Brad in Montana

Hello all,

I made a mistake and posted this in the wrong forum -

I have a 97 4Runner SR5 with an oil light that has recently started to blink intermittently. I took it to our local Toyota dealer (the only place in Helena that seems to work on Toyotas) and they claim not to be able to diagnose the problem. We replaced the sending unit first. That didn't do it. We changed the oil and replaced the aftermarket oil filter I bought with a Toyota Oil filter and the problem went away for 60 days. Now it's back.

They claim they cannot test the oil pressure without 12 hours of labor - $1200-ish. Is there a way to test pressure without going all the way in?

If it is oil leaking through the bearing clearance, the engine is shot - right? Lots of questions. Thanks for any support you can offer.

The outside of the vehicle is very, very nice, but I don't think I can swallow their $9,000 for a new engine at this point. The current engine has about 129,000 on it.

Thanks again!

obscurotron

What kind of test are they quoting you TWELVE hours of labor for? Are they going to miniaturize one of the techs and dump him in your crankcase to have a look around?

There is a very simple procedure (in the Factory Service Manual) for testing the oil pressure. Basically:

1. With truck off, remove the stock oil pressure sender.
2. Install adapter and oil pressure gauge.
3. Start truck, check for leaks, bring up to operating temp.
4. Observe the oil pressure gauge at idle. Should be > 4psi
5. Take the truck up to 3000rpm. I believe the pressure should be
*at least* 35PSI at that point.

If that takes 12 hours, they've got problems. You can do this yourself, too. Just get a decent mechanical oil pressure gauge, the right size BSPT->NPT bushing/adapter, hook up the gauge and go. If the idiot light comes on and the gauge registers normal, you've probably got a wiring or instrument cluster problem that you'll need to chase down.

If your pressure does indeed fluctuate, then I would suggest first pulling the oil pump (now labor gets costly...) and inspecting it. If that checks out OK, then you're down to pulling the motor apart and checking clearances on your bearings (now labor will make your wallet hurt and make you cry...).

One cheap thing that might be the cause is the oil pickup tube in the sump/pan. If those aren't properly installed you can lose oil flow intermittently.

You can peruse the FSM here: http://www.ncttora.com/fsm/index.html

BigBallsMcFalls

ditto on the diagnosis. an analog oil pressure gauge test is gonna be 1/2 hour labor max.

Brad in Montana

Okay - so the dealer did put a gauge on and test the pressure. They said it was low - but did not actually give me a pressure reading. The 12 hours of labor is if they replace the pump. However, they are saying that the fact that the pressure was low does not mean the pump is going - it could be the bearings. They are saying that even if we replace the pump, the pressure could still be low - then the only thing left is likely to be the bearings.

What do you think of me dropping the oil pan to make sure the pick-up hose is clear, and installing a pressure gauge on the dash to monitor the pressure? It seems like that would give me a better picture of the issues at hand.

What weight and type of oil do any of you recommend? I have been using 5W30 Mobile1.

Thoughts?

Thanks!

okie81

Get an actual pressure reading before you dig into the bottom end.