I have an '84 vanagon.  A while back, for a period of maybe 2 hours or so,
I had a problem with my oil light coming for a couple seconds every once
and a while.  There was no buzzer though.  Does that mean it was some
electrical problem?

Thanks,
wes

On Fri, 9 Jan 2004, Dennis Haynes wrote:

> Is the light coming on or are you getting the light and buzzer? If only
> the light, than you may have a bad switch or a wire shorting to ground.
> 120K is not reason for a rebuild on its own.  With care and luck, the
> lower end can double that. You need to do some troubleshooting. Both
> electrical and mechanical with oil pressure gauges. When replacing the
> switches, make sure to get the correct ones. The high pressure switch
> (rear) should be .9 bar, not the 1.8 many parts books indicate. Also,
> make sure the oil level is not too high. The top dipstick mark is "Max",
> not "Full" Oil level mid way works best.
>
> Dennis
>
>
> -----Original Message-----
> From: Vanagon Mailing List [mailto:vanagon@gerry.vanagon.com] On Behalf
> Of Ben S
> Sent: Friday, January 09, 2004 12:26 AM
> To: vanagon@GERRY.VANAGON.COM
> Subject: Re: what causes low oil pressure
>
> well thanks for the advice everyone.  i do indeed have a 2.1 wbx, and it
> rolled over 120k miles just before the oil light last came on.  i know
> that it is about time to rebuild or replace this engine, but i'm hoping
> to wait until snowboarding season is over to do it since this is my only
> car and i can't very well ride my motorcycle to the mountain!
>
> the scenario posed in boston bob's article seems like a probable
> explanation: some bearing is wearing down, a clearance is increasing,
> and too much oil is escaping.  the only thing i don't understand is why
> this would be exacerbated by heavy engine load or high engine speed.  it
> seems to me that the oil pump is spinning faster at high engine speed
> and could more easily maintain output pressure at a high flow rate.
>
> i have heard people mention a high oil pressure sensor... does that also
> set off the light and buzzer?  could i actually be having excessive
> pressure?
>
> i guess in the end i just need an oil pressure gauge.  is it possible to
> install a sender for one in place of switch that drives the light?  i
> have also been thinking of switching to a full synthetic oil, but i'm
> afraid that my oil leakage/consumption will worsen.
>
> Ben.
>