Hi all Took the beast out of the shed this weekend and I noticed that my oil idiot light didn't do its "test" light up in the run position. Checked the bulb (that was fun!) and all fuses are fine. I tried grounding the sensor wire but the light didn't come on. I'm stumped other that ordering a replacement sending unit. Suggestions??? Thanks in advance!!!
The sender goes to ground when pressure is low. Since you grounded the wire and the light didn't work, I doubt the sender was bad. I've seen where the bulb holder doesn't make a good contact. I'd jump the wire to the sender to ground then use a meter at at the back of the gauge and confirm or deny voltage and work from there.
Now it guess even weirder. I started the car today and the light came on (as it should). Went for a 10 minute run to get some fresh gas as it still had some from last season. Started it to leave the pumps and the light came on for about 2-3 seconds, went out and then promptly came on and stayed on. Every time I start it now it does its self test, goes out ad then comes back on. I'm starting to suspect that the unit has gone flaky on me. I'll order a new one tomorrow. It did the same to me about 2 years ago so lets hope that is all it is!
I agree. I guess my only issue is where to mount it and keep the stock look. I hid an mp3 deck in my ashtray slot and a Sirius receiver in the glove box but I suppose a small guage mounted under the dash would be a forgivable sin :TU:
I mounted my oil gauge on the right front of the engine with a homemade bracket off the valve cover. I tee'd off the oil press sender so I retained the oil light inside the car. I used copper line, and since it's mounted to the engine you don't have to worry about engine movement vs a fixed frame location. Gene
Cool! I never thought about doing it that way. I guess their is no law that says it has to be inside the car. :TU:
Just curious; what's the value of having an oil pressure gage mounted in an area that can't be seen while driving? Revving an engine in the driveway doesn't necessarily tell you what will happen under w.o.t. at the track. Devon
Mine isn't raced so it just provides a piece of mind for when the sensor goes screwy. I changed the old one yesterday and thats all it was. If I had a guage (even under the hood) it would have removed my stress factor o No: while waiting to see if the sending unit was the problem. I agree that if you are using it at the track you would need to see it instantly but mine is a daily driver so under the hood would let me keep my interior original.
Yeah, what he said! An oil pressure gauge and a water temp gauge are must have in any car. My water temp gauge has alerted me on several occasions to a problem.
1. GM engineers thought enough of their oil system to just give you a light, not a gauge. 2. The inside light still works. 3. I dont do the track with my Buick. 4. Hood is up a lot, oil pressure is consistent, but the gauge gives me added peace of mind. 5. Can't live with el cheapo look of a Pep Boys gauge package hanging off my dash. Gene:eek2:
All well & good, but experience has taught me over and over again that using the gage as a heart monitor is priceless. Even with spirited street driving (I assume you hit wide open throttle at one time or another), seeing even a small reduction in oil pressure from the norm is an all important indicator that something not-so-good is happening. To me, "is happening" is much better than "already happened", i.e. a hurt bearing finally spun even though the 5 psi idiot light stayed off at 5500 rpm. Monitoring a gage can often give you that kind of heads-up. Personally, I rely on a light that trips below 30 psi in addition to the gage. By the time the stock light comes on it's too late. And as far as Pep Boys goes, try Autometer, Stewart-Warner or Classic Instruments...much nicer! Devon
