Skip to main content ↑ ↓
Topic: oil pressure warning dash light?! (Read 602 times) previous topic - next topic

oil pressure warning dash light?!

I tried searching a bit but no dice yet. Just did an oilchange, delo 400. Drove 20 miles to get new tires installed and on the way home at a stop, the big red low oil light came on. The guage read its usual 40psi parked in drive. I flicked it to neutral, watched the guage go to its usual 50psi, and the warning light went out. I parked it and checked level. Full up. On the freeway at 80psi showing on the guage the goldern lamp flickered back on again, and then stayed on. Still full on the stick and no leaks. I went ahead and drove the rest of the way home. I trusted the guage more than the light. So does anyone know on a 3208 where the guage gets signal from and where the lamp does? I'll keep searchng but thanks, again, in advance. So far, the intarwebs say it's on the filter houseing/oilcooler, or it's on top one one of the heads. I know of two places where there aren't any senders...
Jay
1989 U280 SE, 36', 3208T Cat, build 3292

Re: oil pressure warning dash light?!

Reply #1 –
Check on the side of the block also on top of the engine near where the throttle bracket is bolted on I believe there are 2 sending units. one for the light and the other for the guage
previous 1984 35 ft ORED 250 HP 3208 Cat       
previous 1998 40 ft U295 CAI 325 hp Cummins
previous 2003 40 Ft u320 build #6140 450 Cummins M11.                                                         
1999 Mazda Miata
Ron, Nancy, Tipper the cat, Max The dog
1997 U 270 36 ft build number 5174 8.3 Cummins

Re: oil pressure warning dash light?!

Reply #2 –
^Bingo. I hoist a pint in your honor. Funny how the Cat manual has no words about these items. Of the two senders, the bigger one is the guage sender and the smaller one is for the lamp. Unplugging it turms the light off. And in my case, (while it's idling, and the idiot light on the dash is saying we're all gonna die) so does giving that sender a bit of a tappytap with a wrench. I like fixes like that, and there's tiny contribution to the knowledge base.
Jay
1989 U280 SE, 36', 3208T Cat, build 3292

Re: oil pressure warning dash light?!

Reply #3 –
I think the senders were put there by Foretravel so Cat would not know about them. Cat only supplies a bare engine and the chassis builder puts on the controls, which in this case would have been Oskosh.
previous 1984 35 ft ORED 250 HP 3208 Cat       
previous 1998 40 ft U295 CAI 325 hp Cummins
previous 2003 40 Ft u320 build #6140 450 Cummins M11.                                                         
1999 Mazda Miata
Ron, Nancy, Tipper the cat, Max The dog
1997 U 270 36 ft build number 5174 8.3 Cummins

Re: oil pressure warning dash light?!

Reply #4 –
Interesting to note your oil pressures.  When warmed up, our Cat 3208T runs a little over 25psi at idle and around 55psi at cruising speed.  Pressures vary a little higher when cold, but I've never seen 80psi.  I run with the same oil,(15w40), so that is probably not a factor.  May be some tolerance considerations here.  I've never gotten a low oil press light, and I'm not sure what the set point is.  Have a great day  ----  Fritz
Fritz & Kathy Johnson
1991 36'
 

Re: oil pressure warning dash light?!

Reply #5 –
It is not unheard of but a sender using 1 wire have been known to get flaky, most solutions is to turn the sender a little as in make tighter, reason, some times the grounding becomes less and moving the sender sometimes causes it to make better ground to engine.
BTDT