Engine oil light on

[slo325i]

but with plenty of oil....

what does this mean? bad oil pump? the car sat for about a week and this light was never on before.

[jlevie]

Which oil light? The one in the Check Panel only reports a low oil level situation and can be ignored if the level is okay according to the dipstick. But the one in the cluster indicates insufficient pressure and is really important.

[slo325i]

Oh sorry, on the top (check panel)

[E30_fiend]

Yeah the one in the check panel isn't as important as the one on the gauge cluster. As long as you have sufficient oil then you're fine

[SpecM]

probably just the level sending unit going crazy

[HST]

It is the level sensor or the wiring going to it most likely, mine has been on from the day I got the car.

[DatUtahGuy]

BUMP!

I didn't want to start a new thread but couldn't find an answer to my question.
My oil pressure light started coming on, not the oil level like slo325i, but the pressure on the dash.

It won't do it if I drive the car "normally", but if I start driving spirited, revving up to 5k or so, the light will come on when I'm sitting in idle, as soon as I give it gas, it will go off.
Then if I turn the car off and back on, the light won't come on again until I start driving it hard. I just did an oil change today to try to fix it, no luck. Should I change the sensor or does it sound like a bad pump

Any thought? Thanks.

[jlevie]

What oil are you using? And what filter?

20w50 dyno oil is right for these engines. And the filter matters. I've seen non-OE filters collapse and cause low oil pressure.

[DatUtahGuy]

Castrol Syntec synthetic oil 10W-50 and a mobil 1 Oil filter.

Like I said I just changed my oil today, the oil I had in there before was synthetic blend and working fine. My oil light started coming on about a week ago.

How would I know if the oil filter collapsed?

[Adrian_Visser]

you wouldn't. change it to see. the only way to tell is to cut open the filter and look at the guts even then you may not be able to tell right away

[thereisnoyun]

I've seen non-OE filters collapse and cause low oil pressure.

that may be "possible" but its the last place I would ever look. Its so unlikely.

I mean, test the sensor out with a ohm meter would be my first perogative. If not then it might be the pump. pump failure is not unlikely.

[DatUtahGuy]

I drove to Park City today, about 40 minute drive, and back and only had the problem when I stopped completely... will test the sensor but I'm ALMOST positive it's the pump.

(btw: the sensor is below the oil filter right?)

[bruno6491]

i also have the light come on in my car like schwarz3. Hopefully its not a bad pump

is driving it a bad idea?

[ethree]

i also have the light come on in my car like schwarz3. Hopefully its not a bad pump

is driving it a bad idea?

Yes. Oil pressure within spec is your friend. Get it checked out.

[Knockenwelle]

The light sounds like it's acting appropriately. Keep in mind that synthetic oil flows much more easily than a conventional oil of the same SAE weight. Even if it has the same effective protection at the bearing, it will flow through the clearance gap more easily and cause a drop in (back)pressure. Warm 10W synthetic in an idling, high-mile M20 will easily cause pressure to be only a few psi. Try switching back to dinosaur 20W50. Or maybe it's time for bearings?