Low oil pressure (and dummy light) only at low idle...

[lucky]

had a similar situation with mine recently. lots of pressure at start up, but when it gets warm the pressure would drop.
Does the light come on when cornering? Especially a left hand turn at a decent clip? If the car has a "new" shortblock, someones been in the pan recently.
What was happening with mine was that even though I had to beat the pickup into the pump with a rubber mallet, after the pump heated up the pick up fell out because I didn't tack weld it (don't rebuild your engine drunk kids). The car had great pressure at start up, but as it warmed up it would drop, due to the fact that the oil wasn't high enough in the pan for the pump alone to scavenge it.

[Falcon4]

Where exactly can you get a New fiero oil pressure gauge?

Are you referring to the Sending unit on the engine or the Gauge in the car?

New non-GM sending units are notorious for low readings.

Well, definitely not the gauge, it's electronic so there should be no need to replace it. I don't understand why people substitute the term "sender" for sensor, so I always go around writing and saying "sensor" - it just makes more logical sense to me. So yes, I'm talking about the thing in the engine that looks like a bell that has 3 pins and a small screw thread on the bottom.

The old one was heavier than the new one (filled with oil, perhoops?), and the new one had a rattle that worried me. I checked another identical new one and it also had the rattle, so it must be by design. Other than that, the two were identical in shape and markings. I got it at AutoZone, and it cost a pretty penny (about $70 IIRC) - also the only one they stocked.

And no, it doesn't change when I go around corners - the whole time I have my foot anywhere near the gas pedal, the oil pressure is in the normal range. It's only when I take it off and leave it off for a while that it starts having the "problem" after the RPM gets in the really low range. And yeah, I haven't timed it in eons... maybe I should, after all the changes and repairs I've made to it

[Weponhead]

try another one , i bet you get a different reading. its pretty much there to keep you out of trouble. but yours is super lame, and sets the light. $70!? i dont remember my new one being that retardedly expensive. christ.

[Xanth]

I don't understand why people substitute the term "sender" for sensor, so I always go around writing and saying "sensor" - it just makes more logical sense to me.

The way I've taken to referring to them is anything that is connected to a Guage is a sending unit, and anything to the ECM is a sensor.

So a temp sender would control the temp gauge, while a temp sensor is an appendage of the ECM.

If you have a timing light just take minute and throw it on there, if nothing else you may get a bit of a performance improvement.

[Kohburn]

Dude, the oil pump's a LOT easier than the bearings.

If nothing else, the pump requires one bolt vs. 12 for the rods and another 12 for the mains; then there's the effort to R&R the bearings (x10); time spent plastigauging to verify clearance, etc.

yes, true. its just since you've already done the work for the oil pan, no reason not to. plastiguaging is basicly just doing that bearing twice. but, yes - the bearings are more work that the oil pump - but - both are simple compared to getting to that point.

exactly. imo the hardest part of any of those is getting the damn oil pan off. once you get that far the rod bearigns are a cinch, the mains are a little more of a pain but those are usually fine. In fiero engines its always been the rod bearings wearing out first. and if left too long then some need oversized bearings, and if REALLY left too ling then you need to regrind the crank or replace it.

[Kohburn]

Dude, the oil pump's a LOT easier than the bearings.

If nothing else, the pump requires one bolt vs. 12 for the rods and another 12 for the mains; then there's the effort to R&R the bearings (x10); time spent plastigauging to verify clearance, etc.

yes, true. its just since you've already done the work for the oil pan, no reason not to. plastiguaging is basicly just doing that bearing twice. but, yes - the bearings are more work that the oil pump - but - both are simple compared to getting to that point.

exactly. imo the hardest part of any of those is getting the damn oil pan off. once you get that far the rod bearigns are a cinch, the mains are a little more of a pain but those are usually fine. In fiero engines its always been the rod bearings wearing out first. and if left too long then some need oversized bearings, and if REALLY left too ling then you need to regrind the crank or replace it.

[Pyrthian]

Dude, the oil pump's a LOT easier than the bearings.

If nothing else, the pump requires one bolt vs. 12 for the rods and another 12 for the mains; then there's the effort to R&R the bearings (x10); time spent plastigauging to verify clearance, etc.

yes, true. its just since you've already done the work for the oil pan, no reason not to. plastiguaging is basicly just doing that bearing twice. but, yes - the bearings are more work that the oil pump - but - both are simple compared to getting to that point.

exactly. imo the hardest part of any of those is getting the damn oil pan off. once you get that far the rod bearigns are a cinch, the mains are a little more of a pain but those are usually fine. In fiero engines its always been the rod bearings wearing out first. and if left too long then some need oversized bearings, and if REALLY left too ling then you need to regrind the crank or replace it.

if you can fit an oversize bearing in - and never had the crank re-ground - there is soemthing WAAAAY wrong.

[Kohburn]

if you can fit an oversize bearing in - and never had the crank re-ground - there is soemthing WAAAAY wrong.

yep