Good post.
Mine is ok and is functioning.

 

I'm amazed at the number of people who think the Oil light indicates a need to add oil. Thanks for your post -- the purchase of an inexpensive sender can save at $7,000 engine!

 

it usually does, because the oil sending unit monitors pressure, low on oil equals hotter thinner oil resulting in lower pressure, boom light on.

 

More information:
Once upon a time, long ago and far away I received a free car because the oil went low and messed up the bearings and crank. It cost me in excess of 400 to fix the car (towing, machine work, parts, mechanic to assemble the parts).

I believe it often takes more than one mistake to have a bad outcome. Here is how the car ran out of oil.

Mistake 1. The woman probably NEVER checked the engine oil level, oil levels should be checked.
Mistake 2. There was a crack near the oil fill cap that spurted out a bit of oil (low rate oil leak), the leak should have been sealed off.
3. The oil pressure sensor wire was disconnected (I learned this when pulling the engine), operator should have noticed that the oil light did not come on at startup.

I think most people would not know to watch for the light on startup - thus my original post.
People on this forum may be more likely to know because I assume they have some mechanical interests.

Cheers,
Jody

 

When I went shopping for a used car for my young driver, I was astounded to find that an increasing number of cars have no spare whatsoever! I doubt many buyers even think of looking for a spare, but if they do, they might find only a spray can of Fix-A-Flat. I ended up buying a '13 Honda Fit which has a donut spare.

About once a year, I lower my Frontier spare to assure that it has the correct pressure. Having a flat spare is nearly equivalent to having no spare.

 

If your car has an oil light, the light should be ON when the ignition is on and the engine is NOT running.
The oil light should transition to OFF as the engine starts up.
It is important that this work IN CASE you run out of oil.

I do not think many people pay attention to this.
Regards,
Jody

Jody - Mrs. Cusser is one of those many people. She ignored the warning light and a gauge on my VW !!!

In 2003, Mrs. Cusser was driving my 31 year-old VW Convertible, and an oil pan stud vibrated out, and she kept driving with the oil pressure light on, and the pressure gauge at ZERO until it stalled. She said she was scared, it was night and she had my daughter in the VW, I was at the Little League field. My daughter suggested I take oil with me to the VW, and oil was all gone and the new oil pouted out through the 6mm open hole.

Next day, I replaced the stud, added 2 qts oil, drove it 1/4 mile home, changed oil that weekend: the screen was full of bearing shells. But I cleaned the screen, added 3 qts oil, bolted it up, and drove it for 3 more years - no knocking; then I swapped in my then-unused 1835cc engine.

In late 2016, I finally tore down the engine, found that #2 main bearing was what had been damaged when all the oil leaked out and Mrs. Cusser still tried to drive it home. The other main and the rod bearings looked pretty good. The VW machine shop said that the crankshaft was OK and just needed polishing, not a regrind. The engine case was line-bored to "1 over" size. So I assembled that 1600cc engine and it now powers my 1970 VW. This is all covered with photos in my resurrection thread for that 1970 https://www.thesamba.com/vw/forum/viewtopic.php?t=664950

About once a year, I lower my Frontier spare to assure that it has the correct pressure. Having a flat spare is nearly equivalent to having no spare.

I have a full-size spare on my 3 trucks. I orient the spare so I can test pressure and add air if necessary without lowering the spare. Last year I noticed that the spare on my 1998 Frontier lost pressure; soap bubble test showed bad schraeder valve and bad metal cap, so both were replaced.

 

Neat 1970 VW link Cusser! My wife and I are on our second VW (a 2017 Golf Wolfsburg 5M) and are fans. I've been thinking about buying a GTI, but my Frontier continues to run well and I still enjoy it.