My old car was totaled and just picked up this 95 Accord Ex, 232k, from craigslist. Guy I bought it from was knowledgeable enough, I think he knew about this issue. Sort of bummed about that. It didn't show up after test driving for 20 minutes, only on the way home.

So the light flashes, I pull over, cut the engine off and immediately back on, light stays off for another 5 minutes, comes on, repeat.

Once, the light was flickering at idle, after about 30 minutes of driving.

So of course, took it to the shop, they replaced the switch, still have the same problem. Said mech guage showed 20psi on cold idle but they didn't take a reading when warm. Took it back this morning asking them to replace the oil pump, and got a call back saying they didn't think it was the oil pump but the main bearings. Or at least that they couldn't be sure it was the oil pump, and didn't want to waste my money. Wanted to drop a new engine in, because labor on the bearings would cost more.

What to do? I need this car to last me a year at most. I wouldn't be upset if I had to drop it a junkyard in a year, I just want to be able to drive it maybe 5000 miles. Can I just throw some thicker oil in and hope it lasts a year on these bearings? And if it dies in the meantime, I can drop an new engine in then?

 

They measured the oil pressure at cold idle. What about after the engine warmed up? Did they do anything more to see if the oil switch or its wiring was bad? I'd want to know what the oil pressure is really doing before I ask them to 'put in a new oil pump'.

In principle you could run it until it seizes then put in a new engine. But if you have my luck, it'll seize right when you're pulling into traffic in front of a truck.

 

Oil pressure is created by the bearing clearance. So if there are worn out bearings, then you will get low oil pressure.

The proper way to measure clearance is pulling the oil pan and using plasti-gauge.

 

A blocked oil pump suction inlet will cause low oil pressure, but if 20 psi w/ cold engine idle, you may have a bearing clearance problem. I do think I would invest in another test on a warm engine to confirm low oil pressure.

Your shop gave good advice. Sink your money in a replacement engine, not repair of this one. It can be a deep hole to fill if you find loose bearings (likely IMO). Certainly not worth taking a chance on a replacement oil pump. I've never heard of a worn out oil pump.

good luck

 

Haha yeah I commute 60 miles so I'm thinking it'll seize during that commute if anything. But again, it still sounds perfect. No noise at anytime, cranking, idle, high RPM. Going to throw some 10w40 in next week and hope it lasts me a while.

Only reason I was going to put a new oil pump in is because the guy I bought it from included a brand new one with the car (didn't give it to me until after the bill of sale was signed). But obviously not going to do that now.

PAHonda, yeah I read the service manual. The problem is I'm not experienced enough to take apart an engine like that to check, and the labor would be ridiculous. I can handle some moderate fixes, IAC valve, I changed a heater core, but not engine surgery.

TexasHonda, yeah I'm just going to run this one until it dies, that's what the guys at the shop said they'd do if they were in my spot. I could pay the $45 for the test, but all it will tell me is that either the switch is faulty, or I really do have low oil pressure and need to swap the engine. Either way I'd still drive the car. Inspection's up in October and have to fix a ball joint and leak in steering rack to pass, so I'll be more than happy if it lasts until then, and then part it or sell it cheaply as is.

 

The shop should have connected a tachometer, removed the oil pressure switch and installed an oil pressure gauge to check if it is a main bearing. With engine at normal operating temp and the engine at idle the gauge should be 10 psi minimum, and then they should have checked it at 3,000 rpms to see if it is at 50 psi minimum. If the oil pressure if fine then the switch is bad, if not then the oil pump is the likely culprit. They are not a bad job to do, only costly. I would suggest that crank seal, balancer shaft seal, cam seal, T-belt, balancer shaft belt and water pump be done during the process.

The above assumes there is no low end noise. Otherwise bearing clearance should be checked per PAHonda information above.

Lastly, instead of spending all that money just go to you dealer and get the oil pressure switch and replace it for about 25 dollars. If it was not the problem it still would need to be replaced anyway given the age of the vehicle, and if it solves the problem yippe.

 

Turtlehead, I already had the switch replaced and the light still triggers. But yeah, no low end noise, or engine noise of any kind. It sounds beautiful, waay nicer than my old D16y7. The problem is, what if I change the oil pump, 5 hours in labor, and it turns out not to be the problem. My shop said they'd do it if I wanted, but I'd be taking a risk.

Bearing clearance check is also like 5 hours in labor, and they could also turn out to be fine. I'd give it a shot myself but again, I haven't worked on engine internals before.

Maybe I'll get ahold of a pressure gauge myself and do a test. Does oil have to be drained to replace the switch with a gauge?

 

To install the pressure tester the oil does not have to be drained.

Did they replace the switch with an OE one or aftermarket, heard/read of some aftermarket switches not working properly. While under there, inspect the wire to be sure there is not a "nick/cut" on the wire where it could come into contack with metal.

My friend will correct me.....but a brief loss of oil pressure (ground signal) will cause the light to flash. The loss of pressure (ground signal) has to last longer than "x" before the light will stay on.