Oil pressure light 318tds

[mrgregory]

Hi guys!
A few days ago, when i was cruising suddenly the oil light came on and started to flicker, when i stopped and the car was idle the light went off,stopped the car, checked oil lever (was ok), the started it up again, and the light was flickering. Stopped the car, and after 2-3 hours started it again, but the light was solid, no matter the rev range. What could the problem be? Oil pump or sensor?

The car that we are talking about is an 96 318tds


Have a nice day lads and thanks for help

[Nanniepoo]

Pray it's the sensor.

[mrgregory]

Could it be the pump? I mean what are the chances? )
I already took down the oil pan and check the pickup line and everything seems ok, took down and cleaned the oil filter holder and now im waiting for some o rings.

[samy01]

how many kilometers?

pump, or what i think is more likely, worn out bearings.

[JDStrickland]

Without regard to anything else, current mileage, type of engine, whatever, if the light is on while driving -- moving -- then stop the car immediately and shut the engine off. You have lost oil pressure.

If you pull up to a traffic light or stop sign, and the light flickers a little, or comes on at idle then goes off when the engine speed comes up, then you are looking at a small problem, generally. If the light comes on while the engine is running at higher than idle speeds, then you are looking at a big problem, generally.

Since you are in the Big Problem category, you must determine why the light is coming on else you are risking serious, perhaps fatal, damage to the engine. Chances are that you already have a fatal condition given the cost of repairs and the value of the car, but this is a decision only you can make.

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Could it be the pump? I mean what are the chances? )
I already took down the oil pan and check the pickup line and everything seems ok, took down and cleaned the oil filter holder and now im waiting for some o rings.

You needed to know what the oil pressure really is before you took the engine apart. Having said that, since you took the engine apart, then you should be able to figure this out. Your problem is likely a failed oil pump or worn bearings. "Seems okay," is a very dangerous position to be in, given the problem you have. You are in the position of having to KNOW that everything is in good shape, not that it seems okay.

[mrgregory]

Mileage? 300k km. When i saw the light coming up, i immediately stopped the car by the side of the road, and just started it 2 times for something like under 30sec, the odd part is, in the at the first start, the light came up only when reving the engine... That's why i am in a doubt a bit. Plus, i cleaned the filter housing with brake cleaner (i took it off the car) and a lot of goo came out..

[samy01]

300k km? probably bearings. probably pump. who knows. you now have to open the engine.

[mrgregory]

Bearings? How can that affect oil pressure? In a few days i am gonna test the engine with new sensor.. And hopefully will go ok.

[JDStrickland]

Bearings? Really, you don't know how bearings can affect oil pressure?

The crankshaft spins around and around and rides on bearings that are oiled to prevent them from wearing out quickly. The pistons connect to the crankshaft to make the crankshaft go around and around. This connection point is protected by bearings. Bearings inside of the engine are critical for making oil pressure. With worn bearings, oil will squirt out of the places where it is supposed to go and the bearings will be dry, making more of them wear. Oil pumps almost never wear out. They break, or the drive system that makes them go will fail, but the pump itself almost never fails. Oil is pumped into tiny spaces between parts that move and connected parts that are essentially stationary. These spaces are lined with bearings. Worn bearings come from low oil pressure or simple engine wear or poor maintenance practices, and when a bearing fails then the small space that provides the resistance to the flow of oil becomes a large space with no resistance and all of the oil goes there, making metal surfaces that should be covered in oil run dry, causing the bearings there to wear out very quickly. The crankshaft goes around and around with respect to the engine block, and it also goes around and around with respect to the pistons.

If you have worn bearings, then the oil will simply gush out and there will be no resistance to be measured, and the light will be on. If you are asking such a fundamental question, you should have somebody helping you. Does the engine make any new noises that can be described as a rhythmic clunking or heavy knocking that changes with engine speed? If yes, you have a failed bearing.

You are setting up to replace things that might not be the problem, and what is the problem will not be detected until after you put the car back together, where it will have a fatal error in a few miles from putting the tires back on the ground.

[JDStrickland]

This is not your engine, but if it was, then Items 4 & 5 are the crank bearings between the crankshaft and the engine block, and Items 6 & 7 are the bearings for the connecting rods (the rods that connect the pistons to the crankshaft).

http://www.realoem.com/bmw/enUS/show...diagId=11_1547