METAL IN OIL PAN, LOW OIL PRESSURE AND CEL ???

JuanSTI

New member
SO MY CAR WAS GETTING TUNED TODAY AND FIRST THERE WAS A CEL MY FRIEND TOLD ME IT MIGHT BE THE AVCS SOLENOIDS AND THEN IT HAD LOW OIL PRESSURE IT WAS ONLY GOING UP TO 50PSI AND I THINK I IDLE WAS IN BETWEEN 7 AND 10 AFTER THAT HE TOOK IT HOME TO CHECK IT OUT AND FOUND METAL IN THE OIL PAN WHAT CAN IT BE ???
 

IGOTASTi

System Operator
Staff member
Bad news it sounds like.
 

Spamby

Meat Product Toy
Any way you can get pics of the metal or give us a better description?

Metal shavings
Metal chunks
Metal grit

What's the CEL say?
 

JuanSTI

New member
cel p0021 and my friend is telling me its sand paper no metal and he thinks the cel is cuz of the low oil pressure and the ocv need oil to work
 

Spamby

Meat Product Toy
P0021 is "intake camshaft position / timing over advanced "

I don't understand what the rest you typed is, it's not legible.
 

JuanSTI

New member
there was no metal. there was sand paper residue in the oil pan. had my oil pan switched out through insurance about two and a half years ago
 

JuanSTI

New member
the problem is the low oil pressure its only going up to 50psi when in throttle and 7-10 when idling
 

Spamby

Meat Product Toy
You have sand paper grit in your oil pan ? That's not good.

Your friend needs to check his code definitions and how the p0021 code would appear. He was tuning it, right?
Maybe get a second opinion?

Low oil pressure I would look at anything being clogged. Considering you have some sort of grit in your engine, your pump may be on its way out and quite possibly a host of other things.
 

HolyCrapItsFast

Drinks beer!
Spun or worn bearing may not necessarily make noise. It depends how far along it is. Anyway I don't understand "sand paper residue". Is this material that was left in the engine during the build process? if so I would be really pissed of at the builder. Can you take a picture of this?

Either way I fear your engine is toast because low oil pressure means damage in almost every case. If it is a blockage, it is possible that little or no damage occurred but you still need to tear the motor down to investigate it properly.

Just my $.02.
 

JuanSTI

New member
i hit a rock 2 and 1/2 years ago and messed up the oil pan and idk what else so i called the insurance and they sent me to a shop from there they fixed it and thats where the sand grit is coming from im positive i havent driven the car since then cause after they fix the oil pan and whatever else was wrong with it i drove and blew the head gasket almost immediately
 

JuanSTI

New member
ok guys sorry mis understood my friend theres no sand paper grit in the oil it was just one piece of something i cant take pictures since he lives about an hour from here but he said the oil feed tube was good he said it might be the oil pump or the bearings so hopefully its just the oil pump
 

Spamby

Meat Product Toy
Well, there really shouldn't be any piece of something in the oil pan.
It sat for 2.5 years before you drove it again. I am assuming this was recent that you got it back on the road?
Did you have the oil changed prior to restart?
Did you prime the engine prior to restart?
Have you changed the oil a few times to flush the sludge out?
 

Spamby

Meat Product Toy
When an engine sits for a long period of time the oil tends to become thick and sludgy. The cylinder walls can run dry as well as the bearing surfaces. Any oil in galleys and passages and the pump will also become sludgy. In order to help flush this gunk out, you need to perform a few oil changes after the initial sart-up.
Seeing as how you had head gasket failure prior to the engine sitting, the coolant may have been introduced into the cylinders and crankcase, ultimately the oil. This frothy mix if crap can wreak havoc on the pump, bearings and any other rotating or pump items.
Head gasket failure may have been happening little by little, prior to the ultimate blow, and this small leaks may have introduced coolant into the engine for some time prior to it being obvious. This crappy mix would have been pumped through the engine coating and filling every surface where oil should be. This mix, as stated before, can kill those bearings and clog whatever it passes through.
Seeing as how several oil changes did not take place after heads were fixed, this funk may have been left in the engine.
Another note is that if the mechanic performing the work was not careful and old sealant and gasket material may have been dropped into the cylinder walls or oil galleys. These bits of crap can clog the works up. This may be the trash in the oil pan.

Option 1:
Change the pump and then repeatedly change the oil for the next month. (Weekly). After that, as long as pressure remains stable and good, resort back to your normal service intervals. Also, do a compression and leak down test.

Option 2:
Pull the motor and go through it with a fine toothed comb. Replace bearings and gaskets and anything else that needs it.
 

JuanSTI

New member
oh well he doesnt know whats wrong with it so ill just bring it home and find someone who knows what there doing. i messed up by letting him touch my car. now back to the drawing board.
 
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