Oil Pressure Sender Repair - RB30 Patrol

[dom14]

Hey Guys,

This is what I did to repair the Oil Pressure Sender of my RB30 Patrol.

BTW, I have to say, all these were required simply because I went to the trouble of opening up the sealed oil pressure sender to see what the problem inside.
When I opened it up, the interior was working fine.
It's basically the piston that pushes on the variable resistor coil, which has been getting stuck due to oil gunk that's been stuck inside the piston bore as well as the walls.

So, the best and easiest way to get this oil pressure sender to work again is to,

1)Spray carby cleaner or something similar from the oil entry hole and shake and shake off all the oil inside. Few high pressure sprays and few strong shakes will be required.

2) Attach a vacuum cleaner to the oil entry hole and suck all the gunk that's been stuck inside the bore over years.

Above two deeds alone will give new life back to your Oil Pressure Sender. The key is to remove all the oil grime inside the bore and walls. Once that's done, your old oil pressure sender will spring back to life. No more funny oil pressure readings on the dial on the dashboard.

All the trouble I went through wont' be necessary at all. I had to tear it down in order to understand the interior as well to investigate any possible electrical or mechanical issues inside.

New Oil Pressure Sender is sold for silly $130 or more. Even though it's a critical part of the engine oil warning system, fixing it like this when you can, makes sense to me.
And not to mention, it's damn fun exercise.

Cheers

P.S. Special thanks to Yendor(Rodney) for feeding me plenty of knowledge to understand the workings of this thing.

[Yendor]

Well written mate. Thank you for taking the time to post this.

You have way more patience then me.

[mudski]

Yeah wow. So thats how they work. Well done to you both then....

Sent from my SM-P600 using Tapatalk

[Throbbinhood]

Do you find the gauge changing as the oil warms up, and later with revs?

[dom14]

Do you find the gauge changing as the oil warms up, and later with revs?

Yes. During a cold start, it stays around number 5, but once the engine is fully warmed up(on idling) it goes down to 3-4 or so. When you rev high, the dial suppose to go high. Even though it does in mine, it never goes as high as the number 8 in the dial.(though I've never revved the motor above 4k rpm to test it)
Overall, I would have to say, it's probably not a good idea to rely on this stock oil pressure gauge to get an accurate reading on the oil pressure. I've ordered an oil pressure tester. That tool should be the one to accurately assess the oil pressure.

BTW, I've installed a sandwich plate on my oil filter with the hope of installing a more accurate aftermarket oil pressure gauge and alerting alarm as well(idiot proofing for myself). But, I've decided to prioritize the oil pressure tester 'acquisition' & properly test the oil pressure for once. I think, engine overheat alarm(coolant system) is a more important idiot proof modification than low oil pressure alarm.

[dom14]

So, in a nutshell, all the RB30 owners out there with a dodgy oil pressure gauge have to do to get it work more accurately is to,

Use a 17 mm spanner and undo the Oil Pressure Sender and then clean it according to the above procedure.
You can also use high pressure air into the oil hole of the sender after spraying some carby cleaner into it.

[4bye4]

So, in a nutshell, all the RB30 owners out there with a dodgy oil pressure gauge have to do to get it work more accurately is to,

Use a 17 inch spanner............

Wow Dom that's a bloody big spanner mate. Like your posts mate and the never give up attitude.

[dom14]

Wow Dom that's a bloody big spanner mate. Like your posts mate and the never give up attitude.

I thought the information might help. :D
but of course I meant to say 17mm. I was bit pissed when I was writing it. :D
One of the reason the outer shell of the Oil Pressure Sender looks like a busted ass ford falcon is 'cos I used a pipe wrench to undo it. :D
I had no idea I could simply use a 17mm spanner on it. :)
I still had to heat up the spanner and bend it from the middle to be able to access the 17mm nut on it though.
So, I've turned into a tool maker as well. :)