I finished changing the oil pan gasket. Put everything back together and turned my car on and let it idle for like 15 mins. I checked everywhere underneath and no obvious oil leak anywhere. Then 5 min later the oil light came on. Dont know why...

 

owners manual... oil light is not something to tread lightly on.. low oil pressure, low oil, faulty/failing fuel pump

 

Hmm ok. Could be the oil sending sensor tho right?

When i was changing my oil pan gasket, i did take the oil pickup off and it was clogged, so i cleaned it.

Could it be my oil pump??
If it is, since money is tight, would it be ok to buy one off ebay?

 

Did you use a new gasket when you put the pickup back on? If not, that is a very likely culprit for low oil pressure.

 

Are you full of oil?

Probably going to need to try some thicker oil

 

I did not use a new gasket, but i did put a little bit of gasket maker on it.

I only put 3.5 qts of 10w30 oil. The engine does have 280k miles of abused miles by previous owners... my manual says it could be a failing oil pump or bearing.

 

Also i ohmd it, with engine off i got 12.3 ohms out of 200 ohm setting. Idk if thats within specs for the oil pressure switch.

 

Bump-
Used oil pressure kit, and car started at 52 psi, as it was warming up it kept dropping, got to 8 psi before fully warmed up, so i turned my car off.

In my manual, it says 88 civics suppose to have 24 psi minimum, and 89s+ need 10psi.
But i have a 90 si ecu, so idk if the specs change

 

Should have ~10psi @ idle. Should increase at least 10psi/1k rpm until it reaches ~80psi. That is pretty much universal across the board for almost all hondas.

 

Well mine went as low as 2psi...
From what i learned it can be Alot of things causing low oil pressure.
I did notice a leak around the oil filter( dripping coming from that area)
Can oil filter alone cause bad oil pressure?
Also o2 sensor not plugged into manifold, idk if that also aids to the problem.

 

Oil pressure is purely mechanical and only controlled by moving parts inside the engine. An o2 sensor will not cause oil pressure issues...

Yes, the filter, if clogged, could cause pressure issues. A small oil drip would most likely not even make a noticeable difference to oil pressure.

 

So oil filter leaking wont make a huge difference. Ok.

Should i try n put used but working oil pump in to see if that cures?
I read online that it could be the bearings that have a big gap and sometimes changing oil pump wont help oil pressure.

 

Since you didn't do it the correct way, it's probably failing because you used "a little bit of gasket maker on it." If the oil light wasn't on before you did this job, then do it the RIGHT way.

 

The thing is, it was on prior to installing gasket. What happened was i took it for a test run, brand new oil, 4 qts, and i went around the block, few mins later oil light came on, parked my car, turned it off and checked my oil dipstick and it had nothing!
Added some oil to check out the leak, and it was all from oil pan.

So, oil light did come on, but i thought because it leaked it all out. I suspect the pump, because i did have a mini swap on the wagon that seized up the cam cuz of lack of oil, but that could have also been because it leaked my oil.

But anyways, at this point... idont really want to pay 100$ for an oil pump, because its a like a 50% chance thats causing the problem. 10% chance its that gasket on the pickup tube and 40% its the bearings which would mean a rebuild...

 

heres a question when u changed the oil did u change the oil filter? if so did you prime the oil filter before installing it by adding a little fresh oil into it before the install. and when ever you remove a gasket you always replace with a new gasket. you can use old gaskets but i dont recommend it. also you would have to have spun or frozen bearings in order t have that kind of issue. and u already said the oil sender was plugged... ten bucks says the rest of the system may be plugged 2.

 

I didnt change the filter when i put the oil pan gasket. I did change the oil filter a while back, while i put a new headgasket, timing belt, water pump, and intake manifold gasket and such.

My car has been sitting for a long time

So what should i do?
My oil pressure went as low as 2psi... and a new pickup and oil pump is pricey.

 

go to your local pick and pull and get used... just make sure to inspect. also if your going to go thru the trouble of changing the oil u really should change the filter. a plugged oil filter could do that as well. also try using thinner oil to try and push what ever is clogged unclogged loose. and if none of that helps. its ur mechanical parts. but odds are i doubt a oil pump would just stop working if it was sitting for awhile. i had a 89 si. sat for 3 years. replaced the battery alternator ran another 2 before i fell asleep behind the wheel.

 

Ok.

 

Does anyone know if oil pressure relief valve can be removed/ inspected without removing oil pump? And I can't seem to find a good pic of its location

 

Oil pressure relief valve is probably not your problem.

-Fix/Install a gasket on the oil pump pick up. You don't need a new pick-up, just the gasket (and of course a new oil pan gasket).
-Make sure you have no leaks
-Make sure you have the correct amount and type of oil

If your oil light stays on, you probably have some serious issues. Running an engine dry on oil can cause some serious problems.

 

I would bet it had something to do with the pickup, is the pickup installed correctly?if it's not sealed right air can be sucked in instead of oil. I'm not sure on the pressure relief valve on that engine, but if the car sat a long time, sure there could be corrosion on the piston and it's stuck partly open

 

Once an oil pan gasket is placed and the screws are bolted back in, does it lose its seal?
I put a new gasket now on the pickup. It was filled with sludge. Can I re use the oil pan gasket?

 

I have a bad oil leak from above the oilpan I think at the oil filter. Only leaks when car is on. The oil filter is brand new, a black bosh filter filled it with oil before installing. I tightened it super tight using an oil filter wrench, and I'm wondering if its possible to over tighten?

 

Yes. Should only be hand tight.

 

So do I use a new filter?