OIL PRESSURE PROBLEMS

[BevanIMP]

Has anyone experienced a problem with low oil pressure on a 3.8 when sitting a tickover.

Prior to dismantling the engine and spending a fortune it may be something I have missed.

When driving its fine with good readings.

I personally feel it may be the oil pump itself !!!!!

Jonathan

[Heuer]

First place to check (i.e. cheapest) is the oil sender which is notoriously unreliable. Either change it for a spare/new or fit the JEC combined gauge and sender (have to be used as a pair). The latter is worth doing anyway.

Normally it is a lack of pressure when running that indicates oil pump troubles.

David

[Moeregaard]

Jonathan, David is on the money regarding the oil-pressure sending unit. These things are often way out of calibration even when new.

If your engine had never been dismantled I would have also suspected the oil pump, primarily because the 3.8-liter engine's connecting-rod bolts orginally had their nuts secured with cotter pins, which often broke free to take a ride through the pump. I assume that your rebuild included retrofitting the later rod nuts.

On a newly rebuilt engine, I'd suspect the gauge sender.

[andyp]

Case in point: I've recently changed my sender/gauge for the JEC parts and my hot tick over reading has gone up from 20psi to over 40psi.

Obviously the pressure hasn't changed, just the reading but now an onlooker would think "that's nice and healthy" rather than "you might have a problem there".

If it's running OK I wouldn't lose any sleep over it. Just change the sender/gauge when you've got 20 minutes and ?100 to spare.

Andy