oil pressure mabye?

theonlychuck · Post by **theonlychuck** » Thu Feb 17, 2005 2:24 pm

first off, is the middle guage above the stick, labeled 'bar', oil pressure? if so what is it supposed to read? mine used to read 4-5, and now when i start my car my oil light comes on, and after a while it will blink between reg red and brighter red, then it will make a noise (i'm assuming a warning saying "hey look at this light), then the noise goes away and the light goes back to just red. when i start my car bar is around 5, but after a while it starts going down and ends up around 2 or so. has anyone had this problem yet? i haven't had a chance to look at the repair manual yet, i'm going to do that before i go to work (driving my dad's car that is, justs incase my oil pressure is low). any help would be much appreciated, thanks.

Post by **Calimus** » Thu Feb 17, 2005 2:52 pm

bar guage is the oil pressure. Now here's the thing, at warm idle on the 8v's the guage should read 1.5 bar. Anything below that and it's time to start looking at your oil pump or some of the bearings.

Now, the flashing light and accompanied buzzer is the oil pressure warning system. This part of the system has a reputation fro just going nutz. Bad thing is, that part is in two places. First is the sensor right on the oil cooler. You have two sensors there, one is the oil temp, the other is pressure. The other part is a circuit board that in the speedo cluster.

So, goo news/bad news. You can replace the sensor in the oil cooler assym and see if that clears things up. These are cheap enough, at most I think $15. If that doesn't do the trick, then chances are you have a faulty circuit. Now most of us (myself included) would rather short it out then try and find another cluster that works correctly. So, you just run a small ground wire from a good ground source to the sensor. That will effectivly shut the buzzer up.

Now here is the thing, make real damn sure your oil pressure is fine before you short that thing out. Because once you short it, you loose that part of the warning system. There is another pressure sensor, on the drivers side of the head, it's a big one with two conections (electrical). That could be bad as well, but thats generally where the bar guage gets it's signal from. Those sensors however are $$$. Worth finding a few from the junkyard and swapping them out. But definitly have the pressure checked by someone that knows what they are doing, preferably with a mechanical pressure guage. If everything looks good there, you have a faulty sensor or circuit in the cluster.

Hope that helps ya out.

CalAltaDubber · Post by **CalAltaDubber** » Thu Feb 17, 2005 3:09 pm

I agree with Calimus.

The Oil Pressure Gauge is indapendant of the idiot light, but when in doubt, have it checked. Just like the old oil filter commercial where the mechanic says "You can pay me now, or you can pay me later", meaning it will cost you a lot more if you neglect the maintenance of your car.

The proper readings on the Oil Pressure gauge should be around 5 Bar when the car is cold. as the car warms up the rading will drop, and according to my owners manual should not be less than 2 Bar with the engine running at 1000 RPM. (I will confirm that tonight).

CalAltaDubber · Post by **CalAltaDubber** » Thu Feb 17, 2005 3:29 pm

Oh ya, for the record,

Bar is the standard metric unit for pressure. This is used world wide except in Canada where the French standard of Kilopascals (KPa) is used.

1 Kilopascal = 1000 Pascals

1 Bar = 100 Kilopascals

1 Bar = 29.5299 Inches of Mercury (In. Hg)

Enough of the metric conversion!

sixsracing · Post by **sixsracing** » Fri Feb 18, 2005 1:09 pm

Another problem area with these systems is voltage. If the alternator gets weak it will make the buzzer go off. Same with the Vanagon. I have had alternator brushes get just to the point of failing and it will set this warning buzzer off.

CalAltaDubber · Post by **CalAltaDubber** » Fri Feb 18, 2005 4:12 pm

CalAltaDubber wrote:I agree with Calimus.

The proper readings on the Oil Pressure gauge should be around 5 Bar when the car is cold. as the car warms up the rading will drop, and according to my owners manual should not be less than 2 Bar with the engine running at 1000 RPM. (I will confirm that tonight).

Well I said I would confirm and I was in error.

