Hello,
I have a 2004 new to me Escape and the Oil light is flashing. I read in other threads that the culprit could be the Oil Pressure switch so I went ahead and installed a new one but I still have the same problem. Steer me in the right direction to troubleshoot this. What should I do next? Biggest problem is I can only get to it on the weekends. I'm thinking of connecting a mechanical gauge to see what the oil read out is. Of course this happens when the engine reaches operating temp and only when completely stopped. I did notice that the oil pan looks like RTV gasket maker goo so now I am thinking that maybe some could have possibly made it inside and could obstruct the pick up tube? Is that a possibility? Thanks for any help you can give.

 

I'd try a new filter with an oil change if you haven't done that already. You could put a mechanical gauge in to see what the pressure is but equally if the symptom survives the switch being replaced it is likely to be a real oil pressure issue. It could be an obstructed pickup pipe but tbh as it would be obstructed on the pickup side of the pump I'd expect the light to flash all the time but pulling the sump is next if an oil & filter change doesn't fix it :-(

 

Thanks for the recommendation. The previous owner told me that they just did an oil change two months ago with synthetic 5W20, I am assuming that that also means filter but I have no way to confirm the job. The previous owner also said that the car was parked for a year because of his medical condition. I'll try a filter and oil change and see where it goes from there. Quick question, would to much oil possibly cause this? Thanks again.

 

Well good filters have a bypass so that oil pressure is maintained even if the filter clogs, cheap filters may omit that. Too low an oil level can cause air to be sucked in and the pressure light to flash but that is highly likely to occur during driving and not simply at idle. If only at idle then it is likely to be low oil viscosity, low oil flow or excessive pump or engine clearance causing it.

I take it you get no unusual rumbling noises from the engine related to engine speed?

 

I'll have more time this weekend to poke around it. I think I'll change the oil and oil filter and see if that cures it. If not I'm thinking on adding some seafoam to the oil just for the heck of it to see if it cleans anything. Could a fuel pump on the way out cause this? Also will check what RPM should it be running with the torque app. I just don't want it to be worn bearings, engine has 119k miles. I've heard other people run oil heavier then 5w20. It drives great, sounds good and even passed the smog test here in California.

 

Just put a good quality oil in it, major brands have good cleaning additives in anyway. No it can't be the fuel pump - but check the idle is stable at around 750-800rpm, if the idle is too low for some reason then that may drop the pressure and cause the light to flash.

 

Just an update. Its been a little over a week since I changed the Oil and oil filter. I went with the motorcraft filter, the one that was on there was smaller in size compared to the motorcraft. I didn't see a name brand on it. I also used the motorcraft 5w20 synthetic blend. And so far, no more oil light blinking. Problem seems to have been solved. Also was able to re-charge the freon and now AC is nice and cool too. Thanks for the advice.

 

Great! Glad you got a good result.

 

Update #2 - Two days ago the oil can light started to come on after the engine was at temp. Again this only happens when I am stop and as soon as i touch the accelerator, it goes away. Is it possible that a low idle can cause this problem? If it is, how can I check that? The in dash tach is not all that detailed to see the exact rpm. Also what could cause a low rpm in this type of engine?

 

Shooting from the hip here, but I think I remember seeing a recall to update the firmware. I'm thinking it was to address a low RPM condition that resulted in a stall under certain situations.
Not sure it's the root of your problem though.

 

Update - Almost one year from my last post on this thread. The light hasn't come on since i did a 2nd oil change 2 months from my initial oil change. I take it maybe the new oil cleaned or pushed out some gunk but so far it has been great. That 2nd oil change was real black and just looked like it had been in there for some time even though it had only been there 2 months.