car oil level warning light problems

travel_freak

Hi,

I have a problem with my car - the warning indicator lamp keeps coming on. I've checked the manual which says this means the oil level is too low. I checked the dipstick but there seems to be plenty of oil, if anything the level looks to be above the mark on the dipstick.

Please does anyone have any ideas what the problem could be - could it be a faulty warning light? It has come on in the past too and I was passing a VW garage (it's a Polo). They had a look and put some oil in but the light is on again now.

I'm a bit worried as I have to do a long motorway trip soon and don't know if it's safe to do so.

Any advice gratefully received.

many thx.

big_gay_kirk

could be a lot of things.. theres obviously enough oil in the sump, but it might not be reaching the warning light switch.. which might mean low oil pressure in the engine, and a lack of essential lubrication.. or it could just be a fault in the switch.. let the oil recently put in have time to flow down to the sump, ( a good few hours without using the car!) then look through the oil filler hole at the rocker gear.. if this looks very dry, you may have circulation problems.. if you're not mechanically minded, I would get it checked out properly before going on any journey.. seized engines tend not to be repairable...

tinkerbell84

travel_freak wrote: »

Hi,

I have a problem with my car - the warning indicator lamp keeps coming on. I've checked the manual which says this means the oil level is too low. I checked the dipstick but there seems to be plenty of oil, if anything the level looks to be above the mark on the dipstick.

.

which mark is it above?

is the light on constantly, or only as you go hard around corners?

moonrakerz

This light is usually not an low oil level indication, it is a low oil pressure indication. You may have plenty of oil but no pressure.
Low or no oil pressure can lead to VERY expensive noises from your engine !

steveo3002

moonrakerz wrote: »

This light is usually not an low oil level indication, it is a low oil pressure indication. You may have plenty of oil but no pressure.
Low or no oil pressure can lead to VERY expensive noises from your engine !

just what i was thinking

are you double sure its a oil level lamp most often its an oil pressure warning which means stop dont go any further as serious damage may happen

get it looked at before going on any trips..it might just be a wire off causing the lamp to come on , or on the other hand it could be serious engine problems

travel_freak

Hi, many thanks to everyone who replied.

To answer the questions you posed:

1. The light is on all the time, not just when going round corners.

2. It is an oil lamp symbol. The manual says if this symbol is red that means don't drive at all. If the light is yellow (as this is) it means low oil or low oil pressure and to refill oil when next filling the car with petrol. I checked oil level from dipstick when the car was cold (after not driving overnight) and it seems more than full.

Can I call out my breakdown service for this? My trouble is I'm 100 miles way from where I need to be for work tomorrow! Should I risk driving it?

Not sure if I could be "recovered" home as strictly speaking it's driveable at the moment. Any thoughts welcome!

Many thx in advance.

steveo3002

spose it depends on the terms of what breakdown you have

you could exagerate and say the red one lit for a few moments , they should be able to check the oil pressure and say if its safe to drive

QTC

It could be a faulty sender..a garage could check that quite easily.

When was the oil and filter last changed? If this hasn't been done regularly, the filter may be partially blocked, disrupting oil flow. If the wrong oil was used on the last service, this could also cause reduced oil pressure.

ohreally

Unfortunately you don't know whether you actually have low oil pressure or if the sender unit is faulty (this may be the case if the indicator is illuminating all the time). Faulty sender units are not uncommon plus they're cheap and easy to replace.

Edit, the above posted while i was getting a glass of water.

goldspanners

surely if it is an oil level light it cant be measuring oil level when the engine is running,it should measure oil level before start up, and oil pressure when running.
do you have a picture of the symbol?