I posted this on the ChevelleTech page, but maybe it is better here in the engine section.

The factory gauge wasn't registering much oil pressure after I hooked it up. The line was dangling in the engine bay when I received the car, a victim I assumed of a problem with the clutch linkage en transit to me.

Well I hooked up another oil pressure gauge (0 to 100 psi) with a temporary short copper line, free of any possible obstructions or kinks. It registered about 10 psi with the motor running and the pressure did not increase with moderate revving of the engine. If anything, the pressure dropped.

It has occurred to me that maybe the oil pressure line is not hooked to the right place. An inch or two above the oil filter (the cannister type with a replaceable element) are three threaded holes in the block: a smaller one about 1/2 in diameter on each side with a larger hole, about one inch in diameter in the middle. I had connected the oil line to the large middle hole. It had a small plug the size of the oil line fitting in the middle of several reducers. The fitting with the oil line went into a reduced fitting that formerly had the plug in it. The smaller hole closest to the transmission has the clutch pivot mechanism threaded into it. The smaller hole farthest from the transmission has an Allen type plug in it.

I ran the engine for a few seconds with the oil gauge line off at the block -- the oil pump seems to be pumping oil, since about one-half quart ended up on the floor in no time. It gurgled out and didn't come out in a strong stream. Yet with the oil line off at the gauge under the dash, virtually no oil came out. The line looks undamaged.

I'm wondering if the oil line is hooked to the wrong spot? Or does anyone have other ideas to explain the low oil pressure? The motor is freshly rebuilt, judging by the new gaskets sticking out everywhere and new paint on it.

Thanks for your help!!

How long have you had the car? do you think it might have been disconnected so you couldnt actually see how much oil pressure it had? Thats the right place,just above the oil filter.

To answer your question, I haven't had the car very long. After about half a dozen excellent experiences buying and selling cars at a distance, I've learned that some "professional" car people do not accurately represent the cars they sell. I'll spare you most of the details.

I hired a company to haul the car from the U.S. eastern seaboard to western Canada. The shipper says that while loading the car the clutch linkage came apart. Since the broken oil fitting (one of those little brass fittings that the 1/8" line fits in at the block) was laying on the floor when the car arrived along with a clutch linkage part, it seems reasonable to think that the oil fitting broke when the clutch problem happened. The clutch mechanism and the oil fitting on the block are within one-half inch of each other.

The mechanic who did a temporary repair on the clutch so they could load the car likely put a plug in the hole to stop the oil from blowing out. I've lost confidence in both the seller and shipper and there is no point in asking them more about it.

Since the oil comes out of the fitting rapidly even at 10 psi or less, I am wondering if the engine lost most of its oil when the oil line broke. The shipper claims that their driver shut the car off as soon as the clutch problem happened. They mentioned no oil line problem. It arrived full of oil, but who knows what happened - and the seller and shipper are busy blaming each other for this and other problems.

I'm wondering if losing the oil might have damaged something in the engine to the point where the engine has almost no oil pressure. I wouldn't think that they would have run it long enough to do serious damage. But who knows?? Could the oil pump have lost its prime - and might it still need to be primed? Not likely, I know. I would think the pumps are self priming.

I hooked the oil line and gauge to one of the smaller front holes above the oil filter and plugged the larger hole. Same thing - it fluctates between 20 psi and 0 psi.

Before taking things apart, I would like to explore all options. So I'll appreciate any and all insights, guesses, and suggestions.

Have you put fresh oil in it? Cut the old filter apart carefully and inspect the pleats for metal. A count, per pleat of 10-15 specs is the cutoff. If you get more, pull the thing, it's on its way out. If not, fill it with 20-50 and a fresh good filter and see if the pressure stabilizes. 15-20 at idle is no big deal BUT, it should get to 40-50 at 4000-5000 rpm.

Anyway, examining the filter element will answer your " who knows if it did damage" question quite accurately.

Step two. If you have a very flexible neck this will help! Get a mag-lite or one of those 2' snakes with a light and magnet on the end ( for fishing out dropped parts), and while you drain plug is out, peek in the hole and see if you can view the oil pump pickup. It may have fallen off.

Your pleat count will tell you much about the internal condition of the engine. Have a magnet at the ready and see if the particles are magnetic ( cam, bearings), or not ( pistons ).

Off the subject, one thing that I "kept" from military service was the officers' creed...

" I shall not lie, cheat or steal, or tolerate those who do. "

Can you imagine if everyone traveled by those rules? What a wonderful world it would be. I tend to be "extremely predjudiced" against those that break my creed, which, it seems, is the general population. :( That's OK, stick true to oneself and give no quarter to ice-holes.

Thanks Gene for the good advice.

Some good news, maybe. The engine also has a brand new dipstick assembly. It occurred to me that maybe full on the stick doesn't mean full. So I dumped another litre of oil in -- suddenly 50 psi pressure at cold idle!!! It didn't climb much more when revved to 2500 or so -- maybe to 55 psi or so.

Now I'm wondering what damage running it with low oil pressure caused. At no point could I hear much valve noise - maybe one noisy lifter that is still there.

I will cut the filter apart. That should be easy since it is the type of filter that fits into a canister. Would I look inside or outside the filter for the metal? I did take the filter out and could not visually see any shiny pieces stuck to it. But I'll examine it more thoroughly. I'll check the bottom of the pan for filings too. smile.gif

If the oil pickup fell off the extra oil would cover up the hole. I have done that just to drive the car home after I found out that the pick-up fell off. Hopefully it was just low on oil. If the pickup fell off you will notice oil pressure fluctuations on hard braking and accelerations. I seen an oil pump start to come loose from the rear main cap before too. The bolt vibrated loose. A stock pan will only hold a little more than 4 quarts of oil.

Boy, I have No clue as to the canister type filter. When you cut open a modern one, then cut the top and bottom of the filter element away from the metal circles it's held to, the element simply comes out and allows you to 'unravel' it exposing all the pleats.

Be careful if the pick up fell off, I lost a moter like that.

Since I don't trust this dipstick, I'm wondering if there is another way to tell the correct oil depth. Before adding the extra container of oil, I stuck a long straight wire into the dipstick hole until it bottomed out, I assume on the bottom of the oil pan. Unless the pickup extends far enough forward to interfere at that point??

Anyway, the wire had about 4 3/4 inches of oil on it, going into the pan at a bit of an angle. The pan is about 8 inches deep at that point, the deepest point of the pan. Does that sound like a standard oil pan that should only take 4 quarts, or is a high capacity pan?

When I change the oil in the next day or two, I'll also measure the amount of oil that comes out.

When I usually change oil I just change the filter and add 5 quarts of oil then I start it up and check for leaks. After I shut it off I check the oil level. It should read pretty close to full doing it that way. If you have a stock pan and it will not read good oil pressure after that I would say you have a pick up problem.