Ok, I'm new here and new to carb'd Buicks period. Primarily been a Turbo Buick guy since my 17th B'day. That was 10 years ago...Anyways, I located a #'s matching 66' GS and with help from some nice people in the Cars for Sale section, I bought it. Now the fun begins....Here's my question/problem: At idle in gear the car will throw the oil idiot light on. I changed the oil and filter thinking that maybe the filter had sludge in it or something. It still does it. Is it possible that maybe the oil pressure sender has some trash in it? The engine has 108,000 miles on it and has been maintained. It does not knock or sound like it has low oil pressure at idle. Any ideas?? Is this a common problem? Thx in adance. Scott
Scott: Install a direct reading manual gauge. Should have 15-20 psi at idle, hot and in the 35-40 psi range going down the road. Mike
Yes, confirm with another gauge first.... Is the oil pan dented? ...Pickup could be cracked or too close to the pan bottom. One of my cars had a similar problem. It had 10-25 psi in normal driving. I pulled the motor apart, but didn't find any apparent problems. I suspect it was an oil pump problem. I'll know when I get it back together.... One of the best nailhead suppliers/builders is Carmen Faso in NY. You can find his number in the Nailhead section under 'suppliers' He offers hipo oil pumps and pickups.
The guy I bought my old 66 GS from had also had a 66 Riv with a 425--both were purchased by him new. I remember him telling me that, since new, the Riv would illuminate the "Oil" light at idle, in gear, when the motor was at operating temperature. Dealer said the oil pressure was sufficient! My old GS had relatively low oil pressure compared to the Chevrolet motors I've built, but I guess I kinda got used to seeing the oil pressure gauge hover around 10psi at idle!
Can I get the oil pan off this engine without pulling it? I have put a sender on it and swapped in 30wt Valvoline. Still lights it when i'm in gear and hot. I'm wondering if maybe there is sludge on the pickup. BTW the oil pan is dented....Possibly damaged the pickup?
The oil light was on all the time on my 340-4 engine when I first got my 66 Skylark. I rebuilt the oil pump and the light went out. Is the oil pump on the outside of the engine and not in the oil pan on the GS engine like it is on the 340-4 engine? When I rebuilt the oil pump I did not know that it needed to be primed. When I started the car I was so mad, because the oil was not flowing in the engine. Good thing I noticed right away. Then I had to take the pump apart and prime it. It has been 7 or 8 years since I did that. For some reason I think I used vaseline to prime it. Anyway good luck with the car. These are really good cars :beer . Jerseysky66
I have no idea where the oil pump is I'm going to have to take the pan off, just hope that I can remove it with the engine in the car. Gonna put a gauge on it first...Even if it shows 10-15psi hot idle, I'll probably pull the pan anyways. I don't believe it's low on pressure, no noise at all heard. Scott
Scott what did the oil look like that you took out? Maybe been in there since B.C. of might have been changed lately? My '65-401 will go down to 5 psi when hot and at idle but climb back above 35 when moving. I would run a fresh batch of oil for a couple of hundred miles then pull it out and see how bad it looks/smells. You will have to elevate the motor to pull the pan.
Hey Doug, the oil that came out of it was black/brown and hadn't been changed in a while. The car hasn't moved in 2 years. Didn't look too bad. No visible metal. Didn't feel the need to cut the filter open because the engine makes no noise like they will if the clearances are loose. The engine runs great and doesn't knock/rattle like it is low on pressure when idling in gear hot. Rather be safe than sorry. I just changed the oil again today after about 100 miles of driving. Went from 10w40 Valv to straight 30wt thinking that maybe the thicker oil would help the idiot light issue. That addition didn't change a thing. The second I touch the throttle or put it in Neutral, the oil light goes off. The 10w40 oil that came out looked nice and clean. Elevate the engine meaning loosen one side motor mount? Scott
