Hi folks,

I'm locketine's dad. His RX-7's oil pressure problem confounds me. It is only low (slightly above the top bar of the two bars at the bottom of the gauge) when the engine is warmed up and running below 1000 RPMs. Unlike a piston engine when the the oil pressure is low, it doesn't make non-standard noise under said conditions - except, according to locketine, for one time, which prompted him to disasemble the engine the frist time. He's done the part replacements suggested to him, except for the three more expensive ones, which do not fit into his budget and substantially increases his investment in the car. If it was a piston engine, I would bet on driving it while not letting the RPMs fall below a 1000 for any significant time - at least until he can afford the parts. On the rotory engine, how foolish would that be?

 

2 things.
1) The guage is extremely in accurate and you should try an aftermarket one to see if it's working properly.
2) It's not uncommon for the pressure to drop when at idle (750RPM). Mine sits around 20 and I haven't had any problems.

 

dont run the engine with no oil pressure. not good. use an aftermarket mechanical guage to verify, if thats not the case check the oil presure regulator which can be accessed in the oil pan and make sure its not stuck. i had one go bad and sometimes id have oil pressure, others i wouldnt have squat.