just bought a 2000 dakota 4.7 about a month ago and so far i love it, when i bought it the oil pressure was high but still well within usable range, while driving it sometimes dropped below half but still well within usable range but today i was at a stoplight and seen it was down and as i sped up after it turned green the oil jumped back up to over normal.(which is where it spends most of its time) then i realised as the rpms dropped so did the oil pressure gage till it hit its usual low spot and again after accelerating it jumped back up. should i be concerned? any ideas on what it might be? this is the first ive noticed of it so ill see if it does it again tomorrow

 

oh i did swap out the oil as soon as i bought it, its a little over the fill mark but like i said ive been running it for a month like this and this is the first ive noticed

 

Mine does that every time I change the oil, then a few weeks later it goes back to it's normal position (midway between the middle and hi hashmarks).

 

It's normal for the oil pressure to vary as the engine speeds up or slows down.

The question is, what is your oil pressure? If you can, put a mechanical gauge on it and see what its doing.

How low was the pressure? I'd be concerned enough to monitor the pressure.

 

I changed my oil a few weeks ago in my Dakota and I noticed afterwards that my oil pressure gauge was been dancing between the mid-mark and almost 75% mark. I was a little concerned at first but it soon stabilized.

I agree with 00DakDan. If the oil pressure gets excessively low often, I'd would keep a close eye on it or have it looked at.

 

it always stays between the hash marks and is rarely ever on the low end of the hash marks until just lastnight when it went practically from just above the lower mark to the higher one just from stepping on the pedal

 

Just to let you know; if you look around the forums this seems to be a constant defect of the Dodge Dakotas and really all 2nd generation Dodge Trucks; no matter the motor.

 

I'd keep an eye on it but not necessarily worry. It was in the "normal" range.

 

yeah its still doin it today, seemed to idle a little lower then normal too. anyway im swapping out the oil again within the nest 800 km's the old guy who owned it before me couldnt remember the last time he changed it and when i did it the first time it was pretty black, might as well get rid of as much of that oil as possible. thanks again tho

 

BINGO! We have a winner! Its impossible to diagnose this issue without first checking the engines OP with a wet gauge. If when the pressure is low and your not hearing any type of taping or knocking noises it should hopefully be the OPS unit. I've seen more than one OPS unit get a slug of sludge or get plugged that will cause this issue.