Oil Pressure Problems
Discussion
Was approaching home yesterday evening after spending Xmas at my dads and as I came to a halt in traffic on the M1, braking from 70ish to walking pace I glanced at the pressure gauge to see that it was registering 0 psi. 
Or more accurately it was as far over the the left as the needle could go.
I was just about to go for the kill engine / take it out of gear / avoid middle lane morons and see if I could coast over the the hard shoulder when it returned to an all the more reasonable 30 - 40 psi.
I watched the gauge all the way home (another 150 miles or so, and all fine and I don't think I've lunched the engine just yet).
Got under the car this morning to check sensor properly attached etc and looks OK. Fired her up and all fine, but when I blip the throttle (gently) the oil pressure drops, only to return again when I maintain a steady RPM.
My usual mechanic is taking a well earned break, so i) any suggestions for somebody local to High Wycombe who could take a look ASAP? and ii) any ideas what the problem could be? Sticky relief valve or tired oil pump maybe?
Or more accurately it was as far over the the left as the needle could go. I was just about to go for the kill engine / take it out of gear / avoid middle lane morons and see if I could coast over the the hard shoulder when it returned to an all the more reasonable 30 - 40 psi.
I watched the gauge all the way home (another 150 miles or so, and all fine and I don't think I've lunched the engine just yet).
Got under the car this morning to check sensor properly attached etc and looks OK. Fired her up and all fine, but when I blip the throttle (gently) the oil pressure drops, only to return again when I maintain a steady RPM.
My usual mechanic is taking a well earned break, so i) any suggestions for somebody local to High Wycombe who could take a look ASAP? and ii) any ideas what the problem could be? Sticky relief valve or tired oil pump maybe?
If the engine sounds fine then it could be electrical. If your battery is not charging properly and is losing power then your oil pressure gauge will read low especially when you apply more throttle. Mine is doing this at the moment as the alternator decided to pack up a few days ago!! When I charge the battery up it goes back to reading fine.
You could check the output of the alternator to see if this is whats happening on yours??
cheers
Rich
You could check the output of the alternator to see if this is whats happening on yours??
cheers
Rich
It is worth taking any oil pressure problems seriously because they can destroy your engine very quickly, but in this case I would suspect a broken wire to the oil sensor or duff sensor, misreading when the engine moves as you apply torque. Do you have a low pressure warning light too? This could be used to confirm that you do have *some* oil pressure even when the gauge says you haven't.
GreenV8S said:
It is worth taking any oil pressure problems seriously because they can destroy your engine very quickly, but in this case I would suspect a broken wire to the oil sensor or duff sensor, misreading when the engine moves as you apply torque. Do you have a low pressure warning light too? This could be used to confirm that you do have *some* oil pressure even when the gauge says you haven't.
Pete,
I'm taking the approach that it is something more serious until proven otherwise. Warning Light is functional (at ignition on) and doesn't come on when gauge reverts to zero, so fingers crossed it will be sensor / cable / gauge.
The good news is I have managed to get it booked in for first thing tomorrow morning, the bad news is I will be paying main dealer prices!
Cheers
Paul
UpTheIron said:
At the risk of stating the bleedin obvious - you have checked the oil level haven't you ?.
Mike.
Funny, I didn't think of thatFunnily enough, the oil level is probably slightly HIGHER than it has been previously - just been serviced.
Dont take any chances and try driving it until your engineer looks at it, this was exactly the same symptoms mine showed before Christmas and turned out to be the pressure relief valve had stuck open in the oil pump, hense no pressure.Only by blipping the throttle would the gauge register pressure, funny your oil light hasnt come on as Peter mentioned.
I had slightly overfilled mine too(in the dark)which although by not a large ammount was enough to overcome the spring rate.Get a new spring fitted while your at it.
Hope all is well
h
i have this same problem at present and the low oil pressure light is staying off and the oil level is good and as the needle goes right off the gauge to the left it looks more like a sensor problem , now where can i get a new sensor as the TVR dealer is a bit far from me , is it a common rover/land rover part and can i get one from rimmers or is it TVR only.
Before changing the sensor, try cleaning the spade connector that goes onto the sensor under the front of the engine. Use electrical contact cleaner/methylated spirit or other residue free degreaser.
You can easily contaminate this connection during an oil change, so sounds likely in your case Uptheiron.
You can easily contaminate this connection during an oil change, so sounds likely in your case Uptheiron.
heliox said:
Dont take any chances and try driving it until your engineer looks at it, this was exactly the same symptoms mine showed before Christmas and turned out to be the pressure relief valve had stuck open in the oil pump, hense no pressure.Only by blipping the throttle would the gauge register pressure, funny your oil light hasnt come on as Peter mentioned.
h
So far dealers investigations have found no problem, however the oil switch is leaking slightly. I'm changing the sender, oil switch and pressure relief valve to be on the safe side.
Sods law however - took old sensor out and it literally fell out - the mounting bolt missing most of its threads and the new one won't take. At least the threads into the engine are OK, so it just a case of getting the new bolt from the factory, who are closed until Monday.
