hey guys, my question is. how can i check. if my oil pump is in good shape
i checked the the psi on the oil pump. and the meter read about 75 psi with the engine running normal, 950 rpm. is that good or bad. does any one know what is the oil psi spec?. for a 2002 2.0l neon. and also if you guys have not cleaned out your oil pan of your neon take a look. it can save your engine. that sluge will clog the oil pump. and even more when you are on a trip. and the engine locks up on you. the oil light comes on but it just flickers. is not a solid light. like we all think. and that is what throws you off. you frist think its a bad sensor .then you check the temp on the engine and guess what?. its normal. then when the engine starts to knock. soon after the engine is not running. then the light is solid red. buy that time your engine is dead... and it all happends in seconds. yeah its sucks... well hope to hear from you guys about engine psi specs. thanks and good luck.

 

In most engines, sludge isn't normal. That usually indicates very poor upkeep amongst other contributing factors. There are other things that can cause the oil light to flicker besides a bad sender as well.

Anyways, oil pressure specs are as follows from the FSM:
Curb Idle is 4 PSI.
3,000 RPM is 25-80 PSI.
CAUTION: *If pressure is ZERO at curb idle, DO NOT run engine
at 3000 rpm.

If you aren't having a problem with the PSI, your pump is probably fine.

 

well thanks for the input. i dont know know what were the previous owners driving habbits or if he keeped a service record. since i had this car its like every month some thing goes bad. i think this car is at its macanical limits. and many parts are worn out. so i guess i will be rebuilding this car as time goes on. but any way thanks you guys are great!!!.

 

Yeah, I've been "rebuilding" mine since I got it. If it has sludge, you might try running a few shorter cycles with inexpensive oil to help clean it out.

 

Remember pressure is the resistance to flow; high oil pressure can lead to engine damage too. I'd change your oil first and then recheck the pressure. If the pressure is still high, I'd suspect the gauge you are using. Additionally, if the previous owner used an oil w/ a higher viscosity than recommended, that can cause the pressure to be excessive because thicker oil doesn't flow as readily at lower viscosity oil.

 

since i live in hot weather all year around. its about 80 to 100 derges most days. so use 20-50 motro oil. dont know if that is good in the long run. but its mostly stop and go traffic. in the city. the car is not cab. but i do some service work. the reason i like the car it has a good motor. i like the idea it has a cast iron block for a for banger. and yes it has taken a beating. and its still holding on.

 

20W50 isn't really going to help anything. If anything, it will make it worse under certain conditions. In regular stop-and-go traffic, a.k.a. "severe conditions," a more frequent oil change is what will help.

 

We live in AZ. You wanna talk hot? I've got it hot. We still use the manufacturer's recommendation 5W30 motor oil.

 

well i just want to keep my car running. as for the oil changes. i change it evey 3 months. the last owner was not to keen on car mantainence. i thought that thicker oil was for high miles and hot weather. that is what the quaker lable states. my car has close to 200k miles. like the car so i am gonig to keep it running. till the engine cluncks out. i like to hear your input on on oil apps. when is the right time to use what grade of oil. i know the car maker states in the manual dont modify the car but we do it any way. but we have differnt driving habbits and live in differnt climates. the rule of thumb doesnt always apply.

 

5W30 all year 'round. 10W30 if you think 5W30 is too thin. I have been running 5W30 in my Neon since I got it and either 5W20 or 0W30 in my Mustang since I've owned it. It gets pretty darn hot up here in the California mountains and I've had 0 issues. Thicker isn't always better.