Acording to my owners manual ('87 Cabriolet)

"At 80 degrees C (176 degrees F) oil temperature and 2000 rpm, the pressure should not be less than 2 bar. A slight drop in oil pressure is normal under certain operating conditions such as prolonged highway driving in hot weather.

However, if the oil pressure drops suddenly while you are driving, or if the buzzer sounds, move off the road and stop the engine immediatly. Check the engine oil level. If the oil level is normal, contact the nearest dealer."

theonlychuck · Post by **theonlychuck** » Tue Mar 08, 2005 2:45 am

well i've done a few things and it's better, but not much. here recently (past 3 days) i've thrown in a diff altenator, new battery, new oil pump, new warning light oil sensor, and ran a mechanical pressure gauge into the car. she was dropping down to 10 psi on the gauge before the swaps, now (from what i saw tonight, i didn't run her around too much) she dropps down to 20 psi and stops, any clue on where my problem might be? i replaced the altenator and battery because the voltage regulator on my altenator went bad and caused a dead cell in my battery =/ when i get a chance i'm going to hook up the old pressure gauge again, since it's already in it's proper spot and all.

i couldn't believe how easy it was to install a new oil pump, nothing in the way of the oil pan, it was smooth sailing, which is different from everything else i've done where you have to move 5+ things before you can start =]

sixsracing · Post by **sixsracing** » Tue Mar 08, 2005 8:49 am

20 psi isn't a bad reading at idle and operating temp. If the buzzer is still going off I would start looking at the circuit board behind the instrument cluster. These crack and can give you the symptom you are experiencing.

bubster007 · Post by **bubster007** » Thu Mar 10, 2005 3:54 pm

For what it is worth.
I just picked up my Cabby from the vet after some shots and bandages. $1000.00+ . At the bottom of the workorder it says in bold letters "Car may need an oil pump soon. Pressure is marginal but it did pass oil test"...Whatever an oil test is. I just put a Mobile One oil filter on her before she went in (because it was on my garage shelf so I used it with an oil change). She does not like this filter at all. I sometimes get a light flashing at idle and the buzzer started when I first put the filter on, momentarly. I am certain it is the filter that is the issue so alway stick with a filter that you know your car likes. If I go back to Fram she won't complain but I have heard other Cabby owners say their Cabbys don't like Fram. I use Mobile Oil and I have always heard that older engines don't like synthetic and they leak more. I have 300,000 plus miles on the original engine. The head gasket and head bolts are the only thing that are not original internally in the engine. If synthetic is not so-great I will let you know around 500,000 miles and you can change to something that helps your engine last longer. BTW What is part #191-905-351-B Switch. I got one today for $168.17 at the stealership. It is on the workorder.
Got to love black hand prints on my white hood... At no additional charge, Coolant on my battery and changed my valve cover gasket but didn't clean the oil off the side of my engine. I would rather take a good arse woopin' than take my car to a dealership. Thanks guys... you know who you are (Hwy 78 Stone Mountain, Georgia). Keep up the good work and I'll keep sending you customers. IYD.

theonlychuck · Post by **theonlychuck** » Fri Mar 11, 2005 1:24 am

i've always used fram filters and she doesn't mind. i don't get the alarm or anything after i changed oil pumps (it only cost me $405 they gave the screen too for free...unintentionally, but i wasn't going to let them know i got it and didn't pay for it =] ) mine only went off because my oil pump was going bad and i was getting crap oil pressure =/

i can't afford to take my baby to any kind of shop so i always work on her myself (or with my dad). hopefully i'll be moving out soon (looking at a rent-to-own house saturday, wish us (my fiance and i) luck) so i'll be doing everything pretty much on my own from here on out.

sixsracing · Post by **sixsracing** » Fri Mar 11, 2005 8:43 am

You guys need to move closer. I can't believe the costs to repair vehicles out there. I just changed struts and strut mounts, front pads, right ball joint, right outer cv boot, oil pan and did an oil change for $130.00 in labor. I got the guy a discount at my old parts store and they delivered the parts to his workplace for no charge.

