No oil pressure!
07-03-2011, 10:49 AM
#1
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No oil pressure! 355 lt1 with under 5000 miles on it and I was driving and I looked down and the check gauge light was on and my op gauge read 0 I got the car home ripped the valve covers off and started it for a second to see of there was actually flow and there is none...with miles this low what could it be? If the pick up fell off wouldn't I still have pressure just low? HELP!!!!
07-03-2011, 11:11 AM
#2
See if the sending unit came unplugged at the back of the intake. What does the oil level indicate on the dipstick? You can try to take a rubber mallet and lightly bang on the bottom of the pan. If the pickup tube fell off if will clang around. Draining the oil first makes this easier. Hopefully you shut it off quick enough and no engine damage resulted. Lots of guys seem to be having problems with the oil pump drive gears lately. That part can be accessed by removing the intake manifold.
07-03-2011, 11:35 AM
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The dipstick shows I have the perfect amount of oil. I did actually just have the whole top end off of the motor to get the heads planed could I have accidentally done something to the drive gear? If the sending unit just came unplugged would that be it?
07-03-2011, 12:04 PM
#7
Look: you said there was no oil coming from the tops of the rockers via the pushrods. If that is the case there is no oil pressure and the sending unit being unplugged malfunctioned or anything else has nothing to do with it.
If you ran it any amount of time at all with zero oil pressure you need to tear it back down before you lose everything. At this point it might just cost you new bearings, gaskets and oil.
If you ran it any amount of time at all with zero oil pressure you need to tear it back down before you lose everything. At this point it might just cost you new bearings, gaskets and oil.
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07-03-2011, 12:38 PM
#8
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i had to pay for it but they put it in free.
07-03-2011, 01:22 PM
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Gatorhead is arguably the voice of reason here, although it'd be a shame to have to tear down such a new engine.
As stated, you physically aren't getting oil, so the oil pressure sending unit is a trivial matter at this point.
This is what I would do in your shoes:
Hope everything turns out okay!
As stated, you physically aren't getting oil, so the oil pressure sending unit is a trivial matter at this point.
This is what I would do in your shoes:
1) Pull the intake and check the condition of the dummy distributor shaft.
2) If you don't already have one, buy an oil pump primer tool (~$12) with a right-angle drill to spin up the oil pump with the engine off. If you still aren't getting oil at that point, then you know for a fact that there's a problem with the oil pump / pickup, and you'll have to pull the pan.
3) Drain the oil and check for metal flakes, and use your best judgement at that point as to whether you need to tear everything down. If you're replacing the pump pickup, perhaps you can pull a main cap and take a look at the bearing surfaces once the oil pan is out.
If you don't trust the oil pressure sending unit, I believe there's a port above the oil filter that you can tap a mechanical gauge into -- if you can reach it. Again, I wouldn't test it by starting the engine from this point forward -- use only the oil pump primer tool until you get this figured out.2) If you don't already have one, buy an oil pump primer tool (~$12) with a right-angle drill to spin up the oil pump with the engine off. If you still aren't getting oil at that point, then you know for a fact that there's a problem with the oil pump / pickup, and you'll have to pull the pan.
3) Drain the oil and check for metal flakes, and use your best judgement at that point as to whether you need to tear everything down. If you're replacing the pump pickup, perhaps you can pull a main cap and take a look at the bearing surfaces once the oil pan is out.
Hope everything turns out okay!
07-03-2011, 02:56 PM
#10
Pull the oil pressure sender and crank it a while. If the pump, pick up and all is working you'll have a mess to clean up. Easy test. If you get oil, just screw a small pressure gauge in the hole and see what you get.
Don't be fooled by the rocker arm oiling. It's slow coming up on my car if it sits a while.
Al 95 Z28
Don't be fooled by the rocker arm oiling. It's slow coming up on my car if it sits a while.
Al 95 Z28
07-03-2011, 04:24 PM
#11
if its plugged in and broken apart, it shows 0 though. i got a call from the shop that rebuilt my transmission a few years ago after they put it back in the car saying i had no oil pressure and i told them i did when i brought it there. you can guess the rest. and they wouldn't pay to replace the broken OSU i had to pay for it but they put it in free.
i had to pay for it but they put it in free.
