slowly losing oil pressure???

[sick GN]

OK new problem.... oil pressure used to be 18psi hot at idle... now its more like 14psi hot... oil pressure rises with rpm and still seems fine while driving but it just seems to be dropping at idle hot.... Could it be the oil is breaking down?? i am using the old school dino oil 10 w 30... its around 3k miles so i am gonna change the oil but i am wondering if this sounds like the bearings are going too.... stock long block about 118k miles... hopefully oil change will make the difference.... havent raced it or anything just daily driving... ok thanks guys

Jeremy

 

[TurboTnZ06]

Gauge can be wrong too. Is the oil temp the same as before?

 

[sick GN]

well the temp of the coolant is the same... bout 200-205 or so...

 

[Turbo-Archie]

Cam bearings?




..

 

[sick GN]

oh man thats what im hopin not to hear!! does it really sound like a bearing issue?? never any rod knock or anything

 

[Turbo-Archie]

Thats when you go to 0-psi @ idle with no knock.

Might be an easy fix if it comes to that, just pop in some new cam bearings..


..

 

[sick GN]

your sayin cam bearings cause 0psi at idle with no knock? so is this rod or main bearings or cant tell yet?

 

[TurboDave]

Try a slightly heavier weight oil, 15-40 maybe.

 

[Turbo-Archie]

Your cam bearings could be on their way but I wouldn't sweat it untill it gets lower.

You can do a band aid with heaver oil and a stiffer spring but you would be adding to the problem and just kill the cam bearing faster if you even have a problem.


..

 

[Chuck Leeper]

And, see why the engine temp is 205*....
And, when you change oil, cut the filter open and see what U may find...

 

[QUIP'6']

3000 miles is the time to change if no racing was involved. maybe breaking down. i would try a 15/40 or a 20/50 also if you have alky injection this will break it down faster

 

[sick GN]

no alky... stiffer spring? in the oil pump?? where would i find that? is there a kit i can buy? 205 temp is high?? the factory thermostat is 200 i thought...

 

[LOT]

spring

Changing spring in pump will do absolutely nothing to hot oil pressure @ idle.
Coolant temp and oil temp may or may not be same.
If oil pressure is high @ cold start up and low once hot--classic case of excessive bearing clearance.

 

[84BuickGNYorkPA]

If it drops below 10psi at hot idle then I would start to worry. Is this a mechanical gage? (they are the best)
When you change your oil next time, be sure to replace the drain plug, with a magnet plug, to help catch any magnetic material.. like say a cam lobe(that happened to me once and it looked like I caught a wod of file shavings). A dirty filter will drop the pressure slightly.
Main thing is to have 10psi at hot idle and verify that pressure raises 10 psi for every 1k rpm increase. I would stick with the factory recomended 10-30 viscosity..... I wouldn't worry just yet.

Chuck

 

[toomanymodz]

change oil then re-evaluate. 3k on dino oil is enough to break it down a bit. No worries.

 

[sick GN]

At 2k rpm on the highway I'm at 38psi....