oil pressure problem

[Foxy2.3TC]

89 2.3 n/t. when i start it up, the oil pressure jumps up and stays where it should be. after about 5-10 miles driving, the pressure drops to the L on normal when i hit the gas. when i hit the clutch, it goes back to where it should be. any ideas what could be causing this?

the motor was sitting for about 6months in someone's garage, bought it from him with 67k miles on it.

 

[dreamer1uk]

Hi,

The factory gauges cant always be trusted. Id hook up an oil pressure gauge for a better reading and go from there.

Usually at higher RPM's, the oil pressure should be greater as the oil pump is working harder.

 

[Foxy2.3TC]

where would i be able to get a tester? i dont want to spend alot on something i dont know for sure is right.

 

[stykthyn]

bad ground giving a faulty reading??

 

[2.3stangmobber]

funny you should mention this problem cause i also got this same problem and the responce i been getting is the oil sending unit so ima change mine soon and ill tell you if that gets me anything....

 

[glowstang93]

One night I was coming home and my oil pressure dropped. I kept on driving the 45 minutes home figured it was just a sensor. Well, the short part of this story is, part of the oil pan gasket was deteriorating and being sucked into the oil pump screen. When the car warmed up, the oil pressure dropped. As long as the car was cold and the gasket wasn't clogging the screen all was good. This one took about a week to diagnose. My mechanic said he has seen it happen before on other Fords.

 

[stykthyn]

now that's a handy piece of information

 

[Jimmy2Times]

Foxy2.3TC - before you go to the trouble of pulling off the oil pan to inspect your pump and pickup, I would install a mechanical oil pressure gauge as was previously stated. Advance sells one by Sunpro for less than $20 and it comes with everything you need to hook it up. I put one in my 2.3 b/c my factory gauge wasn't working. Any aftermarket mechanical gauge will be far better than your factory one b/c it won't be subject to voltage fluctuations and bad grounds, etc. that can throw off the factory gauge reading.

 

[hotcobra03]

I agree.just had engine problems this summer.checked my screen and it was 80% clogged