thinebaugh

need som help, i have a 97 4runner sr5 3.4l v6, it has recently started a issue that is driving me crazy, after driving for for about 30 miles when you brake the oil pressure light comes on, checked oil level its fine.checked connections all seem tight any help out there would be greta thanks.

kawazx636

iTrader: (3)

I believe that it's the low oil level light, not a low oil pressure light. I have an 83' pickup that has a similar problem because it's got an obnoxious oil leak that I don't have the time to fix correctly at the moment. Basically, when you brake your oil washes to the front of the pan away from the sensor. Two things typically can cause this 1) low oil level that's on the verge of being low enough for the sensor to trip due to a leak or burnt oils or 2) your oil passages in your motor could be clogged causing oil to get trapped in the head after running for a while. #2 is generally not common, but this is what I would do:

-Check your oil immediately after running. When my "braking oil light" comes on I generally barely (if at all) have a reading on the dipstick immediately after I shut down my truck.
-If this is the case, let the truck sit overnight and check it in the morning.
-The oil level 'should' be higher now because oil is settling back in the pan, but if it's only slightly higher then you have an oil leak or burning oil causing a lost of oil/low reading. If the oil reading is 'normal' then I would assume that you have partially clogged passages and it's just taking more time to settle back to the pan.

If you don't plan on rebuilding, this is one of those time where you actually want an oil leak.