Re: oil pressure, uneven running..

[James Montebello <jamesm@xxxxxxxxxxxx>]

On Wed, 6 Aug 2003 greg@domain.elided wrote:
> 2> The oil pressure has me worried. I'm going to change the oil at first
> opportunity, and possibly run a flush through, and check it with fresh oil
> since this oil is about the time to be changed.

Could also just be your oil pressure sender is dying.  Check the pressure
with a calibrated gauge before panicking.  If you're getting >50psi of
pressure at speed, everything is probably fine.


> 3> Is it normal to need to wait a few minutes after turning the engine off
> to get a really good and accurate reading on the dipstick? The difference
> between checking immediately after turning the engine off and about 5
> minutes later can be a quart to a quart and a half.

Yes.  The oil will be pumped up into the engine (particularly up into
the head), while the engine is running.  This oil will eventually drain
back down into the sump after a few minutes.  If it's cold and/or the oil
is particularly thick, it can be take longer.  You should always check
the level with the engine dead cold, and fill to the mark then.  If you
check and fill immediately after a long drive, you'll probably overfill,
and oil will most likely be pumped out the breather (and probably back
into the intake, resulting it a nice cloud of oil smoke out the tailpipe).

jamesm
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