So now car until the middle of next week at least
Just saw this thread,
I had problems with my 500 Chim a while back, driving normally it would read about 30psi whilst driving at a constant RPM. If the RPM differed much i'd lose pressure Being new to the TVR world i saught help as fast as i could (being in Germany didn't help), it seemed that my camshaft bearings were badly worn, thus letting oil seep between the gaps. I presume that once it got to a certain pressure it seeped through the gaps more easily, i.e. when i depressed the "loud" pedal too much pressure built up.
I ran my chim for about 500miles like this, but i must add VERY carefully. I think this timeframe should give you time to check all the possibilities already mentioned such as duff sensor etc. first thing is not to worry, the cars seem to take alot of bashing before it gets serious.
hope this helps, if not at least calm you down, and all the above is all IMHO.
Happy New Year
Jeff
I had problems with my 500 Chim a while back, driving normally it would read about 30psi whilst driving at a constant RPM. If the RPM differed much i'd lose pressure
Being new to the TVR world i saught help as fast as i could (being in Germany didn't help), it seemed that my camshaft bearings were badly worn, thus letting oil seep between the gaps. I presume that once it got to a certain pressure it seeped through the gaps more easily, i.e. when i depressed the "loud" pedal too much pressure built up. I ran my chim for about 500miles like this, but i must add VERY carefully. I think this timeframe should give you time to check all the possibilities already mentioned such as duff sensor etc. first thing is not to worry, the cars seem to take alot of bashing before it gets serious.
hope this helps, if not at least calm you down, and all the above is all IMHO.
Happy New Year
Jeff
Jeff,
Thanks for your input. What happened with yours when you left the engine to idle after starting up, then blipped the throttle lightly? This would sometimes cause me to lose pressure also...
What was the damage (replaced parts and cost) on yours if you don't mind me asking?
Cheers
Paul
Thanks for your input
. What happened with yours when you left the engine to idle after starting up, then blipped the throttle lightly? This would sometimes cause me to lose pressure also... What was the damage (replaced parts and cost) on yours if you don't mind me asking?
Cheers
Paul
Hi Paul,
Yes, that also happened to me, i.e. had enging running for a while then blipped the throttle and would EITHER lose, or gain pressure.
I'd suggest getting it looked at, i went to Austec Racing, about 3 mins away from Gatwick, i called Mike and he really put my mind at ease, i mean REALLY. without that guy on the other end of the phone i think i'd have gone another shade of grey. give him a call on 01293 531080, maybe tell him you had the same symptoms as i did.
Reference cost of my parts/repairs well, i wouldn't like to shock you with my figures... reason being is that i had basically EVERYTHING done to my car, not because it needed it, mainly because i wanted peace of mind being in Germany. O.K. i had a new cam put in there too
, most gaskets replaced, big ends, little ends, the afforementioned kent camshaft, followers, bores re-honed and new piston rings in there not to mention the camshaft bearings.
Give Mike a call, he'll really help you out.
P.S. tell him you can get hold of one of my famous CD's for a good deal
Sorry for any delay in getting back to you, i'm on holiday in the states at the mo, but will be popping online once a day.
Jeff
Yes, that also happened to me, i.e. had enging running for a while then blipped the throttle and would EITHER lose, or gain pressure.
I'd suggest getting it looked at, i went to Austec Racing, about 3 mins away from Gatwick, i called Mike and he really put my mind at ease, i mean REALLY. without that guy on the other end of the phone i think i'd have gone another shade of grey. give him a call on 01293 531080, maybe tell him you had the same symptoms as i did.
Reference cost of my parts/repairs well, i wouldn't like to shock you with my figures... reason being is that i had basically EVERYTHING done to my car, not because it needed it, mainly because i wanted peace of mind being in Germany. O.K. i had a new cam put in there too
, most gaskets replaced, big ends, little ends, the afforementioned kent camshaft, followers, bores re-honed and new piston rings in there not to mention the camshaft bearings. Give Mike a call, he'll really help you out.
P.S. tell him you can get hold of one of my famous CD's for a good deal
Sorry for any delay in getting back to you, i'm on holiday in the states at the mo, but will be popping online once a day.
Jeff
Interesting thread this (aren't they all) but I sometimes experience the gauge showing a very high oil pressure reading when the car is cold, I keep checking the gauge and after a while I see it's back to normal. From this thread I think I'll check connections first and go from there.
Scared the pants off me first time it happened but I've learnt knwo that it's the gauge an not the engine ................ I guess alot of us have had that moment of panic but we still keep coming back for more!
Scared the pants off me first time it happened but I've learnt knwo that it's the gauge an not the engine ................ I guess alot of us have had that moment of panic but we still keep coming back for more!
N4 SPY said:
Interesting thread this (aren't they all) but I sometimes experience the gauge showing a very high oil pressure reading when the car is cold, I keep checking the gauge and after a while I see it's back to normal. From this thread I think I'll check connections first and go from there.
Scared the pants off me first time it happened but I've learnt knwo that it's the gauge an not the engine ................ I guess alot of us have had that moment of panic but we still keep coming back for more!
IIRC the bible refers to a failing sensor often giving very HIGH or low readings....
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