Oil Pressure Question - Advice Needed!

[kire]

I recently got gauges installed in my car, and I pay alot of attention to them.

Over the last weekend, my oil pressure at WOT appears to have dropped by 6-8psi. It has me pretty concerned, so I took a look at the engine to see if I could notice any leaks or problems with my untrained eye.

I appear to have the gasket failure that's oh so common for our cars, so I have booked my car into the dealership for servicing tommorow.

My question is, is my oil pressure dropping a symptom of the gasket failure, or am I looking at a whole different problem?

Thanks, Erik.

[rixGAGTphx]

You "recently got gauges".

Did you install, or have it done?

GM, or aftermarket?

I'm not sure on GM.

On aftrmarket, the sensor into the block needs to go in DRY, with clean threads, no sealant or teflon. And, it needs to seat tight into the bottom of the hole, to prevent pressurized oil from heading up the threads.
The gage works by power to the gage, then grounding thru the sensor to the block.
If even a little oil gets in the thread space, it acts as an insulator. This causes more resistance-to-ground, and thus a lower gage reading.
Maybe pull the sensor, clean it, reinstall, and see if that changes the readings.
You could also measure the readings with a multi-meter, but I don't know what the values should be.

Hope this helps.
-Rick

[Molson]

oil pressure fluctuates with outside temperatures, engine load, viscosity of the oil itself.

I found, as my oil got older, there was more PSI at cold started and less at hot idle. Cruising PSI was withing 5-8 psi, and it vairied at WOT too. If its changing 5-7 psi, I, personally, would not be too concerned.

[balludc]

Originally posted by Molson
oil pressure fluctuates with outside temperatures, engine load, viscosity of the oil itself.

I found, as my oil got older, there was more PSI at cold started and less at hot idle. Cruising PSI was withing 5-8 psi, and it vairied at WOT too. If its changing 5-7 psi, I, personally, would not be too concerned.
i noticed mine have dropped too (while hot)... never wouldve thought it was because it's getting colder. mine dropped about 8psi... i also need an oil change in 300 miles or so, so i wont worry about my prob.

-derek

[killerhound]

My oil pressure is around 40-42 PSI at startup, and varies in the 30's when warm...