Well my Ex has been starting good all this time, but lately with the cold spell we have been having the Ex is slow turning over in the morning, and once started, the oil gauge doesn't move at all and the red warning light comes on, it also sounds like the lifters are rattling around, till it starts warming up then the needle moves up on the guage, and the rattling goes away...any ideas on what can be happening? I use Mobil 1 5-30 synthetic oil, tonite I am plugging in the Ex to see if that makes a difference.

 

i would check your oil level immediately and dont drive it! 5-30 is good for cold weather

 

oil level was the first thing I checked it was down half a quart, so I topped it off. This morning after being plugged in all night it turned over faster and started quicker, but still the gauge hesitated before moving up, and the warning light came on for a bit, but I didn't have the lifters rattling away this time, what else could it be?

 

Your oil pump is ready to head south..... (Or a major clog)

 

I have the noisy lifters on cold startup but never a problem with the oil pressure gauge showing no pressure. It appears like the gauge is acting like a hesitation after changing oil before the pump picks up. I would think you have a guage problem or an oil pump failing.

 

dangit! i have been having the EXACT same issue. youse guys are just chock full of good news

 

That is good news. You caught it before it was really bad news.

 

No question about it, either a pluged pump or it's taking crap.

 

Damn, had to happen during the x maz season! Does anyone have any figures on what it cost them to get it repaired? I have a 500 mile trip planned for next week too (

 

I have been looking for a high flow replacement pump online, not much luck yet, but prices for OEM spec I have seen are about $50.

 

The parts price is not bad, 50 sounds about average. Are the pumps on these down on the bottom or on the crank like an LS1 or what? If its like any other oil pump setup I've ever encountered your looking at some pretty good labor charges and some new gaskets/seals as well.

I do not think its a clog or bad pump though. I would suspect the oil filter first. Does anyone know if these have the anti-drainback valves on the filters? Do all the brands have one for our applicaton or only some? What this valve does is add a 1 way valve to the oil circuit and keeps the engine primed with oil so your motor doesn't have to wait for the pump to push it up and through the empty oil passages each startup. If your filter does not have one or if it is malfuntioning it would cause what you are describing in cold weather and add notable wear and tear where it takes just a bit longer to get the oil through the cold motor each startup. Something like 80 percent of wear and tear comes from starting a motor till the oil gets pumped through everything.

I'm runnin 5W20 Mobil 1 synthetic and get a lil noise at startup but nothing out of the ordinary and never a oil light. I am running a mobil 1 filter as well. This is on my V10.

I would go spend a couple bucks on a new QUALITY filter before paying some mechanic to lie to you and tell you you need a pump when you may not. You may also consider changing oil brands if your current oil is something questionable at all. I had some cheap mobil oil I got at a gas station for my old bronco and left it in the truck and one day went to add some and it had consistancy somewhere between honey and tar, I was extremely shocked. Temps were in the single digits to teens maybe that day.

So, step 1 new oil filter (make sure you fill it before srewing it on, especially in this cold!) and if you are running expensive/quality oil maybe pour some oil out of the filter and leave it out in the cold overnight and see just how thik it really is in the morning. You can judge from there if you need a different oil in the winter.


Oh and one more thing, I personally am against those chemical oil flushing products. I think they can harm bearings and seals, just my opinion, use it if you want.

 

Well, I'm at my oil change interval anyway, and have ordered my parts to change out the pump and gaskets. The total for that was $220, including my Mobile 1 synthetic and filter. The only shop estimate I got was $1200. I have a trip coming up, and do not have the time to change the oil, see if its indeed only the filter, order parts if its not, and do the repair, before the trip. Oh well eh?

Luckily, my place of employment is going to let me use the shop to work on my truck. That will be much better than working in the sub-zero temps we have been having here.

 

If I was you I'd just buy 1 more filter and screw that puppy in there and see if that alone doesnt solve the problem.

If you do go ahead and swap it be careful and do it right, a boo boo here could end up REALLY costing ya. Is the pump you bought a melling? Melling makes a quality product.

 

With the weather that cold the oil will be very thick and will move slow. the best thing you could do is put a manual gauge on and check the presure cold and hot. there is a min and max pressure reading.

 

I too went the cheap route and picked up some new Mobil 1 oil, tomorrow I am going to pick up a Napa Gold oil filter, I have heard these are good oil filters, hopefully that will solve the problem.