Club 80-90 Forums

Cheers John. I missed that - the brain is slowing down. It will happen to you one day!

Aye Ralph, but don't overlook the slightly tongue in cheek style of what I just wrote ^^^

And I still wonder what is wrong with the oil light ?

ghost123uk wrote:No no, one of the mechanics drained most of it out by mistake. It's a funny sort of mechanic that drains most but not all of the oil out, I mean why would you ever do that But apparently they admitted it, and admitted that this then caused the engine to seize up But not to worry eh

And it's a funny sort of mechanic who blindly accepts that this is an essential prerequisite for dropping the fuel tank, and then doesn't think to put the oil back in before the vehicle goes out. This fantasy seems to satisfy Rusty, but it definitely feels like there's something else going on.

It's more difficult to drain out some/most of the oil than drain all of it out?

To the last 3 posters.

If you have nothing more useful to do than cast dispersions or make snide remarks, I suggest you find a cure for your boredom.
Cant quite see the objective of your remarks to be honest.
Not keen on playing the clique mocking game myself, so hitting the ignore button as far as you three are concerend.
Feel free to do likewise.
Either take some use from the post or leave it.
Matters not.
Have a nice day anyway
My thanks to the genuine posters that were actually helpful during diagnosis.
Others may want to follow your example rather than taking the michael.

I've never been accused of this sort of thing before, on here or any of the other forums I use. I might have been typing a bit tongue in cheek, but the drift of my conversation was partly to help you re the oil light as there seems to be some confusion as to it's function and whether it is working correctly. As in, if there really was little or no oil in the engine, it, and the buzzer of doom should have come on, but neither happened, leading "us" to believe that low oil maybe was not the cause of your woes. You did say it comes on when you turn the key, but goes off when you start the motor, indicating too that it is working correctly. Sorry if I was a little jocular about it all, please accept my apologies and I remain here to offer any constructive advice at my disposal.

I will conclude for now by saying that it is worth noting that a low quantity of oil cannot cause the tappets to not function correctly, that is unless there is literally only a pint or so in there and the pickup is sucking air part of the time. OK, if the engine is driven for a while like that the oil will get hotter than it should, but in my opinion not hot enough to stop it functioning as oil.

p.s. = I even note in your "sig" it says "Check the oil. Dont rely on the warning light !" please note that is not what the light is for, as you posted yourself after researching it, it is there to monitor pressure not level.

Not casting nasturtiums, just trying to help.

What's the air filter like? Is the engine blowing oil out because of a blocked breather?

Ok Mr Ghost.
Apology accepted, it just came across to me that you were taking the proverbial...........

Couple of things.
Oil was way below the minimum mark.
It took over 3.5L to bring dipstick level up to normal and yes it was on level ground and 30 minutes after driving and all that jazz.
Its now been changed along with the filter,and filled with 15w40 mineral oil to 4.5L

This oil light looks wrong to me.
It flicks on when you turn the key to the accesory position and then straight off again before you go to the engine spinning stage of ignition.
So in effect it "blinks once on accesory and then stays off.

Tappets not affected by oil............... OK, your opinion but the only thng that has been done which produced an instant rectification of symptoms is the oil fill.
These parts that were fitted prior made zero difference :
HT Leads
Distributor cap
Plugs
Ignition amp
Coil
Fuel pump and rod
Carb tune and fixing of leak at base.
These works were done and road tested after each item fitment to no effect.
Lastly the oil fill and bingo, result.
Although I do still suspect the oil light for not warning low pressure. I reckon its faulty.

Strange, yes but there we have it.
Van continues to run well and compression test revealed nothing alarming.

tobydog wrote:Not casting nasturtiums, just trying to help.

What's the air filter like? Is the engine blowing oil out because of a blocked breather?

Its clean.
We know where the oil went.
As previousley stated in the posts.

Whose to say they are not solid lifters, I had a 1303 beetle many years ago, on a long run it began to loose power, pulled over to find it was very low on oil, topped it up and of it went as right as rain.

NicBeeee wrote:Whose to say they are not solid lifters, I had a 1303 beetle many years ago, on a long run it began to loose power, pulled over to find it was very low on oil, topped it up and of it went as right as rain.

Dont believe you !
Impossible !
Thats never happenedto me so it must be fantasy


Good point actually.
Van continues to run vry well indeed.
Oil and filter changed.
Suspect i may have a faulty oil presure light though, so if anyone has a sensible diagnosis and fix for that you are welcome to assist.

vanisveryrusty wrote:Ok Mr Ghost.
Apology accepted, it just came across to me that you were taking the proverbial...........

Phew, thanks

vanisveryrusty wrote:This oil light looks wrong to me.
It flicks on when you turn the key to the accessory position and then straight off again before you go to the engine spinning stage of ignition. So in effect it "blinks once on accessory and then stays off.

Umm, that is not right And odd behaviour too. The sender on the motor cannot be doing that because of the way it works. The bulb is fed with 12 volts which is then earthed via the sender unless there is pressure there, (ie running) and then it switches off. So, unless we are getting crossed lines (figuratively speaking) then without digging around with my meter I cannot imagine what could cause that. Be good to get it fixed though. Here you go, try this and let "us" know the result = first start of the day, fire it up, dip clutch, put into first and deliberately stall it (like by trying to move off at tickover but with your other foot firmly on the brakes). Don't turn it off, but watch the oil light. It should come on after a few seconds and stay on.

Reasoning = this is a rough test for the amount of oil pressure on any engine, on a cold engine, the amount of time it takes before the light comes back on after the engine was stopped (indicating the oil pressure has seeped away) can give some idea as to wear on the journals (mains and big ends). In your case however, it will test the functionality of the sender and light.

vanisveryrusty wrote:Van continues to run well and compression test revealed nothing alarming.

This at least is good news

Thanks Ghost
I will do that and let you know how it lights.

vanisveryrusty wrote:All VW vans have a red oil warning light. Contrary to common belief, the oil warning light has nothing to do with oil level. I get calls from people all the time who remark that their oil light is on, but they just checked the oil level with the dip stick and it was fine. That is not the way this warning system works. Rather, the red light comes on when the oil PRESSURE drops too low as determined by an oil pressure switch installed on the engine. No VW van ever came from the factory with an oil pressure gauge or oil level indicator, just a low oil pressure warning light.

VW TECH PAGES>GO WESTY.

Just curious, why do you get calls from people regarding their oil lights are on?