Oil pressure sending unit trouble

[Karlee Sly]

Hi everyone. I just joined the group hoping to find a group of people willing to help me out and answer some questions I have now and in the future as well. I bought an 08 Tahoe LT 4wd back in November and I’m absolutely in love with it. On the other hand it has given me some trouble occasionally but most recently my oil pressure sending unit went out. Due to me not having the tools to repair it myself (I’m no car mechanic but YouTube has a tutorial for anything) I took it to a shop and had it replaced back on the 11th this month. Well today my check engine light popped back up and my oil pressure went to zero so I’m assuming it went out again. Does anyone have any idea why it is having an issue again after having been replaced less than a month ago? I appreciate any advice.

 

[wjburken]

Hi everyone. I just joined the group hoping to find a group of people willing to help me out and answer some questions I have now and in the future as well. I bought an 08 Tahoe LT 4wd back in November and I’m absolutely in love with it. On the other hand it has given me some trouble occasionally but most recently my oil pressure sending unit went out. Due to me not having the tools to repair it myself (I’m no car mechanic but YouTube has a tutorial for anything) I took it to a shop and had it replaced back on the 11th this month. Well today my check engine light popped back up and my oil pressure went to zero so I’m assuming it went out again. Does anyone have any idea why it is having an issue again after having been replaced less than a month ago? I appreciate any advice.

Welcome to the forum from Iowa.

First piece of advice is, didn’t assume a sensor is bad when it shows a fault. If the oil pressure sensor is showing low oil pressure, you could very well have low oil pressure. You didn’t mention anything about confirming good or bad pressure with an analog pressure gauge. Did the shop that replaced it check this or did they just replace the sensor because you asked them to replace it?

A common cause of low oil pressure readings on these vehicles is a dirty screen that is located right below the oil pressure sensor. Did the shop that replaced the oil pressure sensor say anything about checking, cleaning or replacing that screen?

Another common cause of low oil pressure is a bad o-ring on the oil pickup tube on the oil pump. This is where the o-ring fails and the oil pump can’t get a good suction to draw oil from the oil pan.

I would not continue to drive the vehicle until you can confirm that you either have good oil pressure and it is indeed a bum sensor or that you actually have a working sensor and you have low oil pressure and need to find the cause.

 

[Karlee Sly]

Hello thank you so much for taking the time to respond to this.

to answer your question the reason I knew it was a bad sending unit is because the oil light never came on. I do believe if there was actual no oil pressure, there is an indicator for that. Also last time this happened the code reader was pulling up the codes for the sending unit.

the shop also did replace a filter screen within the sending unit and some other hardware. I’m really not sure what could have caused it to fail again.

 

[Jason in DLH]

Hi!
I agree with @wjburken that you should test the oil pressure with an analog tester. Seems like you have a bigger issue if the shop replaced the sensor and screen.

 

[Bill 1960]

My brother just replaced his oil pressure sensor for the third time. Twice with aftermarket parts. Third and hopefully final time with an OEM sensor.

The aftermarket parts worked for a short time in each case before failing again. No other indication of oil pressure problems.

 

[Joseph Garcia]

Welcome to the Forum from NH.

Lots of knowledgeable folks here who freely share their knowledge, experiences, and perspectives. Knowledge is power.

I hope that you will become a participating member in the Forum's discussions.

Pics, please.

You are already receiving responses and sage advice from the knowledgeable folks here in this Forum.

 

[1BADI5]

Need to use an OEM AC Delco sensor and nothing else; Dorman and all of the other cheap brands are cheap for a reason.

 

[Tonyrodz]

Welcome to the forum from Iowa.

First piece of advice is, didn’t assume a sensor is bad when it shows a fault. If the oil pressure sensor is showing low oil pressure, you could very well have low oil pressure. You didn’t mention anything about confirming good or bad pressure with an analog pressure gauge. Did the shop that replaced it check this or did they just replace the sensor because you asked them to replace it?

A common cause of low oil pressure readings on these vehicles is a dirty screen that is located right below the oil pressure sensor. Did the shop that replaced the oil pressure sensor say anything about checking, cleaning or replacing that screen?

Another common cause of low oil pressure is a bad o-ring on the oil pickup tube on the oil pump. This is where the o-ring fails and the oil pump can’t get a good suction to draw oil from the oil pan.

I would not continue to drive the vehicle until you can confirm that you either have good oil pressure and it is indeed a bum sensor or that you actually have a working sensor and you have low oil pressure and need to find the cause.

Solid advice right here. Can't go wrong with OEM if you can swing it. Buy once, cry once is the motto here. Hopefully it'll be something simple for you, such as the sender--again.

 

[Karlee Sly]

Hi thank you for the welcome! I will most definitely be on this forum often from now on. Everyone is being extremely helpful and I appreciate the advice everyone is giving. I love my Tahoe and I’m excited to share the interest with everyone. Here is a few pictures!