# oil pressure light coming on with enough oil and new oil in car



## koondog49 (Feb 2, 2004)

been having the oil light come on lately, but its weird....comes on after i hit 1500 RPMs turns off on its own sometime when i idle or move back under 1500, it has a fresh oil change and regular oil changes, when on, i dont hear any noise or smell anything, and no leaks anywhere. any thoughts, VW told me that to just check everything it would be 700 bucks so i dont want to do that but i am on the lacking side of tools being i just moved out on my own.


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## koondog49 (Feb 2, 2004)

by the way its in o4 jetta gli 1.8T with 66000ish on it


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## ps2375 (Aug 13, 2003)

What weight oil and what kind? Are you original owner? Have you dropped the pan and checked the oil pickup screen for sludge build up? That is where I would start.


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## rickjaguar (Apr 23, 2009)

get that oil pump checked out.. if it's on its way out you might end up with a seized piston or 2 if you don't take the warning light seriously.


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## stratclub (Feb 3, 2007)

It well could be an *indicating problem.* The best way to tell is to temporarily take out the pressure sender and install a direct reading gauge of known quality. Bentleys should tell you what the pressure should be for your engine. This should be the first step for any oil pressure related problem.

If you buy don't have access to a gauge, you could just buy new sensor/sensors,install them and see if the problem goes away. This won't tell you if the instrument panel has a problem, but will rule out the sensor/sensors 

By far the best method is the first I mentioned because it would tell you what the pressure really is. The reason I said sensor/sensors is that you may have 2 oil pressure sensors.


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## koondog49 (Feb 2, 2004)

so i finally dropped the oil pan to check it out and when i look up into the grate and found a bunch of orange plastic pieces. i got them all cleaned up and put it all back together and waiting for it all to dry and settle. anyone know what those pieces are?


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## ps2375 (Aug 13, 2003)

Parts of the dipstick funnel.


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## koondog49 (Feb 2, 2004)

wrong shade of orange and its a soft plastic


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## ps2375 (Aug 13, 2003)

It is now after a nice long hot oil bath.


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## koondog49 (Feb 2, 2004)

ok, then any thoughts on why the pressure light still comes on above 1500?


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## ps2375 (Aug 13, 2003)

Low oil press. What kind and weight oil are you using?


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## koondog49 (Feb 2, 2004)

5w 30 like recommended, and the mobil one full syn extended, same i have put in since i first bought the car


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## ps2375 (Aug 13, 2003)

Switch to the 5w40 Pentosynth, and I bet the light stays gone longer. That oil;, IMHO, is too thin for these motors and the oil temps they run. And it could be time to pull the valve cover and check the cam bearings for damage. Too long with low oil press will hurt them.


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## Foxtrot1 (Jul 5, 2005)

are you using a standard filter like fram or duraguard...switch to oem...the regular filters can't hold preasure!


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## ps2375 (Aug 13, 2003)

Foxtrot1 said:


> are you using a standard filter like fram or duraguard...switch to oem...the regular filters can't hold preasure!


I have never encountered any issues with a non-OEM filter.


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## jmj (Feb 6, 2001)

Neither have I, and I use Fram filters pretty regularly on my 2.0T.


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## koondog49 (Feb 2, 2004)

well it ended up being a oil pressure switch 15 bucks later all fixed and no engine damage


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## ps2375 (Aug 13, 2003)

That is always good to hear. I would still lose the Mobile1 and switch to Pentosynth. I've never had a problem with it, but have seen noisy cam chain tensioners on the Mobile1 due to how thin it is.


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## GTI 20th AE #1421 (Dec 7, 2006)

ps2375 said:


> Switch to the 5w40 Pentosynth, and I bet the light stays gone longer. That oil;, IMHO, is too thin for these motors and the oil temps they run. And it could be time to pull the valve cover and check the cam bearings for damage. Too long with low oil press will hurt them.


Not to threadjack, but I also use 5w30 Mobile1 full synthetic. Now, wouldn't switching the mobile 1 from 5w30 to 5w40 be the same?
just wondering. Also, is the 5w30 really to thin for these engines? I mean, it is what is recommended.


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## slowbluVW (Oct 15, 2002)

Foxtrot1 said:


> are you using a standard filter like fram or duraguard...switch to oem...the regular filters can't hold preasure!


I don't think that is entirely true. I've been using non-OEM filters ever since my Jetta rolled 1500 miles. I've used non-OEM filters on my wife's NB as well. No oil psi issues with either engine, but I never use Fram filters-only Purolator Pure Ones.


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## slowbluVW (Oct 15, 2002)

koondog49 said:


> well it ended up being a oil pressure switch 15 bucks later all fixed and no engine damage


I was going to suggest this....these switches/senders are usually the first culprit when low oil psi shows up. I would stop using 5W30 and move up to 5W40...Shell Rotella Syn 5W40 works great in the 1.8.


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## watkins19 (Sep 21, 2009)

how hard is it to change this oil pressure sending unit? and where is it actually located under the car? I'm having this same issue and have gone out and bought the unit just haven't had a chance to change it yet. I'm sick of driving this camry and really need my baby back


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## panheadjdhess (Oct 18, 2008)

koondog49 said:


> well it ended up being a oil pressure switch 15 bucks later all fixed and no engine damage


My wifes `02 1.8T just started displaying the oil pressure light. Changed thye oil and filter, ran it for 30 min, light did come back on and off when stopped, back on when accelerating. I only have a Bently on my `94 Jetta 2.0. Where is the pressure switch located and what the easiest way to get to it???

15 min later, nevermind I found it on the drivers side of the filter housing.


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