New guy here recovering from near heart attack. My 2004 GT3 has been a dream but last night driving down I-405 my dash beeped and flashed a picture of an oil can warning of oil pressure failure. I had 0 bars showing on the oil pressure gage. I took my foot off the accelerator and looked for a place to pull over and three seconds later the needle jumps back up to 5 bars. Ten seconds later the same thing happens again. There was no change in engine sound that I could hear. Is this likely indicative of an oil pressure sensor failure. It has not reoccurred since.

Crossing my fingers... and hoping it's just me having a heart attack, not the GT3.

Steve

 

Covered here many many times.

Oil pressure sending unit is a common failure. Easy to replace and not too expensive.

 

Unless there is oil pouring out of the back, you have oil in the engine - even when the sensor reads zero. Dry sump. For the win.

-td

 

This happened to me on the track the other day and along with oil light I got the battery light. A few mins later they went out and have not returned. I pulled into the pit and checked the oil via computer and it was one bar down from the high mark. I decided to check the dipstick in the engine bay (yes car was running) and could not see any oil on the stick. I tried many times. I checked with a P car mechanic who said to trust the computer, so I did. Why is that dipstick so useless?

 

Don't get me started on the dipstick.

 

From an owner of BMWs, I wish they all have dip sticks. The computer is useless.

 

Had this go out on my 997. Replacement was not easy.

Ironically he dash needle and dipstick on my 89 and 91 are 100% in sync and easy to read. Damn computer reader really regressed here.

 

So are you guys all saying the computer is suspicious? I know the turbo's don't even come with dipsticks, but my GT3 does, but again, I can never seem to see any oil on the stick. It's bizarre and slightly unnerving. I come from the early air cooled world and have always been able to read oil on the dipstick. How often does the computer misread oil level?

 

Need a brown paper bag. Lay shorty cup dipstick on it. U see the level. Mike

 

As noted above, we've all been through this heart failure. I replaced the unit. All better (so far....)
+1 for useless dipstick.

 

While the computer (electronic oil level system) is pretty darn reliable and so much so I never bother with the dipstick in one of my cars that has a dipstick, were I to get a low oil warning light and was in the car with the dipstick I'd check the level with the dipstick. It it was showing low I'd be concerned.

Now one does have to be careful with the dipstick. If one tries to check the oil level right after shutting off the engine -- which obviously one can do -- the level can read low because there has not been time for oil to return to the oil sump.

With the electronic oil level system the computer will not allow a reading to take place until some time has passed.

(However, with a dry sump system and a dipstick in I guess the oil tank the oil should be there although I note with my 996 Turbo the engine has to be idling and it take some seconds of idling -- the most I've noticed is 20 seconds on the timer -- before the computer will perform an oil level reading. This time might be to allow the engine oil scavenge pumps time to well scavenge all the oil and return it to the oil tank so the oil level reading will read the true level of oil.)

There is another problem with the dipstick and if the oil is fresh the fresh oil is so light it can be hard to spot the oil on the telltale tip of the dipstick. While the dipstick is low tech it does require some care to ensure the reading is legit.

Have to note the electronic oil level system should be confirmed to be working right at oil/filter change time when the engine is brought to the proper temperature for an oil change, the oil is drained a specified amount of time, and then a specific amount of oil is added to the engine. (The dealer service bay oil dispensing guns read out in tenths of a liter. Or is it hundredths of a liter? I can't recall but I have a picture somewhere of one.)

After the tech has added a known amount of oil to the engine the engine is started and allowed to idle until the fresh oil reaches proper temperature -- which based on my experience following this procedure doesn't take very long at all -- and then the oil level is checked. The reading should be at the max line and the tech then has confirmed the electronic oil level system reading agrees with the known correct amount of oil in the engine.

 

Thanks for chiming in Macster. Appreciate your well written and considered posts. I plan to get the car nice and hot again and see if I can find the oil level on the stick, using a brown paper towel. I just picked up a 2011 Spyder and that car is "computer only" oil reading as most of the newer cars now are. I guess we have to get used to trusting the readout, and verify during oil changes that we are getting a good fill.

The concerning element in my situation was that i don't recall seeing my oil pressure drop when the light came on, it stayed constant at its normal pressure level. That's what raised my eye a little when I couldn't see a mark on the stick, even though computer read a proper level. The oil light has not come back after a couple hundred additional miles of driving, so that's moderately reassuring.

 

Thank god for rennlist(best damn forum in the world!!!)- I woulda had a heart attack on track if I didn't know about the sending unit. Happened to me on track. Checked computer dipstick and shorty dipstick and nothing leaking/smoking/burning in the back- continued back on track for the whole weekend. Mike

 

I love dry sump motors too and I agree that there is oil in the car (without obvious evidence of a huge leak). But, if I saw the oil pressure gauge go to zero and had no reason to suspect the electronics, my first concern would be that the oil pump had died. Dry sump wouldn't save that situation, right?

 

^ with a failing oil pump I think you will find out in a hurry when that happens though. Mike