Well last night it hit the coldest temps my V10 Excursion has ever seen - minus 12.

The Ex started ok, but, according to the gauge and idiot light, the oil pressure went to normal then down to zero, so I shut it right off. After checking the oil level, it was about a quart low, I tried again. The light went off and the gauge flickered a couple times then back down to nothing. Also, several of the other idiot lights (MIL, low fuel and ABS) came on and off a few times during the short time the Ex was running.

The outside temp is now up above 0 and there's been a heat lamp on the engine for about an hour.

All of this started AFTER the truck wouldn't start last night when my girlfriend got off work. A friend gave the Ex a jump start and she was able to get it home.

During the short time the engine was running, I did not notice any knocking or other types of sounds that would indicate any damage had been done.

I'm hoping it's not the oil pump, and would actually welcome a weak battery or other electrical issue being the culprit. However, my luck doesn't usually run that way...

 

Can you measure the battery voltage just sitting - should be around 12.2-12.5v.
With the engine running ours shows 13.6-14.2v.
While not a complete test if you have those voltages your battery and alternator are probably good.
Check the battery and ground cable connections for corrosion.
The oil pressure sender is lower on the driver's side, check that connector, too.
The oil pressure gauge is not really a gauge.
The sender is a 7 psi switch so when the oil pressure goes over 7 psi the switch closes and the gauge reads an "OK" level.
When first starting an engine the oil pressure can go over 50 psi with cold oil and drops to a fairly low pressure at idle in a warm engine.
Maybe this concerned people so the "gauge" was simplified.

 

Yeah, I bet the battery is toast, given the rest of the dash lights blinking on and off. Check the battery voltage like R&T says.

 

I did a load test on the battery yesterday with a hand held tester. When not under load, it shows 12v. When under load, the needle drops to the weak area, and IIRC, about 11v. So I'm sure the battery is on its way out.

I'm picking up a mechanical oil pressure gauge today. I don't want to risk starting it again without that gauge so I can really know what the oil pressure is. This scares the hell out of me, lol. We're expecting more snow next wewk, and the Ex is our only 4wd truck.

 

Well, with luck, it looks like the sending unit was bad. Changed the oil and filter today at 5 below zero. Started the Excursion, still no oil pressure on the dash gauge. So, I commenced to installing the Bosch mechanical gauge I got at Advance on Saturday.

Started her up, and about 8 seconds later I was greeted with 82 psi.

After about 20 minutes of idling and occasional revng the engine to 2000 rpm, this is where I'm at...

 

 

Sonofabitch.... all the searching I did and I didn't find that TSB. Well, at least is wasn't the oil pump.