld pickup above pan sump, if not already.

Re: 406 sbc oil pump noises
 

Thanks for the input guys.

We just pulled the pan last night, we have a solid 1/4" of clearance from pickup to pan. We also sent the video to our local engine builder (Pro Motion) and he says the noise is normal despite how scary it sounds :smoke:

I'll take his word for it given the amount of engines he's built...

However, if something catastrophically fails, I'll be sure to update here to let you guys know!