Hi, a question for anybody who has done it, what is the best way to design a low profile sump?

I am fitting a Vauxhall 16v XE engine into a locost with "book" dimensions, and the bonnet/ground clearance is looking extremely tight!!! I have decided to use an 8v engine's steel sump, which I can TIG weld (DC only TIG!) as I like, but despite extensive knowledge of most "car engineering" bits, i have never made a sump before!!

I guess (haven't tried yet) that I will need the sump to be of the order of 70 to 90mm deep to give adequate clearances. I really do not want to go to the expense and complication of dry-sumping.

I can deepen the "front" section of the sump, and make the "rear" shallower, thus making a level 80mm ish deep sump, but then oil surge will be constant!! I could then put in a "catch plate" or baffle to feed the returned oil back to the area of the pickup pipe and then put a perforated enclosure around the pickup to keep the oil there to some extent, but I think it will still surge. I have seen the use of trapdoor sumps, using a steel door hinge welded in with a flap on it which allows oil to run to the back of the sump under acceleration but not forward under braking. Combined with the enclosurer around the pickup would this work? I am just worried that the enclosure could end up keeping oil away from the pickup pipe as much as it keeps it near it if you see what I mean?

Any ideas?? (or cheap dry sump bits??!!!)

have u thought of "accusump" much cheaper than a dry sump but delivers oil when need'd, just fitted one to a Blackbird motor with no probs...........

Yes, thought about it, used them before on other people's cars but really wanted to get the sump working right to start with. I'd rather use the accusump as a backup "insurance" than as a normal operating thing. Do you have a baffled sump on your blackbird engine anyway?

your spot on, i have fitted it for "back up" and insurance only, yes the sump is choped n baffled, its just a good saftey net especially for hard cornering/braking ect......