Technical Year 2000 Mk2 Punto Sporting Low Oil Pressure Light

[deeinlondon]

The funny thing about the FIAT Oil Pickup tube is the face of it is really large but the opening seems very small - especially compared to other manufacturers I've seen where the entire face of it seems to be a wire gauze.

 

[Fialfa]

Hi , The oil was jet black ,oil running down block from leaky rocker gasket and layer of crap on oil filter from not being changed , i dropped the oil And took rocker cover off and cleaned all that up removed gasket / gunk etc and then poured around 2 liters of petrol down rocker and left for couple days , then dropped the petrol and took off sump , I removed pickup which had some gunk stuck to the grill and put it into petrol bath then used Stanley blade / green pad and screwdriver and patience to clean areas to re attach sump to , cleaned up sump the same way and then bolted back on clean pickup and used new black hi temp silicone for the sump , had exhaust removed and on ramps

 

[deeinlondon]

Hi , The oil was jet black ,oil running down block from leaky rocker gasket and layer of crap on oil filter from not being changed , i dropped the oil And took rocker cover off and cleaned all that up removed gasket / gunk etc and then poured around 2 liters of petrol down rocker and left for couple days , then dropped the petrol and took off sump , I removed pickup which had some gunk stuck to the grill and put it into petrol bath then used Stanley blade / green pad and screwdriver and patience to clean areas to re attach sump to , cleaned up sump the same way and then bolted back on clean pickup and used new black hi temp silicone for the sump , had exhaust removed and on ramps

I'm super impressed with your efforts, did you happen to take any photos of what the dirty oil pan and clogged pickup looked like at the time?

I'm wondering if it's worth trying an Engine Oil Flush before anything else?

I came across an interesting video showing how STP Engine Flush works and it looked pretty impressive.

 

[nikrox]

I believe the conversation about the pro's and con's of engine flush as been had already..but I could be wrong..
I have used engine flushes for around 37 years...I will continue to use them.

 

[deeinlondon]

I believe the conversation about the pro's and con's of engine flush as been had already..but I could be wrong..
I have used engine flushes for around 37 years...I will continue to use them.

What product do you use for flushing?

I think if a flush helped in this case it would be interesting proof of them being useful because it would come after new oil, filter and oil pressure switch had already been tried. Plus finding the video above gave me a better idea of how they work.

 

[nikrox]

https://images.lteplatform.com/images/products/200x200/549771811.jpg

£2.50 from Euro Car Parts

 

[Fialfa]

I’ve nothing against engine flushes either. I have never used one but wouldn’t have any problem trying that stp out but I was removing the pickup and dropping the sump so in my case petrol did the job and was close to hand

 

[deeinlondon]

Well I think I'll order the STP since it's what others are using and has great reviews on Amazon and plus I liked that YouTube video I saw.

BTW any idea if it's possible to view the oil pickup screen mesh of the Mk2 Punto just by looking into the drain hole with a torch?

I saw an interesting video where this guy shines a torch into the drain hole of his 4x4 and you can see how clean or dirt the mesh is quite easily in his car.

 

[Fialfa]

Not sure but it’s close to the drivers side of your drain plug , what you could do is establish possibly if it’s loose

 

[kjeldio]

Why do some people think that an engine flush can repair a clearly shorted oil pressure switch circuit?

 

[Fialfa]

To be fair all here are aware there is possibly an electrical short or pump /pickup problems but surely there’s nothing wrong with discussing possible improvements while your there , and it might not be as simple as a short either , I only needed to change oil and filter and went over the top and that’s why I’m here

 

[deeinlondon]

Why do some people think that an engine flush can repair a clearly shorted oil pressure switch circuit?

I think you might be correct.

I did do a test yesterday where I touched what I believed was the exposed bare wire going from the Pressure switch and got nothing.

But it's a lot brighter today and I can now see what I thought was bare wire was a grey coloured sleeve with a little streak of yellow down the side I couldn't see yesterday.

 

[deeinlondon]

I think you might be correct.

I did do a test yesterday where I touched what I believed was the exposed bare wire going from the Pressure switch and got nothing.

But it's a lot brighter today and I can now see what I thought was bare wire was a grey coloured sleeve with a little streak of yellow down the side I couldn't see yesterday.

But then again this isn't an out and out short?

