Oil pressure on my engine

Richard Edwards

Richard Edwards

Active Member
I have just spent 30 mins using the search facility but could not find the problem I have (if, indeed, it is a problem)

I have reset tickover down to around 800 rpm (from 1300!) - gearbox is much happier

Oil pressure when hot does not show on gauge but oil light does not come on

I have done the normal switch/sensor checks to earth and they appear to be functioning as they should

If I increase tickover to 900 rpm using throttle pedal the oil pressure shows 60psi on the gauge (but takes a while to get up there

My gut feeling is that the gauge sensor is doing it`s own thing rather than being (vaguely) accurate as it only ever shows 60 or zero, I will be ordering a new one anyway

I believe that if the oil light is off there is a minimum of 7psi pressure, what are the guru`s thoughts?

Many thanks in anticipation
 
ARe the switch and pressure gauge wires the wrong way round?
Richard Edwards said:
I have just spent 30 mins using the search facility but could not find the problem I have (if, indeed, it is a problem)

I have reset tickover down to around 800 rpm (from 1300!) - gearbox is much happier

Oil pressure when hot does not show on gauge but oil light does not come on

I have done the normal switch/sensor checks to earth and they appear to be functioning as they should

If I increase tickover to 900 rpm using throttle pedal the oil pressure shows 60psi on the gauge (but takes a while to get up there

My gut feeling is that the gauge sensor is doing it`s own thing rather than being (vaguely) accurate as it only ever shows 60 or zero, I will be ordering a new one anyway

I believe that if the oil light is off there is a minimum of 7psi pressure, what are the guru`s thoughts?

Many thanks in anticipation
Click to expand...
 
Hi, The colours for the oil pressure switch are white/brown, the colours for the gauge sender unit are light green/red. The switch is smaller than the sender which is about the size of a cotton reel. The sender and gauge are not precision items.

Colin
 
Richard Edwards said:
I have just spent 30 mins using the search facility but could not find the problem I have (if, indeed, it is a problem)

I have reset tickover down to around 800 rpm (from 1300!) - gearbox is much happier

Oil pressure when hot does not show on gauge but oil light does not come on

I have done the normal switch/sensor checks to earth and they appear to be functioning as they should

If I increase tickover to 900 rpm using throttle pedal the oil pressure shows 60psi on the gauge (but takes a while to get up there

My gut feeling is that the gauge sensor is doing it`s own thing rather than being (vaguely) accurate as it only ever shows 60 or zero, I will be ordering a new one anyway

I believe that if the oil light is off there is a minimum of 7psi pressure, what are the guru`s thoughts?

Many thanks in anticipation
Click to expand...
I had this problem -Did all the fiddling and tapping , pissing about you've done.
Was waiting for the inevitable .
I bit the bullet and put in the larger SD1 oil pump.
Instant improvement in oil pressure-Problem gone and I sleep at night.
 
The same kit from Real Steal is cheaper. I bought this one too. I had to change cam, followers etc and if you have everything apart, it´s worth to do that. Or, you will look for a SD1 timing cover, this one has the wider gears, but to get a good one, is also not so easy.
The spacer and the pump cover must fit correctly to each other, otherwise the gears touch the spacer. For that, they add the dowels and therefor you must drill two little holes into your timing cover. In this kit there´s a manual for it.
In my case it did not work, finally I fitted it without the dowels by carefully tighten the screws and rotating the cams manually at the same time to feel if they touch or not. The gaskets supplied with this kit did not allow for the correct distance between gears, so I had to take it apart again and use a mix of supplied and standard gaskets (means, order one or two standard gaskets also). And, prime oil pump with glycerine (ok, manual says normal oil...). This alltogheter is a fiddling job.
But, before doeing that, you have to check your existing oil-pump cover, to check for wear signs from the gears.
 
i think if i did this again i'd go to v8tuner and get one of his buick v6 timing covers that is identical to the p6 one with the longer gears.
 
I dont think going from 0 -60 psi at such low revs isnt right. Has to be the sender surely? either the wrong way round or plain faulty???
 
rockdemon said:
I dont think going from 0 -60 psi at such low revs isnt right. Has to be the sender surely? either the wrong way round or plain faulty???
Click to expand...

That was my thinking too, at 650 rpm 0, at 900 60psi, I would expect any increase to be linear

Sender will be changed first before I go further, to swap the wires around I would have to open the wiring loom
 
Richard Edwards said:
Missing the point, if I have to butcher the loom surely they must be connected correctly?
Click to expand...
yes - but they are just 2 spade connections and not far away from each other... you can probably just swap them round in situ without butchering? Hence me thinking someone may just have put them back on the wrong way....
 
rockdemon said:
yes - but they are just 2 spade connections and not far away from each other... you can probably just swap them round in situ without butchering? Hence me thinking someone may just have put them back on the wrong way....
Click to expand...

I will give it a go and see what happens
 
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