Oil light came on again. Mysterious. (1 Viewer)

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Joined
Oct 19, 2005
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I wrote a couple of days ago about oil light coming on going down hill. Now it came on, on level ground, but went back off after 10-20 seconds. Oil pressure is normal. Any suggestions. I know a couple of guys said this happens sometimes on steep hills, but this was on flat. Thanks for the help.
 
Checked it, not low.
 
What year is your rig, You could put it in the sig line than we wouldn't ask. It matters so we can know what engine you are running.
 
96 How do I put it in my sig. Sorry for the ignorance on the subject.
 
Remember reading that some people have a very sensative oil level sensor. Not sure what the fix was..but if you search oil light I bet you find something.
 
Could be the wire to the sensor is grounding out.

The sensor is on the lower DS of the engine. Check it out, especially the wiring.
 
I notice mine will come on every morning for 30 seconds about 2 minutes into my commute (regardless of oil level, speed, hill, etc), but only after I have about 3,000 miles on the oil. As soon as I change the oil, no more light for 3,000 miles or so.

Jiffy Lube must have put some evil oil change sensor in the pan when the PO had the thing in for a change :)
 
I promise you that it's just low enough that when you look at the dipstick it looks fine, but the light will still come on. Mine does it all the time. When the light comes on, i add 1/2 quart to a quart and it's gone for another 3,000 miles; then it will come back on intermitantly so i add another 1/2 to 1 quart and i'm good for another 3,000 miles. I run fully synthetic oil and my oil change intervals are 7,000-10,000 miles.
 
I've got the same issue. No light on start-up, but a couple minutes into my drive the last few days and the light will come on for 15-20 seconds then goes off for the remainder of drive. Every once in a while it will repeat on my 15 mile drive to work, but usually only for a few seconds. It does it on flat ground, light throttle, backing off the throttle, down hills ~ nothing in particular. I've checked the dipstick and it is well within the hashmarks. After sitting in the garage for 15 minutes the dipstick showed 1/4 of the hashmark covered, then increased to about 1/3 of the hasmark covered after about an hour.

On a road trip this summer, I had the light come on for the first time in eastern Oregon in the middle of nowhere. Scared the piss out of me. The dipstick showed an oil level right at the low level, so I kept adding oil until I could get it to show in the hashmarks (about 1.25 qts added). In the morning, the level then showed over full. WTF? I went to Jiffy Lube and had them do a fresh change with non-gas-station crap oil. I triple checked that they added the correct 7.8 qts with the filter and the level was at the upper end of the hashmarks after the change. By the end of the trip, no change.

How long should the 1FZ sit before enough of the oil has drained into the pan to give an accurate measurement on the dipstick? I'd hate to keep overfilling it when I see it is a little low at the gas station.

Steve
 
As you found the oil reading on the 1fz can be quite variable. Having the filter mounted horizontal allows the filter to drain about half way even if the ADBV works, more if it does not.


You want to check the oil level hot and before the oil filter drains giving a false high reading, I check it at every fill up, I let it sit only long enough to get the pump started then do my rounds under the hood wile it fills.

Owners manual states it this way:

With the engine at operating temperature and turned
off, check the oil level on the dipstick.
1. To get a true reading, the vehicle should be on a level
spot. After turning off the engine, wait a few minutes for the
oil to drain back into the bottom of the engine.
2. Pull out the dipstick, and wipe it clean with a rag.
3. Reinsert the dipstick and push it in as far as it will go, or
the reading will not be correct.

Add oil O.K. Too full

4. Pull the dipstick out and look at the oil level on the end.
If it is between the full line ( ) and the low line ( ), it is O.K.
If the oil level is below or only slightly above the low
line, add engine oil of the same type as already in the
engine.

Remove the oil filler cap and add engine oil a little at a time,
checking the dipstick. The approximate quantity of oil
needed to fill between the low line and the full line on the
dipstick is indicated below for reference.
When the level reaches within the correct range, return the
filler cap and turn the cap clockwise until you hear a click. [....RT, what click? my cap is solid)


Oil quantity. L (qt., Imp. qt.) 1.5 (1.6, 1.3)

some oil level sensors seam to be more sensitive than others, it has been a wile since I have spaced the oil long enough for it to come on (same as you guys briefly shortly after the start of the drive) but I think it was well over a quart low before the light came on.
 
I never let mine get below the mid-point of the hash marks. Light will come on even when it shows completely full...if it has over 3000 miles on the oil. Strange beast, indeed!
 

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