Oil pressure light.

[rcool217]

Sometimes at idle in gear my 96 Deville will start flashing the oil pressure light at me. When I get back on the gas it turns off every time. It will go weeks without doing it then it will do it for a whole day. I just changed the PCV valve id this has anyting to do with it. The car runs great otherwise. I did runa tank of 89 octane fuel and I am definitely going back to premium, it really brought down the performance of the Northstar. Any ideas on what do look for? Also if the car has been sitting overnight the first start of the day takes about 4-5 seconds to turn over then its fine for the rest of the day. I thought it might be the FPR? If it is where is it and how easy is it to replace? I'm not real good at car repairs but I do my own oil, plugs, brakes and minor maintanence. Thanks for any help. BTW my car has about 148,000 miles on it.

[jhall]

A couple of items to check:

First, are you running the recommended oil in the engine? Lower viscosity can cause some bugs.

Second, if the oil visocisty is correct, you might want to replace the pressure switch (located at the adapter plate where the oil filter is attached). It's a bit tough to get to, but removing the oil filter and filter adapter make it easier (replace the two o-rings on the filter adapter when you pull it off).

If neither of these work, you need to start considering other possibilites. Check out the above items and write back to us.

Good luck! [attachmentid=2347]

[rcool217]

I am running 5w30 but I did mix the brands due to having to add 2 quarts between changes. Is the filter adapter the big part that connects to the filter? Is it hard to take off or is it just a few bolts? Thx

[KHE]

The proper weight of oil for your car is 10W30.

[rcool217]

Come to think of it I think I added 2 quarts of 5w30 and changed it with 10w30, so I mixed the 2 oils. I am headed back to Nashville TN from Atlanta GA ina few days do I need to change it or will it be ok until I can get home. I hate oil change places.

[Ranger]

You'll be fine. You are just a tad lighter than 10W30. Maybe 8W30.

[Caddynut]

How many miles are on your car?? If you have a lot of miles...10W30 might be a little thin. You might have to start using a thicker viscosity. My friend has a lot of miles on his car and had the same problem and had to use 20W50 to keep oil pressure. I don't think you will have to go THAT drastic, but it might solve the problem.

[KHE]

Do not use 20W50 oil in a Northstar or a 4.x engine. 15W40 is OK in a 4.x engine but I would only go as heavy as 10W30 in a Northstar.

If the low oil pressure light continues to flicker and you have the correct weight oil in the crankcase, temporarly install an oil pressure gage and if the oil pressure is within specification at idle, replace the oil pressure sensor.

[justgreat]

the same, exact problem happened with the wife's audi: it turned out to be the oil filter. i was using a fram (?) which didn't have a by-pass valve ( i thought ALL oil filters had them). in any event; i went back to an oem style filter and the problem went away. jackg 90seville 100k

[Ed Fenwick]

My '92 did that and it was the switch. Easy to replace and not expensive.

Ed

[terrylange]

I had the identical problem on my '97 DeVille at approximately the same mileage. It was the oil pressure sensor, and while it was a little difficult to get at, I was able to replace it without having to remove the oil filter adapter. I seem to recall that the hardest part was removing the electrical connector in the limited working space. Either way, it was a 20 minute fix with the car up on ramps in the driveway. The part was relatively inexpensive, and at the time I encountered this problem, the feedback I received from various knowledgeable sources was that it was not uncommon.

[winterset]

I had the same issue too. I am guilty of using snthetic oil 10w-30. this problem started when I had the car sitting unused for a few months. When I did WOTs, than let the car idle to 625, the light would flicker, and stop when I gassed it up to 725 or so. I took the connector off the sending unit. I noticed inside the connector, it was saturated with oil. I used the air gun to blow out the oil. I put the connector back, and have never seen this again (been a few months now).

[rcool217]

I waited till I burned off another quart of oil and put in a 10w30 quart and it fixed the light. Thx for the help maybe this will help someone else. I thought you could run 5w30 or 10w30 in most cars without causing an oil light.

[BodybyFisher]

I run 5W30 in my 96 Deville with no problem, maybe its related to engine wear, who knows.. Where are you located and what is the outside temperature?

I use 5W30 in the winter and 10W30 in the summer

[BodybyFisher]

One more thing, if you are having an overheating problem, where your normal operating temp is above the 195 to 203 range, that could also thin out an oil and create a low oil pressure problem with a thinner oil like 5W30.. Fix any overheating issues. Obviously the temps will cycle up and down, but when I say normal I mean, highway speed, normal being 195 to 203, if you are running in excess of 210 for extended periods of time at highway speeds TO ME, it highlights that there is a cooling problem. Caviat, UNLESS you are running in high outside temps in the summer then it will run hotter. It is March now, and its 30 degrees out, at highway speeds I am running 197 to 203, IF I run higher than that range for an extended period of time, I am concerned with an outside temp of 30 degrees.