Stu's NA6/SE

[Daffy]

Looking forward to seeing how it takes to the track

[StuwieP]

Thanks all.

Didn't take long for the first issue to crop up. Drove to Marysville on Saturday with the girlfriend - perfect day, good company, pretty scenery. Nice drive held up by some slower cars (think, any slower and I'd be in reverse slow).

Parked up after the return journey Saturday evening. Go to drive it today... No oil pressure. 3-4 psi. Gentle tap like lifter noise from the motor.

Oil level is full. No evidence of leaks. After a gentle idle I've turned it off, not willing to run it for too long with next to no pressure. Oil seems quite thin.

Not sure tonight how to diagnose if my pressure sender is the fault, or if the oil pressure itself is the trouble...

Thinking might just do an oil change and see if there is anything obvious there and start searching further if that doesn't fix the problem. Seem like a good start?

[bruce]

Oh faaaaaar-out!

[16bit]

could it be an issue with the oil pump?

[StuwieP]

It could be. After filter and oil change that will be my next stop.

Seems strange to me that everything seemed 100% normal on Saturday evening (stable pressures, 30psi hot idle) and the car had a cool-down drive for the last 5-10 minutes, to where I am now, which is next to no pressure, with nothing in between.

No bang, no crack, nothing. Engine still sounds ok except the lifter noise (which, given the absence of meaningful oil pressure, makes sense).

But something is up...

[16bit]

yeah really odd. i don't really know enough to say much but is it possible a bit of rouge silicone has got clogged somewhere? bit of a head scratcher.

[StuwieP]

It's possible. The engine was pulled and the sump re-sealed because of done leaking half-moon seals a few months ago. Just looking at the sump though it's not like there's sealant everywhere.

If so, how so you clear that without pulling everything out?

[greenMachine]

No good!

Could be the pressure relief ball valve has stuck open. It sits under the alternator, undo the plug and see what it looks/moves like in its hole. You will probably have to remove, or at least swing back, the alternator to gain access. Good luck.

[bruce]

As 16bit said, this is a bit of a head scratcher. Hope it's not stray sealant as that would require a big clean up (may be evident in oil unless it is only a few bits stuck in vital areas?).
Good luck.

[StuwieP]

Could be the pressure relief ball valve has stuck open. It sits under the alternator, undo the plug and see what it looks/moves like in its hole. You will probably have to remove, or at least swing back, the alternator to gain access. Good luck.

Reading around this appears to be a not uncommon issue.

I take it step 1 is drop the oil, step 2 is try to see whether I can figure anything out while the engine is in place. Step 3 is to pull the motor (thrid time lucky?) and inspect/replace the oil pump.

I was thinking maybe change oil and filter and see if that fixed the problem but I'm also hesitant to risk a whole motor over a few weekends' worth of work in a friend's workshop + a new oil pump - albeit that isn't necessarily cheap, it's cheaper than a full rebuild...

[greenMachine]

IIRC, the plug sits in the gallery running from the pump down the side of the block. You have to move/remove the alternator to get access.

In my case, zero oil pressure, which required removing the plug and ball/spring, and priming, before refitting and a watchful turning over with plugs out. Fixed it, and it only ever happened once.

Sounds like you may have prime, easy to check with the plug (and gubbins) out - turn it over and oil will come out. The ball may be stuck in 'the' (or 'an') open position though, allowing most of the oil to bypass the pressure galleries. Need to check for obstructions, best to find out why it happened before resuming normal service.

If that is the problem, comparatively, it is an easy/quick fix.

[StuwieP]

Got into things today. Dropped the oil and new filter. Oil was pretty dark and was in bed of a cycle. It was the first new oil after the old mineral run in oil so it makes sense I guess it would be dirty quickly.

Good news is nothing other than oil, no metal bits or other crud to be seen.

Bad news is that I still can't make more than 4 psi (cranking only, no plugs, no fuel). Pressure came up quickly after the oil change so I guess the pump itself is healthy.

Seems the pressure relief valve can only be accessed by taking the sump off. So I think engine out again...

[StuwieP]

So I'm in the market for a new oil pump. So many questions.

Given roughly 290rwhp and intent to see the race track, what are my options? As far as I can tell it's any colour I want as long as its B[oundary Engineering]lack. I can't see that there are any other alternative options - that or the standard pump and risk an actually catastrophic pump failure.

As far as I have read there can be issues with front crank seal leaks with the BE pumps? And thenoil pressure relief valve pressure relief point?

And if I go that route, do I get the ATI damper too and just go the whole hog - it's an expensive engine and car at this stage, better safe than sorry?

Final question - ATI dampers don't seem to be sold locally - where have people got them from - FAB9?

[16bit]

you can get a different one from supermiata.com but its expensive.

https://supermiata.com/SuperMiata-oil-pump.aspx

[ManiacLachy]

I think Fab9 is the place to get them, they can supply all different configurations but recommend the Street/Strip 2 shim version for boosted/high performance from my reading.

I don't know if they've resolved the issue of the failing main seal supplied, but for the cost of a few bucks I'd just replace it anyway.