low oil pressure when hot

[V-ahhh]

hey guys latley when i have been driving in the sun the cars oil pressure has been dropping like jumping up and down and has been idling really crap, any ideas? oil pump maybe? it stalled on me yesterday

cheers, nick

[craigvk]

Sounds like more a cooling, carby problem. When oil gets very hot, it thins quite a bit, so I don't think it has anything to do with oil. Just make sure it is up to the full mark.

Make sure your carb is up to scratch by checking for gasket wear etc..
Make sure the coolant is clean and all good. I had a car a few years ago that suffered in the heat and stalled, but that was because a cylinder was out and it stuggled.

[craigvk]

Oh and also usually pumps if they stuff up, they stuff up. They don't half work and then die. They usually just stop working, from experience.
If your pump failed, you would know quick smart. In my old car my oil pump stopped and within 1Km the car turned off. Very bad.

[Cane_It]

depending on how erratic the oil pressure actually is (do you have a gauge?) at both idle and under load its hard to suggest anything except this;

are you using something like a Penrite HPR30? i find this oil ok in a 308.
might be an obstruction on the strainer at the pickup?
if theres stuff all pressure at idle and pressure builds at revs and falls very sharply to nearly nothing when you take your foot of the gas then it maybe sucking air in through a hole in the pickup or a leak at the flange where it bolts to the bottom of the block.

obstruction in the bleed off in the pump keeping the relief valve open but i highly doubt this unles the oil is full of lots of muck.

you'll have to post more info on this one i reckon.