 

[deeinlondon]

I decided to buy an oil pressure testing kit - should arrive in 2 days - loads were on sale but most went up to 500 PSI which makes it very hard to read lower numbers.

Managed to find one on Amazon that goes upto 140 PSI although it only had one review and that wasn't a good one - but it was sold by Amazon themselves so if it's no good should be easy to return.

 

[Fialfa]

Well you do have a slight knocking noise , it’s not impossible that the pickup tube is slightly loose where the bolts and seal are / also is the rocker cover oil tight and sump ?or any blue smoke ?

 

[deeinlondon]

Well you do have a slight knocking noise , it’s not impossible that the pickup tube is slightly loose where the bolts and seal are / also is the rocker cover oil tight and sump ?

Today I drained the new oil I put in the car to see if it was possible to see the wire mesh that covers the pickup tube but the head of the pickup lies to the side of the oil drain hole and so low to the bottom it's impossible to see it without removing the sump.

I was however able to put my finger inside and push against the side of it and it felt sturdy, didn't move and what little I could see inside looked clean.

I also used one of those cheap £10 Endoscope cameras to have a look inside but it was hard to see the bottom of the oil pan coming in from the bottom.

As far as I am aware the sump and rocker are tight

 

[Fialfa]

Well that’s that one out of the way , good job !! I’d be looking at those wires connected to the pressure sensor and closing in on source of knock or is knocking settled down now ?

 

[deeinlondon]

Well that’s that one out of the way , good job

Were you referring to the meter reading test?

I'm really not sure if the meter reading I got counts as a short or not as far as the Check Low Oil Pressure Light is concerned.

I've not really started up the car again since changing the oil, filter and pressure switch and filmed that video that I posted.


I think it sounds that way time to time when idling and quickly goes away when setting off but I have the bonnet down so it's muffled. Also that video is new oil and new filter and never been driven and I've noticed in the past when I changed the oil the car drives funny until I've done about 30 miles in it then it readjusts itself.

Last time I changed the oil to Shell Helix the Trip computer suddenly told me I'm getting 50 MPG in town - when it's usually closer to 35MPG but at the same time I had so little power pulling away from Traffic lights - then as I drove the MPG's went down but the power returned - I think in part this may be whats happened, that the car doesn't know it's been given new oil and new oil filter and has only been started up on the driveway so not had time to adjust itself.

I don't know if others have noticed this memory effect with their Puntos?

I remember when I first got my car 19+ years ago and my father drove it occasionally - then I'd get back and drive the car and it felt totally differently in the way it accelerated until it got used to me being back in the drivers seat. I don't know if this might be quirk specific to the Sporting Models as I know with these models the City Button when turned off makes the steering heavier but also makes the car accelerate faster - where as on other models I think it only makes the steering heavier.

Anyway I've disconnected the battery as well to see if that helps reset any gremlins.

I'm mainly waiting for the mechanical oil pressure gauge I've ordered to arrive - assuming it works correctly it will help me decide what to do next and It's easier to see improvements when you can measure things.

 

[crankshaft]

This is a video I filmed after putting in the new Castrol Magnetec 10W 40 Oil, New Mann Oil Filter and New Oil Pressure Switch. I think that the car engine noise got a big louder in the time it took me to find my camera.

https://youtu.be/w_EyMN_h1pQ

My car sounds the same.

I am curios could you provide me with the reference and brand of the replacement oil switch you got?

The test were you measured the resistance of the pressure switch, where did you connect the multimeter probes? Was the switch in the engine? Engine running?
Just trying to compare with my engine here. Maybe that will help you.

 

[deeinlondon]

My car sounds the same.

I am curios could you provide me with the reference and brand of the replacement oil switch you got?

The test were you measured the resistance of the pressure switch, where did you connect the multimeter probes? Was the switch in the engine? Engine running?
Just trying to compare with my engine here. Maybe that will help you.

I ordered The Blue Print ADA106607 Oil Pressure Switch

The low oil pressure switch was still in the car but I disconnected the wire that goes into the sensor and put a sewing needle pin into the centre of the plug so I was able to then clamp one end of the meter on to it and then touched the other end to the clamp that normally is on the negative battery terminal (I had totally disconnected the battery from the car first)

So this should just be a test to see if there is a short in the wire itself.