Reduced oil pressure takes out lifters...

[Vroom]

Hi, another one for posterity.

Last week my car started to make some lifter noise. The noise was subtle and while others couldn't really hear it over the normal engine noise, I'm used enough to the engine to hear it clearly. There weren't any lights, and when I hooked up to the computer, there weren't any misfires or anything else to point directly to the lifters. It was clearly either a bad lifter, bad/bent rod, or (and I was really hoping for this one) a bad manifold gasket.

The dealer found the oil pressure was low. 23PSI/idle, 32PSI/2000RPM, 35PSI/3000rpm. This never really showed up on the gauge since its always above 30 on there. I guess the gauge is more of a estimate....

They replaced the oil pump and while the noise reduced, there was still significant lifter noise. They determined that several of the lifters had gone bad. So they replaced all the lifters, gaskets, etc.

I'm at 38000+ miles, and warranty covered everything without any argument.
I haven't tracked my car or anything except for some spirited driving that a car of this caliber should soak up easily, so this is clearly a statistical failure. So for all of those who never have a problem, its due to poor assholes like me taking a statistical ass whooping...so you're welcome.

Car seems to be better, I seem to have "regular" lifter noise that I would say was louder then normal, but this could really be due to the computer being reset, so I'm just going to monitor and see if it changes. I'm hoping that everything is better now...

So if you have a scanner, you might want to check your oil pressure and not trust the gauge so much. The pressure is now mid 30s at idle and over 40 above 2000rpm, 3000 > 50psi.

I wont vent about how this engine is supposed to be freaking indestructible or how this is the second new car that has had an engine barf under warranty...

But I feel like this:

[SamHouseIII]

Oil pressure may vary with engine
speed, outside temperature, and oil
viscosity, but readings above the
low pressure zone indicate the
normal operating range. When
the oil pressure reaches the low
pressure zone, a message appears
in the Driver Information Center
(DIC). See

Engine Oil Messages on
page 5‑38 and Engine Oil on
page 10‑13 for more information.

{

WARNING

Do not keep driving if the oil
pressure is low. The engine can
become so hot that it catches fire.
Someone could be burned. Check
the oil as soon as possible and
have the vehicle serviced.

Notice:

Lack of proper engine oil
maintenance can damage the
engine. Driving with the engine
oil low can also damage the
engine. The repairs would not be
covered by the vehicle warranty.
Check the oil level as soon as
possible. Add oil if required, but
if the oil level is within the
operating range and the oil
pressure is still low, have the
vehicle serviced. Always follow
the maintenance schedule for
changing engine oil.

A reading in the low pressure zone
can be caused by a dangerously
low oil level or some other problem
causing low oil pressure. Check the

oil as soon as possible.

[bumblebeecamaro]

This is the reason why I haven't tuned my car yet even though the urge hits me every day. Everyone talks about how bulletproof these LSA engines are .......

But it'd be my luck to have my car tuned then have something like the OP's problem(s) happen. Then I'd be SOL with an expensive, out of warranty repair bill. So seeing threads like this makes me happy that my LSA is still technically a Virgin. lol

[CanadianZL1#992]

That's the chance you take. If mine breaks I know I'm on the hook but I'm ok with that. Every time I hammer it on the street or strip its worth the risk. My car is not my daily driver so it can sit until I get the time and money to fix it!!

[Catfish]

Is that mileage number (38,000) correct? That's a lot of miles for a '13. What kind of oil filter are you running? Some filters, particularly Fram, tend to restrict flow more than others and can cause low oil pressure.

[yellow69z28rs]

Originally Posted by Catfish

Is that mileage number (38,000) correct? That's a lot of miles for a '13. What kind of oil filter are you running? Some filters, particularly Fram, tend to restrict flow more than others and can cause low oil pressure.

What he said.

[Vroom]

I always use K&N filters. I have 38k miles. I expect to hit 100k in about a 1.5-2 years which is why these kind of issues drive me nuts. Need to save up for an engine rebuild I guess. Sadly I can still hear the original noise, its just quieter telling me that they aren't quite done with it yet. At least any new damage should be mitigated.

Just a word of warning. The oil gauge doesn't match or move with the computer. Its sits above 30 whether the computer is at 30 or 40, gives a false sense of security.

@bumblebeecamaro: This is just a statistical problem. Shit just happens. The good news is I took this bullet and I doubt we'll see another one unless there's a most seriously factory defect. I'm just glad I got it fixed before it took out the entire engine.

@SamHouseIII: Yes, low oil pressure is bad. This was just reduced oil pressure and didn't show up on the gauge or on the dash.

[ninsecgt]

Originally Posted by Vroom

Hi, another one for posterity.

Last week my car started to make some lifter noise. The noise was subtle and while others couldn't really hear it over the normal engine noise, I'm used enough to the engine to hear it clearly. There weren't any lights, and when I hooked up to the computer, there weren't any misfires or anything else to point directly to the lifters. It was clearly either a bad lifter, bad/bent rod, or (and I was really hoping for this one) a bad manifold gasket.

The dealer found the oil pressure was low. 23PSI/idle, 32PSI/2000RPM, 35PSI/3000rpm. This never really showed up on the gauge since its always above 30 on there. I guess the gauge is more of a estimate....

They replaced the oil pump and while the noise reduced, there was still significant lifter noise. They determined that several of the lifters had gone bad. So they replaced all the lifters, gaskets, etc.

I'm at 38000+ miles, and warranty covered everything without any argument.
I haven't tracked my car or anything except for some spirited driving that a car of this caliber should soak up easily, so this is clearly a statistical failure. So for all of those who never have a problem, its due to poor assholes like me taking a statistical ass whooping...so you're welcome.

Car seems to be better, I seem to have "regular" lifter noise that I would say was louder then normal, but this could really be due to the computer being reset, so I'm just going to monitor and see if it changes. I'm hoping that everything is better now...

So if you have a scanner, you might want to check your oil pressure and not trust the gauge so much. The pressure is now mid 30s at idle and over 40 above 2000rpm, 3000 > 50psi.

I wont vent about how this engine is supposed to be freaking indestructible or how this is the second new car that has had an engine barf under warranty...

But I feel like this:

thanks for the heads up vroom