Hey guys.
car: 93 JDM RX7 w/ 47k miles
fairly stock with only exhaust and dp.

last few days I noticed the oil gauge works normal but randomly I'll notice it hovers around 2ish. Sometimes when I get on it, the needle will barely move. Earlier today it was around 1, and flung up to 4 when I was driving and started working like normal.

my question.
is it a gauge problem, or could it be the oil meter pump messing up. My guess is a gauge since it seemed to stick but it's my 1st FD and wasnt sure how the OMP is ran. If it ran thru the gauge and the gauge verifies if it's doing anything or not.

sorry for my ignorance, I'm still new to the whole car thing. I also searched for a few but didnt see anything that fits what I'm asking.
some posts I read it could just be a bad sensor.

the car has been filled up around 5 times and noticed no drop in oil. If this helps any.

thanks

 

Justin,
This is really a common recurring problem. The OEM oil pressure sending unit is crap. Your oil pressure is most likely fine. I have looked for an aftermarket replacement and another OEM sender for years for the stock location that would work with the with stock gauge with no luck. I have now had at least 5 different new ones through the last 24 years I have owned the car. Some never worked correctly right out of the box and some lasted a few years before giving out. I just put a new one in on my recent rebuild. Works OK so far. Fingers crossed.
Mike

 

It's a common problem but I've never changed my sender in the 15+ years I've owned the car...and I believe it's the original one. Occasionally it is a sender, but in my experience it's just as often the spade connection which get's loose and dirty over time from it's location right under the oil filter pedestal. Before replacing the sender, clean and tighten the connection and see what you get.

It's also hard to believe that a search using a term like "oil pressure" in the title didn't turn up a host of threads about this. I think I also remember some threads on how to clean the port on the sending unit instead of spending over a $100 for a new one.

 

Sgtblue is right. Some people have had problems with the connector getting dirty and oily from oil filter changes and road grime. My car has always been garage kept and almost never driven in bad weather since I have had it so my connector was kept very clean and I still had the problem arise. These are very difficult to change since it is tight where it sits. Two of the times I changed it was during an engine rebuild so it was easy. If you do have to change one, use a short socket over the hex metal of the housing at the electrical connector after taking off the rubber cover. This makes it easier. To get to the threaded connection at the engine block is really difficult.
Mike

 

Same problem I had. Replaced my sending unit, and was fine ever since.

 

Thanks everyone just quick update.

I scrubbed the contact and seems to be working, but haven't driven it much.
car started bucking when I left the bar. Turned it off for a moment then turned it back on and ran fine.

i swapped out all the spark plugs, tossed in a new o2 sensor ( had to splice additional length to it ).
now I'm doing the brakes and will finally get to drive it this weekend.

if it still bounces I'll try a new sending unit.

 

Second on this. Tried cleaning the connection without luck, installed a new sender and works perfect. It was really just an annoyance since there is virtually nil chance of oil pump failure but I hated seeing the needle stick, bounce, etc. and it is nice seeing proper smooth operation!

 

How annoying is the replacement? Mine acts up sometimes but it's nothing crazy.

 

It was pretty easy, I think I had the intake compression tube removed and just put an open ended wrench on it to remove and install.. Used a little teflon tape on the threads of the new one.

Mine might have been about the same as yours; sometimes it worked perfectly, then it would act up, then work okay, etc. It was just a nuisance having something that did not work correctly that was in my face whenever I looked at the cluster. ..

 

Sometimes cleaning out the orifice fixes the issue, but the sender is quite complicated and can fail. I've had good luck cleaning mine both times it acted up. It's currently working fine, and the new sender I bought is still sitting in waiting.

 

Ok cool, not bad at all.

I'll do a little clean-up first and see where it goes. Wish we had a factor Oil temperature sensor, I love having the oil temp in my Focus RS stock.

 

Not terrible, but a little cramped like everything.
I didn't remove anything to get to it, and I also think I used a stubby length wrench which helped.
Agreed with the other poster about using some thread sealant so you don't have a leak after re-installation.

 

Justin,
Here's some more information on the oil pressure gauge

 

Thanks to everyone who helped out.
currently waiting on some used rear calipers to come since mine are stripped.

This is great info. Wish I would have found this when I searched.
thanks a ton