Fram filters are not installed at my shop, German or nothing. Most of the aftermarket filters I have experienced contibute to low oil pressure and do not have the proper pressure relief or anti-drainback valves.

Bubster, your switch is most likely the large bell shaped oil pressure sender at the transmission end of the block/head. Make sure yours looks new or I would ask for an explanation. Synthetic oil in a high mileage motor should actually help the leaks, not increase them. Remember that you can use a higher viscosity synthetic than you would with a normal oil. If you usually run 10w40 in normal, then run 15w40 or 20w50 synthetic. That far south I would be running 20w50 all the time.

Disclaimer: I am an oil snob and only use Castrol GTX. I tend to run higher viscosity oil than most people. I have done my own real world tests on oil and filters and my opinions do not necessarily reflect the opinions of this forum. Heck, my opinions may not reflect rational thought at all.

Post by **Calimus** » Fri Mar 11, 2005 9:39 am

20w-50 is all that I run in the A1's or even my toyota pickup for that matter. Since bubster is in my neck of the woods I can say that it will do the trick for him. I'm also an oil snob, Castrol GTX 20w-50 is what I use when I need dead dinosaur in my cars. If it's synthetic you want, so far all I use is Red Line syn oil's. The cabby has Red Line MT90 in the new tranny and the Jetta is rocking Red Line 5w-30 in the engine.

bubster007 · Post by **bubster007** » Mon Mar 14, 2005 8:51 pm

Dude, this is a really great forum and subject. You guys are really getting some good info and I am right in there with you. I turned 9.95 in the quarter with my '69 SuperBee on street tires and pump gas (well, blue gas) at Commerce, Georgia a few years ago and I was using 5w50 Castrol. When they changed from synthetic to a blend I felt betrayed. It was something I put all my money on and I just couldn't trust my money on something that was different but basically marketed as the same thing. The truth is that I need to just suck it up and deal with it, there probably isn't a big difference. We are very critical of our oil yet we go out in public with broads (chicks) that are better left in the closet. (OK, speaking for myself, but what the hey). All that said, and I have to agree with Cal' 411 is that in our local area what works here might not be so great elsewhere. I guess here the wider the range the better. I probably need to change my oil pump because the thing has 300,000 miles on it. Remembering that the pump only supplies volume and the crankshaft supplies the pressure it may not be bad advise to stick some bottom bearings in and a pump along with that new pan gasket. I don't see $400.00 making it happen as earlier quoted (but if you want someone else to put it in I guess that is about normal) but I most always do my own work and the last trip to the dealership made a real believe out of me. If you don't have any idea what you are doing, you still have these guy at Topless to contact and that is miles ahead of what I just bent over and paid $1,000.00 for last week. If I ever take my car back there I will admit to being...then deny it and call you a double dog liar for repeating it. It seems that Cabbys are not the only VW,s that have a very sensitive warning system but it is better to be too sensitive that the reverse. And it is a double alarm system. Simply checking your screen in the pan might reveal why she is screaming at you. If the top end is ugly then you know the bottom end is worse.

Metallicabby · Post by **Metallicabby** » Tue Feb 28, 2006 9:58 pm

I just found this website - THANK GOD!! Thanks to all of you for posting about the oil light blinking. We just got our new (to us) cabby back from VW dealership. They said pressure is fine, replaced oil sending unit (?), and told us that everything was ok - possibly a bad sensor. We were a little fearful about driving it. Light flashes at idle - buzzer sometimes - but runs like a top while driving. We were a little freaked out about the whole thing and it is reassuring to see that our cool and CLEAN cabby is suffering a common issue. I will read on and learn from you who are more experienced with this car than I. We LOVE the car and the ONLY problem it has is the oil pressure light and the BAR guage showing a little less than 2 bar at 80 deg CEL.

theonlychuck · Post by **theonlychuck** » Tue Feb 28, 2006 11:27 pm

whoops re-reading that i saw a typo, i paid $40 for the pump and screen, not $405, those sneaky, sneaky 5's...