Print

Please login or register.
1 Hour 1 Day 1 Week 1 Month Forever
Login with username, password and session length

[frmg0014]

Hey guys,

I have a 2001 Cadillac Catera which is basically a 2001 Opel Omega MV6. 

All Cadillac Cateras here in North America comes with a 3.0L motor ....1998 to 2001. 

It seems every Catera in North America has a common issue with "low oil pressure at idle" when the outside temp is hot (above 20degress celcius).  This often occurs after the car has been driven for at least 30 mins or more... and once you stop at a red light, the oil pressure will hover above the red zone  of the oil pressure gauge (Cateras come with an oil pressure gauge).. which will illuminate the oil can or at times trigger the alarm.  This doesn't happen all the time... at one point I had to let the car idle for 10mins before the pressure began falling into the red zone.

It seems that there are A LOT of people with this issue... to a point that it seems to be a trademark with the Catera. 

Just wondering, do you guys with a 3.0L Omega have the same issue? 

I'm starting to think it may be a sensor issue since when the oil pressure is hovering at the red zone while idle... and I shut the car off, then restart... pressure is back to normal.

I also removed my oil pan to make sure the pickup screen is not clogged and it was fine.  I ran an oil flush and filled it with 10w-30, but still having this issue.

[Kevin Wood]

Do you know exactly what the oil pressure is falling to?

Electrical oil pressure gauges are not the most reliable. The answer to why this hasn't been seen in the UK is probably that the UK cars only have a low pressure light, not a gauge, so ignorance is bliss.

All engines will generally exhibit low(er) oil pressure at idle once the oil is hot. Then again, there is no need for a lot of oil pressure without any load on the bearings.

If you're concerned I would say buy / borrow a mechanical type workshop oil pressure gauge and connect it up, just to see what the pressure is dropping to.

Using a thicker oil (e.g. a 10w40) will give you more oil pressure but a thicker oil won't flow as readily so in reality you won't have gained any extra lubrication.

Kevin

[frmg0014]

It falls into the redzone which is at 10 psi which triggers the red oil can light.  If that's the case then this is definately a oil pressure sender issue.  As the motors are pretty much the same as the euro cars and u guys don't seem to have this issue.  Some people are leaning towards a failing oil pump which I highly doubt to be the case since there are too many people with the same issue all occurring under 200,000kms. 

Do you know exactly what the oil pressure is falling to?

Electrical oil pressure gauges are not the most reliable. The answer to why this hasn't been seen in the UK is probably that the UK cars only have a low pressure light, not a gauge, so ignorance is bliss.

All engines will generally exhibit low(er) oil pressure at idle once the oil is hot. Then again, there is no need for a lot of oil pressure without any load on the bearings.

If you're concerned I would say buy / borrow a mechanical type workshop oil pressure gauge and connect it up, just to see what the pressure is dropping to.

Using a thicker oil (e.g. a 10w40) will give you more oil pressure but a thicker oil won't flow as readily so in reality you won't have gained any extra lubrication.

Kevin

[Kevin Wood]

I would say if the oil pressure is getting too low you'll start to notice symptoms like the hydraulic lifters getting noisy at idle, or when returning to idle after hard driving.

I would still try to measure it for peace of mind. Does the feed to the warning light use the same sensor as the gauge or is it driven from a conventional pressure switch?

If the former, one idea might be to fit a pressure switch as well, using a T piece so you've got a reliable indication of any serious problems.

Kevin

[frmg0014]

No I don't hear any noise whatsoever. The car does have two sensors... one is the electronic sender for our oil gauge and one is the typical oil pressure switch what all cars have which triggers the light/alarm when the pressure is really low.  I think the oil pressure sender which is responsible for displaying  the psi on the instrument cluster will trigger the red oil light/alarm as well if the needle drops into the redzone (5 psi) of the gauge. 

I would say if the oil pressure is getting too low you'll start to notice symptoms like the hydraulic lifters getting noisy at idle, or when returning to idle after hard driving.

I would still try to measure it for peace of mind. Does the feed to the warning light use the same sensor as the gauge or is it driven from a conventional pressure switch?

If the former, one idea might be to fit a pressure switch as well, using a T piece so you've got a reliable indication of any serious problems.

Kevin