Fox T-Bird/Cougar Forums

Technical => Electrical Tech => Topic started by: thebruins on November 30, 2007, 05:18:55 AM

Title: oil sensor
Post by: thebruins on November 30, 2007, 05:18:55 AM
When I start my car, half the time my full digital dash warns me the car is low on oil. It isn't, though, as oil was changed about 300miles ago. I hoped that would solve the issue with the low oil warning, but it hasn't. After I drive around a bit, the gauge correctly shows 4 bars out of 4 (if 4 is the maximum, that is :) ). Is it time to replace the oil sensor? Or is there anything else I can check?
Title: oil sensor
Post by: JrP on November 30, 2007, 07:21:08 AM
Your pressure is good and your level is good on the dipstick its probabably the level sensor on the oil pan or wiring to it. Is there somehow to jumper the sensor to send a signal that the level is good? Then you can prove the sensor is bad?
Title: oil sensor
Post by: ipsd on November 30, 2007, 09:04:48 AM
I know in my 84 T/c I was looking for the O2 ground wire that was orange. I found 2 of them. One was the O2 ground and the 2nd was the wire for the low oil light on the dash. If I grounded the wire it made the LOW OIL light come on. So maybe you have a piece of that wire shorted to ground.
Title: oil sensor
Post by: thebruins on November 30, 2007, 09:34:48 AM
Ok, thanks. So where's the sensor located? It's an '88 5.0 V8 engine.
Is it possible to take the sensor out and perhaps clean it? The guy who serviced my car told me the oil filter was clogged up and the oil was thick and old, and perhaps some dirt prevented the oil sensor from working correctly. Don't know if that makes any sense
Title: oil sensor
Post by: EricCoolCats on November 30, 2007, 10:07:24 AM
Low oil sensor is in the side of the oil pan, driver's side.

If cleaning that sensor off, and/or replacing it, does not solve the beeping issue then it's in the wiring. You have a bunch of wires running on the driver's side of the engine bay...in that mess is a wire with a grey shunt attached. I believe that's the one that goes to the oil sending unit above the oil filter. There's where you should look for the problem...several people have mentioned that before. Will (weasle) told me that the shunt ended up being the problem on his '87 XR7 with the digital dash.
Title: oil sensor
Post by: thebruins on November 30, 2007, 11:05:46 AM
Can I take the sensor out w/o spilling any oil? Any precautions necessary before doing it?
Title: oil sensor
Post by: V8Demon on November 30, 2007, 11:20:05 AM
You talked about the guage showing bars.....Do you mean the OIL PRESSURE SENSOR?

Quote from: EricCoolCats
Will (weasle) told me that the shunt ended up being the problem on his '87 XR7 with the digital dash.


You mean this below?  It's a 22 ohm resistor. 
http://www.foxtbirdcougarforums.com/showthread.php?p=36134#post36134
Title: oil sensor
Post by: thebruins on November 30, 2007, 11:43:51 AM
Quote
You talked about the guage showing bars.....Do you mean the OIL PRESSURE SENSOR?


I was under the impression that's an oil level display? How else does the car warn you it's low on oil?
Title: oil sensor
Post by: V8Demon on November 30, 2007, 11:50:18 AM
There's an indicator light for that.

Get a mechanical guage and check your pressure at cold idle, hot idle and @ 2000 RPM's hot.
It SUPPOSED to go off at around 7 PSI.  Mine would chime at 20 PSI.  Annoying to say the least.
Title: oil sensor
Post by: thebruins on November 30, 2007, 12:26:20 PM
ok, sorry for my unawareness of the gauge...

if the pressure's low, isn't it supposed to be beeping and blinking every time I drive the car?
Title: oil sensor
Post by: thunderjet302 on November 30, 2007, 01:14:33 PM
Quote from: thebruins;190300
When I start my car, half the time my full digital dash warns me the car is low on oil. It isn't, though, as oil was changed about 300miles ago. I hoped that would solve the issue with the low oil warning, but it hasn't. After I drive around a bit, the gauge correctly shows 4 bars out of 4 (if 4 is the maximum, that is :) ). Is it time to replace the oil sensor? Or is there anything else I can check?


