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Just got my Cam swap 94 Trans Am running good again after some ignition issues. Went to go drive it and what do you know, lost all oil pressure and the check gauges light came on. Killed the car IMMEDIATELY, coasted it to a filling station and got a tow home. I did notice that the car was making a whining noise before it lost pressure, almost like the power steering was going out. Anyways, I've checked the oil pump drive underneath the intake and it shows light wear but it is still fine. Drained the oil and I'm not seeing any glitter so I know the bearings are fine. The car also has had an oil pressure problem under hard breaking which I've heard is from the pick up being loose or detached. Going to start pulling the motor to access the pan, what do yall think?
Use a GM oil priming tool to see if you can get oil pressure that way. If not you will need to drop the pan and make sure the pick up is properly attached to the pump. If it is then you most likely have a faulty pump.
Dis the cam slide in easily during the install or was it a little tough to get in? Just because you don't have any metal or shavings in the pan doesn't mean the bearings aren't toast or haven't experienced damage. I lost all pressure within 500 miles after a cam install and wound up having worn cam bearings from installing a Comp Cams cam shaft that wasn't straight.
Yes, the cam did slide in pretty easily. How does that GM oil priming tool work? Hoping and praying it's nothing serious because it's already becoming a money pit. Gotta pay to play I guess.
if you re-used your oil pump drive shaft, the plastic collar can break and if that happens...you have no oil pressure. Get one of these regardless if your's broke or not
I've primed an SBC this way with the distributor out and attaching the drill-driven tool directly to the oil pump drive gear.
Must be the same principle but what/where do you attach to on an LT1?
Same way basically. Remove the intake and find the Oil Pump Stub Shaft and bolt near the back passenger side of the lifter valley. Remove the Oil Pump Stub Shaft, and prime from there.
Same way basically. Remove the intake and find the Oil Pump Stub Shaft and bolt near the back passenger side of the lifter valley. Remove the Oil Pump Stub Shaft, and prime from there.
???
I think it would be easier and potentially quicker to remove the oil pan, and check for a bad oil pump, dislodged pickup, or damaged drive shaft. Pulling the intake is a LOT of work.......
I think it would be easier and potentially quicker to remove the oil pan, and check for a bad oil pump, dislodged pickup, or damaged drive shaft. Pulling the intake is a LOT of work.......
Intake isn't hard to pull, its dry and easy to reach everything.
Pulling the pan needs to jack the motor and lower the k-member on a stock LT1...I'd rather pull the intake! Unless you have an aftermarket K-member that you can get it around easier.
You can always drain the oil and pound on the bottom of the pan with your fist and listen for anything bouncing around. Can probably also get a vantage if you eyeball inside the pan through the drain hole.
Intake isn't hard to pull, its dry and easy to reach everything.
Pulling the pan needs to jack the motor and lower the k-member on a stock LT1...I'd rather pull the intake! Unless you have an aftermarket K-member that you can get it around easier.
If you have a stick shift car, you might have to lower the K-member, but on an automatic, as I had, you just raise the engine. I've done both, and while neither is a "day at the beach", if I had to choose between tasks, I'd pull the pan.
Secondly, since this discussion seems to be about using a "primer tool", as far as I know, they are made to seat against an intake manifold, to sit at the appropriate depth, so I don't see how by pulling an LT1 intake off, you can use the tool....
assuming the oil pressure gauge showing no oil pressure is good...as noted you can try smacking a drained oil pan to listen for any "rattle". Or fish through the drain hole with a coat hanger to see if you feel anything
and if there does not seem to be any lose pickup you would need to check to see if the oil pump drive shaft plastic collar did not break. That would require pulling the intake, oil pump drive gear and then pull out the drive shaft. Yeah you could also "remove" pan to do this. IMHO pan remove with engine in car is harder than pulling intake. Both jobs are time consuming.
Secondly, since this discussion seems to be about using a "primer tool", as far as I know, they are made to seat against an intake manifold, to sit at the appropriate depth, so I don't see how by pulling an LT1 intake off, you can use the tool....
The primer tool on the LT1 can only be used with the intake off.
The intake is a very straight forward and relatively easy removal and install if you have ever done it before. I never even take off the fuel rails. Just detach the fuel lines at their connectors, detach all connectors and EGR items, unbolt and remove. It's really not near as bad as people make it out to be. 2.5 hours to remove, inspect, and reinstall at worst. It's also a great time to change out lifters and check cam lobe surfaces with a bore scope if you have one.
The intake manifold on my car is really easy to pull, I have no egr and it takes me around 45 minutes to pull it. I will post pictures of my oil pump drive shaft, I have also checked cam lobes with my Samsung Galaxy S7 active camera with flash on. The lobes look great. No damage at all. Lifters all still look brand new.
UPDATE: Got under the car and looked at the the oil pressure sensor/sending unit. Discovered that I had developed a huge leak. And all this time I thought it was my rear main leaking. Tried taking it off and the sob snapped right off. Will update if this fixes the issue, I hate when people find out what the problem was and don't post it up ok their thread!
Still having the same problem. Started it, ran fine but the lifters were tapping.
Did you observe any oil pressure on your gauge? What kind of oil filter do you have on the car? The next, easiest, thing for you to try is another oil filter, as well as dropping the filter adapter, and making sure it isn't mucked up.....
FWIW, the lifters and rockers are the last things to get oil on an LT1. If the car has been sitting a while, it isn't uncommon for them to take a while to see oil pumping through them. You said in your first post that the engine was whining before you shut it down. Glitter or not, that sound coupled with the loss of oil pressure is not a reassuring thing.
Were it my car, I'd have tried priming it and noted the pressure and where oil was (or wasnt) coming from. If no pressure could be seen with a drill, no pressure will be seen with it running.
Well guys, after being caught up in some health issues and high school graduation I finally got the courage and motivation to get back on the car. So, this is what happened. I got the flywheel/converter inspection cover off, the starter off, and all the oil pan bolts out. Undid both motor mounts, jacked it up and got two thick allen wrenches stuck through the mounts on the side of the block then rested it on the other part of the mounts. Boom! Pan slid right out with no problems other than the oil cooling lines being in the way. And what do ya know, the pick up is sitting on the bottom of the pan. But, not only was the pick up off. The oil pump was FU****, the drive shaft was sheared and multiple chunks were taken out of the gears internally. Pics included below. Have not gotten the car back together the rest of the way but hopefully this fixes it!!! P.S. the red crap in the pan is the plastic collar that goes around the joint where the two shafts meet.
03-04-2017, 09:21 PM
Sudden loss of oil pressure, failed pump? 
