Lowish oil pressure 3B

[drunkenalan20v]

ok gents help

Cold start oil pressure is about 3 bar which drops to just under 1 bar when warm.

I have tried both VDO electronic gauge and a capillary guage too, they both say the same thing

the engine hasnt done more than 1000 miles and has only really been run occasionally but has done quite a bit of idling whilst getting a few things sorted.

there is no leaks at all, the oil pipes look in good condition,

where should i start looking?

[aelred]

what is the most oil pressure when hot and lets say at 4-5k rpm? It is also dependent on what oil is used to some degree

[drunkenalan20v]

when hot the max is around 3 bar, it used to be fine, up around the 5 bar from cold and upto 5 bar dependant on revs

[DJones]

Try changing the oil. Lots of idling and cold starts in particular may well have produced bore wash and diluted the oil with fuel making it thin hence low pressure.

If not the cure its cheap to test..

[drunkenalan20v]

going to drop the sump, see if the squirters are all present so ill probably change the too.

[drunkenalan20v]

took the sump off, squirters as they should be, strainer nice and clean, removed the pump, took the cover of to check clearances in the pump, 11 thou, seems to much so will get a new pump, also checked all the bearings, crank bearing fine, some wear on the big ends including one bearing missing a large section of the white metal, so got some new ones on order too.

300 quid for a pump from TPS!!! Jesus any suggestions

[drunkenalan20v]

Bump

[drunkenalan20v]

ok fitted the new pump, new big end bearings.

its all back together, and the oil pressure is the same about 3 bar cold and under a bar once warm.

its still low IMO

HELP HELP HELP

[re2500]

DId you check that the diameter of your crank pins were within tolerance? Do you have any blue smoke from the back end when driving?

[Acidburn]

ok fitted the new pump, new big end bearings.

its all back together, and the oil pressure is the same about 3 bar cold and under a bar once warm.

its still low IMO

HELP HELP HELP

Could try get a cheap black faced gauge to just check it with, my 20v quattro sport has the problem someone had messed with it and turned the face of the gauge so it read wrong. They'd done the same with the battery one as well.

[AndyP]

Get a garage to plug a mechanical gauge into the where the pressure sender is, this will give you a much more accurate reading. Oh and oil pumps are only £150 from 034.

[220bhp]

I agree with andyP,its a simple way to check you real oil pressure

[drunkenalan20v]

i have tried both capilary guage and a vdo electric guage, both in the same position both give the same results

[valjo]

it is also possible that you have blocked oil lines or cooler.

[drunkenalan20v]

Nope All wrong!

changed the alloy filter housing and problem solved, upon examining the old one it seem that the valve inside was sticking, due to a fine grit like stuff clogging the piston like part which had a score along it, the grit wasnt present in the oil when it was drained and when the big end bearings were examined the looked tired but not scorred at all, the mains were all spot on!