• Hey Guest!
    British Car Forum has been supporting enthusiasts for over 25 years by providing a great place to share our love for British cars. You can support our efforts by upgrading your membership for less than the dues of most car clubs. There are some perks with a member upgrade!
    **Upgrade Now**
    (PS: Upgraded members don't see this banner, nor will you see the Google ads that appear on the site.)

Oil Pressure Question

Share this page

What's your temp at? What rpm is this happening at? Did you check the relief spring yet? They are cheap, change it.
 
Yeah, lower temps can also help a bit.

What thermostat are you running? A 160F will work nicely and you'll still get reasonable heater function while keeping engine temp lower.

Not a solution (more of a "band-aid"), but dropping engine temp is helpful.
 
Low oil pressure on our AH3000 was caused primarily by the spring in the oil relief valve having gotten shorter/weaker (my understanding of the purpose of the spring/bullet/ball device is to avoid overpressuring when starting with cold/thick oil: the higher pressure lifts the ball/bullet and allows oil to flow back into the sump. But if the metal to metal face is poor or the spring is weak, then the oil starts running back into the sump at a much lower pressure. The oil relief valve is easy to pull and check; does anyone know what the standard spring length is supposed to be? Think about Skiptune's suggestion; at least you don't have to get into heavy lifting and inside the engine when you're working with the pressure relief.
Not sure about the A series, but the rocker arm assembly is another one where pressure goes on the 3000 - on the six, you pull the valve cover and fire it up and see if oil is oozing or spurting, with spurting being a Bad Thing.
Doug
 
If you suspect it's the spring, here's a fun easy trick. Pull the spring housing (it's that big long nut lookin' thing under the dizzy) and stack a few 10-32 washers on the plunger stem so that they are between the spring and the back face of the plunger. If your oil pressure goes up, then you know who the culprit is.
 
Update: dropped by Mark's today and he peered under the hood (which I have been avoiding) the hose that connects the engine to the oil pressure gauge was loose at one end - new hose clamp (and soon a new hose) and we HOPE we may have fixed it - there was certainly oil spray around the fixture. we'll keep you posted. Thanks again Mark :bow:
 
kellysguy said:
JPSmit said:
It is 20-50 oil and up until this oil change, I did use Lucas.
Click to expand...


Why didn't you this time?
Click to expand...

because earlier this summer I pulled the oil pan and there was a coating on it that was likely the Lucas.
 
I suspect it may be something else, as mine didn't have any coating anywhere when I tore it down and I use it alot.
 
kellysguy said:
I suspect it may be something else, as mine didn't have any coating anywhere when I tore it down and I use it alot.
Click to expand...

realized later that coating wasn't the right word, more like residue
 
I know what you meant. Mine was nice, bright and clean. It probably came from a treatment of some sort, but I doubt it was Lucas. I didn't do it to mine.
 
JPSmit said:
Update: dropped by Mark's today and he peered under the hood (which I have been avoiding) the hose that connects the engine to the oil pressure gauge was loose at one end - new hose clamp (and soon a new hose) and we HOPE we may have fixed it - there was certainly oil spray around the fixture. we'll keep you posted. Thanks again Mark :bow:
Click to expand...



Well? Where y'at on this?
 
'bout the same - Friday had my Pastor and her husband over for dinner, Saturday drove up to the Camp daughter works at (about 3 hours one way) took her out for dinner, drove home in torrential rain (an all day affair). This morning preached, wife preached in another church, had lunch, home for a snooze and now just waiting for Top Gear to start. Not a ton O motivation. If the weather improves I may take a shake down run later tonight or it may have to wait till next week. Certainly anything serious will wait till the winter as I really don't have to drive more than about 15 miles one way between now and the snow flying.
 
Back
Top