Discussion
What is the pressure a measurement of exactly, how does one read it, what is good and bad, and how does temperature correlate to pressure redarding giving it large on the loud pedal?
Dont plan to give anything more than mediocre, but I didnt understand my oil temp guage on the S, therefore didnt learn to read it.
Posted following tripps comments on warming up, any more suggestions re: warming and readings appreciated
Dont plan to give anything more than mediocre, but I didnt understand my oil temp guage on the S, therefore didnt learn to read it.
Posted following tripps comments on warming up, any more suggestions re: warming and readings appreciated
Oil pressure is the force at which the oil pump is pushing the oil around the engine. It's usually measured by a small sprung diaphram that moves against a resistor, which signals the gauge.
IIRC the oil pump in the Cerb runs at half the speed of the engine, so at 1000rpm it will be running at 500rpm, as you increase the speed of the engine the oil pump rotates faster and pushes the oil around quicker creating more pressure. As the oil heats up it gets thinner so takes less force to push it around the engine, reducing pressure. Which is why at cold idle the pressure is so high and reduces as the engine warms up.
As to what is a good pressure, that's an interesting question
The oil pressure warning light typically comes on on a car when the pressure drops below 5psi, however I don't know if this is the same on the Cerb, but I assume so. With that in mind we can say that below 5psi is bad. You'll also have problems with pressure that is too high, the seals in the engine will only be designed to take a certain amount of pressure, so we can probably say that running at over 100psi is going to be a bad thing, but that is just a guess.
In between 5psi and 100psi is the safe operating range for the engine, but ideally you'd want to be at around 60psi when the engine is at 3000rpm and above, but one of the most important things is that the pressure varies considerably between hot idle and hot full revs. If it is only varying by a small amount between the two (say 10psi) then the gauge is lying to you and if it's lying about that, who knows what your pressure really is.
IIRC the oil pump in the Cerb runs at half the speed of the engine, so at 1000rpm it will be running at 500rpm, as you increase the speed of the engine the oil pump rotates faster and pushes the oil around quicker creating more pressure. As the oil heats up it gets thinner so takes less force to push it around the engine, reducing pressure. Which is why at cold idle the pressure is so high and reduces as the engine warms up.
As to what is a good pressure, that's an interesting question
The oil pressure warning light typically comes on on a car when the pressure drops below 5psi, however I don't know if this is the same on the Cerb, but I assume so. With that in mind we can say that below 5psi is bad. You'll also have problems with pressure that is too high, the seals in the engine will only be designed to take a certain amount of pressure, so we can probably say that running at over 100psi is going to be a bad thing, but that is just a guess. In between 5psi and 100psi is the safe operating range for the engine, but ideally you'd want to be at around 60psi when the engine is at 3000rpm and above, but one of the most important things is that the pressure varies considerably between hot idle and hot full revs. If it is only varying by a small amount between the two (say 10psi) then the gauge is lying to you and if it's lying about that, who knows what your pressure really is.
There is a pressure reducing valve within the system to prevent over pressurisation.
Cold pressure at idle or above will be 60 psi or above.
As the oil gets hotter it will get thinner and the guage will read lower but not significantly.
Using the correct grade of oil also has a bearing on oil pressure.
Warm up the engine gradually, not by leaving the car ticking over for 20 minutes either. Your water temp guage may show that the coolant is getting hotter but the oil will not be warm enough yet for you to explore the upper reaches of the rev counter.
Cold pressure at idle or above will be 60 psi or above.
As the oil gets hotter it will get thinner and the guage will read lower but not significantly.
Using the correct grade of oil also has a bearing on oil pressure.
Warm up the engine gradually, not by leaving the car ticking over for 20 minutes either. Your water temp guage may show that the coolant is getting hotter but the oil will not be warm enough yet for you to explore the upper reaches of the rev counter.
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