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No oil pressure after oil change on 440???

Dk440

Dk440

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Hello all,

Need some advice on how to fix this.

Drained the oil and coolant 8 months ago and the car has been sitting in my garage since then, while I did some work to the radiator.

Filled her up with fluids the other day, and she fired right up...............but the oil pressure gauge reads 0 pressure!? Oil is what I allways put in - 20W50. Oil pressure was fine before!

Could the oil have drained to an extend, where the oil pump is so dry, that it only sucks air???

Any ideas - what to do/check?

My gauge is mechanical, if that has something to say!?

Thank you in advance.
 
How long did you let it run? Any noise? Mine creeps up slow after a change. I hesitate to partially fill the filter when changing as dirt or debris could get in when fishing it into position.
 
I would try another guage, and also would put a drill on pump and see what I have. If pump is pumping it will put a lot of resistance on drill, if pump is not working it will turn easily.
 
prob drained all the oil from the pump sitting empty that long.like others have said,put a drill on the pump.may be cavitating the air inside the oil pump.
 
It only ran for less than a minute or so on both attempts. It usually onlt takes 5 seconds for the pressure to build. Could you give me a brief instruction on how to spin the pump manually? Also, would it be an idea to remove the filter and fill it with oil and put it back on, like Dennis mentions?
 
You need what's called a pre-oil shaft, that has a hex on one end, that fits into the oil pump drive. Pre-oiling can easily be done by hand (I use a speed handle), or like some do with a drill motor.

Okay...pull the distributor...then, pull the drive gear/shaft, that the distributor's tang end fits into. That drive gear/shaft is what turns the oil pump, via the hex shaft end that fits into the oil pump. The 'tool' (pre-oil shaft) simply replaces that drive gear end, so the oil pump can be turned, priming the system. That's as long as everything is okay. Pre-oiling will also fill the oil filter, so no, you don't have to put oil into it.

Simply turning the pre-oil shaft, and oil pump, even by hand, you will feel resistance once oil starts to move through the motor. I also usually pull at least one valve cover, to make sure oil is getting to the rocker shaft. You should get oil flow to rocker arms, etc.

Draining the oil for a period of time...why? All your doing is letting your parts (and oil pump) go dry.

One more thing I usually do...before pulling the dizzy...bring the motor up to TDC compression stroke, or to the timing mark.
That simply makes it a little easier to reset the dizzy back in, and get it timed back up.

LOL! Last evil thought...mechanical gauge? With a oil tube for the pressure reading? Could be that tube is also drained.
Might try...pull the coil wire, crack open the gauge tube fitting, and turn the motor over (not run), to bleed the air out of the gauge's tube.
 
Last edited:
I'd start by rotating the crank to TDC on the #1 cylinder COMPRESSION stroke. Somehow mark the distributor to block location before removal. Note the position of the pump drive after pulling the distributor. The slot will likely be straight forward and back for "stock" components. You will want to put everything back in the location it comes from regardless of components.

A picture of a cheap shaft removal tool below. The zip tie just adds more interference for a tighter fit when tapped on. Your mileage may vary.

I made my primer shaft from a length of steel tube and a cut off 5/16" allen wrench pressed in and welded. You can also use a length of 5/16" hex stock if you can find it long enough. You'll spin the pump counter clockwise. Using a 1/2" variable speed reversible drill start off slowly and increase rpm gradually. You should feel the pump start loading the drill down if it's pumping oil.

Hope this helps.

IntemedShafTool.gif
 
Removed filter and it was, not surpisingly, bone dry.Pulled the distributor and gear drive. Borrowed a tool from a local mopar-shop and primed the engine with a drill. I could easily feel the resistance once the oil got picked up after 15-20 seconds. Put everything back together lining everyting back up to the marks, that I made. Went in and removed the small tube from back of the oil pressure gauge and cranked the engine expecting oil to come out...........but nothing happened!? Does it need to run in order to make oil pressure - or am I missing something here???
 
If you had the drill going,it would show pressure or have oil come out the line going to the gauge,,,,,,,,,,,
 
Are you spinning the drill ccw?
 
Spun it ccw. Maybe I should have someone check the gauge, while I spin the drill...........? For how long, should I spin it? I only spun it untill I felt the ressistance.........should I spin it for a couple of minutes?

- - - Updated - - -

HEMI-ITIS said:
If you had the drill going,it would show pressure or have oil come out the line going to the gauge,,,,,,,,,,,
Click to expand...

With the drill, yes - but turning the engine over with the starter???
 
grab a shoprag and crack the pressure line open right at the sendor,
wrap the rag loosely around it then spin it over,got oil on the rag?
close it.
go to the gauge do the same thing >>got a reading?
yes alls well you had air,no then time for a new gauge.
 
Dk440 said:
Removed filter and it was, not surpisingly, bone dry.Pulled the distributor and gear drive. Borrowed a tool from a local mopar-shop and primed the engine with a drill. I could easily feel the resistance once the oil got picked up after 15-20 seconds. Put everything back together lining everyting back up to the marks, that I made. Went in and removed the small tube from back of the oil pressure gauge and cranked the engine expecting oil to come out...........but nothing happened!? Does it need to run in order to make oil pressure - or am I missing something here???
Click to expand...


You'll need to spin it long enough to fill the filter, oil galleries and passages, and rocker shafts.
 
You will also need to rotate the crank for all the passages to receive oil.
 
Has been spinning the drill like crazy! Got a pressure reading of only 10 on the gauge after spinning the drill for maby 1 minute+! How much should it read...........50? What the h... is going on?
 
It may well be that the problem is at the oil pump ( stuck relief valve or broken spring, too much clearance in the "rotors to body" or a partially plugged pickup). If after the deductive methods others have stated, I would suspect oil starvation to the oil pump itself or an issue with it's drive gear. I spun mine with a drill and prime rod and got 50 p.s.i. after only a half a minute so if you can't get more than 10 something is amiss. You can always figure on oil pressure loss through worn main and rod bearings but there would have to be a huge amount of wear to have no oil pressure. Prime longer or you can even remove the filter and prime slowly to gauge the amount of oil being pumped or weather or not you're actually primed.Don't turn the engine by battery because you already know that you have very little oil on the moving parts from sitting.
 
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