4 bars? Mine is at 5. My guess is your oil pressure is low. If the engine was neglected (hence the plugged filter, ie slidge) and run with a clogged filter who knows what the hell happend to the bearings and such.....
Title: oil sensor
Post by: V8Demon on November 30, 2007, 01:18:48 PM
Quote
if the pressure's low, isn't it supposed to be beeping and blinking every time I drive the car?


No.  Many things will affect it.
Title: oil sensor
Post by: thebruins on November 30, 2007, 05:59:16 PM
I want to start by replacing the sender unit, and see if that fixes it before having it checked out by someone else. At http://www.motorcraft.com there are two units to choose from, one 'w/light' and one 'w/gauge'. Also, at http://www.partsamerica.com they make a distinction between senders for mechanical and electronic clusters. Is the sender for electronic clusters with a gauge the one I should get?
Title: oil sensor
Post by: jcassity on December 01, 2007, 01:51:49 AM
Mine shows 5 bars.
Title: oil sensor
Post by: turbopete on December 01, 2007, 08:16:49 PM
The  oil level sensor can be changed without draining the oil. Just jack it up on the  driver's side.
Title: oil sensor
Post by: V8Demon on December 01, 2007, 08:36:18 PM
True, but his problem is with pressure, not oil level....Any update?
Title: oil sensor
Post by: thebruins on December 02, 2007, 09:42:56 AM
no updates yet, I'm trying to figure out what to do. I'm a bit low on money, so first thing I'd like to do is get a new sender unit and see if that fixes it.
What are signs of low oil pressure? Engine runs fine.
Title: oil sensor
Post by: hocivic95 on March 09, 2009, 12:19:58 PM
im having the same problem,that annoying beeping all the time.sometimes it works and shows oil pressure, the next minute you hear the beep, and shows low pressure.i got a new sender, from advance for like 12 bucks,i haven't installed it yet though.
Title: oil sensor
Post by: 86XR7project on March 09, 2009, 12:36:20 PM
Oil leak? My Catera does the same thing. When the oil is cold you et good pressure but after it warms up it begins to leak would be my guess.
Title: oil sensor
Post by: thebruins on March 10, 2009, 05:22:40 AM
Quote
i haven't installed it yet though.


I got a new sender a few days after my last post in this thread, but after all this time I still haven't replaced it ;)
The beeping is annoying at times and it was really bad for a while (10+ minutes of continuous beeping), but the past few weeks it's been suspicously quiet
Title: oil sensor
Post by: V8Demon on March 10, 2009, 11:44:36 AM
Quote from: thebruins;260523
I got a new sender a few days after my last post in this thread, but after all this time I still haven't replaced it ;)
The beeping is annoying at times and it was really bad for a while (10+ minutes of continuous beeping), but the past few weeks it's been suspicously quiet


It's been 15 months.....

More wrenching :hick:
Title: oil sensor
Post by: thebruins on October 21, 2009, 05:31:58 AM
Quote
More wrenching


I did the wrenching today and replaced the oil pressure sender. I got 5 bars now (before, I got 4) and there's no random beeping anymore.

Thread finally closed :)
Title: oil sensor
Post by: Haystack on October 21, 2009, 03:11:15 PM
I had the same problem. Somehow the wire go ripped out. I didn't figure that out till I alread bought a new oil pressure sender. Whats really funny, is it sometimes said the levels were fine even without the wire going to anything.
Title: oil sensor
Post by: thebruins on October 21, 2009, 03:30:54 PM
Quote
Whats really funny, is it sometimes said the levels were fine even without the wire going to anything.


LOL! Guess it's not even an idiot light then, more some sort of decorative light... But I have to say, sometimes it seemed the car just gave up on beeping only to start again a few minutes later, as if it knew I wasn't paying attention to the beeping anyway