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Thread: S54 Oil Pump Install, No Oil Pressure

  1. #1
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    S54 Oil Pump Install, No Oil Pressure

    I installed a VAC S54 upgraded oil pump on my S52 and I’m not getting oil pressure, as indicated at the oil filter (idiot light + gauge).

    After we got everything back together and filled with oil, we dry cranked the engine (pulled fuel pump relay) a handful of times, and then ran the engine a couple of times for ~15sec at a time. No oil pressure.

    We then got concerned that we had done something wrong, so we pulled the pan and pump again and it was all installed correctly.

    Turning the oil pump by hand out of the car we were able to pump oil, so I’m confident that oil is flowing, but for some reason we’re not getting pressure.

    Does anyone have any thoughts on this? Could the pressure relief valve in the pump be defective? Do we need to give it more time to pressurize?

    Edit for future Googlers: Prime your pump before you install it
    Last edited by Steage; 03-18-2018 at 06:03 PM.


  2. #2
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    Sender wires reversed or sender not grounding to block? Is the pump primed — you might be able to direct oil into it through a port in the filter housing. I had an issue with that on a rebuilt S52 years ago and had to pour some oil in from above, which was not very convenient.

  3. #3
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    Pressure gauge worked a couple of days ago, before we swapped pumps. Lifter ticking also confirms the low pressure.

    We actually tried pulling the oil filter and pouring some oil in there. When we cranked the engine with the filter off nothing came up into the housing (although I admit I don’t know if it should)


  4. #4
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    Are you using the s54 sprocket or s52 sprocket?

  5. #5
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    Quote Originally Posted by Pat533i View Post
    Are you using the s54 sprocket or s52 sprocket?
    Good question. Should be the S52 sprocket.

    For reference, I recently did this and oil pressure is pretty low at idle which I knew would happen from research before decided to go this route. I see 7-10 psi via my AiM MXL2 dash when warm at idle.

  6. #6
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    S52 sprocket.

    We have pressure! We ended up running a bunch of oil through it on the bench to prime it.


  7. #7
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    Quote Originally Posted by Steage View Post
    Pressure gauge worked a couple of days ago, before we swapped pumps. Lifter ticking also confirms the low pressure.

    We actually tried pulling the oil filter and pouring some oil in there. When we cranked the engine with the filter off nothing came up into the housing (although I admit I don’t know if it should)
    It definitely should shoot out the cap. Husband was helping me finish up an oil change on my race car. He forgot to tighten the filter cap and my engine bay got covered within a matter of seconds after start-up.

    Quote Originally Posted by Steage View Post
    S52 sprocket.

    We have pressure! We ended up running a bunch of oil through it on the bench to prime it.
    '94 325is #94 IP/GTS3 Mauritius Blue Metallic
    "And so you touch this limit, something happens and you suddenly can go a little bit further. With your mind power, your determination, your instinct, and the experience as well, you can fly very high." - Ayrton Senna

  8. #8
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    i cant firgure out how to post my own thread this website is impossible to use and i need answers

  9. #9
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    Quote Originally Posted by JayJay39 View Post
    i cant firgure out how to post my own thread this website is impossible to use and i need answers
    I don't believe you can start a thread when you a super new, but maybe I'm wrong.
    '94 325is #94 IP/GTS3 Mauritius Blue Metallic
    "And so you touch this limit, something happens and you suddenly can go a little bit further. With your mind power, your determination, your instinct, and the experience as well, you can fly very high." - Ayrton Senna

  10. #10
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    When I had my sump off (S50B32 ) I primed the oil pump with vasoline. Took approx 15 turns of the key for the pressure to register on my gauge. Nerve racking.
    Glad you got it sorted

  11. #11
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    MauiM3Mania is offline Observer/Master Skeptic Moderator
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    Quote Originally Posted by JayJay39 View Post
    i cant firgure out how to post my own thread this website is impossible to use and i need answers
    It appears that you figured out how to start your own thread, here.
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  12. #12
    NeilM is offline Member BMW E36 M3 Expert
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    Quote Originally Posted by Steage View Post
    We have pressure! We ended up running a bunch of oil through it on the bench to prime it.
    Yes. The basic procedure is both to pre-fill the pump and to pour oil into every appropriate engine orifice you can think of. When you start the engine, run it up to 2K rpm with no load and clench all your own orifices while hoping that oil pressure is indeed about to happen. This is something of an act of faith, but neither cranking nor idle rpm are sufficient to draw oil into a system that's been completely drained and not primed.

    Neil

  13. #13
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    Just did this over the past weekend. Newly built S52 with S54 pan and pump setup. Pulled the spark plugs. Pulled the coils. Unplugged the power to the injectors. With the valve cover off, poured oil over the head, coating the cams and lifters (about 4 qts). Poured oil over the vanos and associated chains and sprockets (1 qt). Filled the oil filter housing and poured down the center tube of the housing. switched on the main power and cranked the motor over for several minutes (stopping every 30 seconds so as not to overheat the starter). Didn't build any pressure.

    Added my last quart directly down the center of the oil filter housing tube and cranked again and got 15lbs of pressure on the gauge. Buttoned the car up (installed plugs, coils, valve cover and plugged in injector harness) and started the car up with solid oil pressure.

    Was definitely nerve racking as all that cranking with no pressure showing up after the owner spent all that $$ on a new motor. All was good in the end.

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