Oil light on a Ford Escort comes on and engine starts making a noise any ideas on how to solve the problem?

Question

the Oil warning light after a minute or so, it comes on despite driving. Then the engine makes a noise like an old bus. Or post man pats van trying to struggle up a huge big hill. The car when driving starts to slow down. Had the RAC come and tow me home and suggested it could be an oil pump but there other things that might be wrong instead. The main problem he assured me was the pressure, presuming oil pressure. The engine noise and light don't come on every time only after a few minutes of ticking over but still its not the best purr. Ever since being towed home i'm at a loss as he told me not to use the car. I would like an idea so i could decide what to do with the car. Don't fancy paying out for a mechanic just yet plus don't really have the cash. Thought about having ago my self

Could there be a possible blockage somewhere?

For anyone who mentions have you checked the oil, the car does have oil in it. The light came on then it was the first thing I did was top it up, but the light was persistant on the next journey hence the RAC.

Answer 1

Hi there,first things first when was the last time you changed your oil??Oil is the lifeblood of your engine and cannot be taken seriously enough.Its not the food for your engine thats the fuel,run your car out of petrol it comes to a stop and you gotta walk to the garage with a can but it'll run once refilled.Run your car out of oil or have a serious oil problem then you'll kill your engine within a very short time either throwing a con-rod or siezing it and fusing it into one large lump of useless metal.

~~ If and when your oil pressure warning light comes on switch off your engine and don't restart it until you've fixed the problem,when the light comes on you are doing damage to your engine - it's that serious ~~

Right,the light comes on after a few minutes because your oil is heating up,when it's cold it's more viscous(thicker) and therefore takes more to pump through narrow oilways and galleries which needs and creates higher pressure.Once it warms up and thins the pressure drops,hence the pressure warning light coming on.

The first thing this suggests is the oil is old and very thin,well beyond it's useful life.

Second the noise is,hopefully a light rattling sound coming from the top of your engine this will be your hydraulic tappets which require oil pressure and good oil to function properly.They rattle in an old engine to some degree and are not a major concern.

If it is a low rumbling,knocking sound coming from the bottom of your engine you have more to worry about.If it increases in frequency as you rev the engine then it'll be main bearings,if it sounds worse as you ease of the accelerator(i.e on the over-run)then it's your big end bearings - either way it's a major overhaul.

If it's a slapping sound then that's worn piston rings which would explain the low oil pressure and why it happens as the engine warms.Worn piston rings tend to seal better when the engines cold and the lose their seal as the block expands with heat and the rings don't,another expensive overhaul job I'm afraid.

If you are losing pressue due to worn rings then the engine will be burning oil,this can be detected by your oil level dropping over time but much more noticibly by looking at the smoke that comes from your exhaust pipe once the engines warms up.If it's greyish-blue then your burning oil.As a rule of thumb,if your exhausts cloudy white then your burning water,black then your burning to much fuel.

What to do then is go to halfords,for example,in someone else's car do not start yours until you've sorted it and buy new oil,a 5 litre tin and a filter,it's pointless replacing one without the other.Get multigrade oil,thick stuff meant for an older car don't bother with fancy synthetic oil at £25 or 30 a time,it's a waste of money and does more harm than good on an older engine.Also get engine flush and oil additive(Wynns is good for example Slick 50 is expensive for much the same effect).

Start your car,till it's warming up and pour in the engine flush,this will flush out your oilways and remove most of the sludge then,let it run for a while then switch it off.I know I said not to till you've sorted it but you need to warm your oil to get the best out of the engine flush plus it's easier to drain when warm.Once the engines warmed up undo the drain plug and drain out the oil into a proper container,you have to dispose of old engine oil very carefully these days.Let it drain for a while because the last wee bit takes a while to drain then replace the sump/drain plug.

Get hold of a oil filter wrench from somewhere if you can borrow one or maybe buy one if you have to,short of that get someone with strong hands to remove the oil filter,don't put a screwdriver through the side and try and turn it thats the cowboy way and rarely works.

Smear some clean engine oil round the rubber ring ontop the new filter the screw it into place,just a shade more than hand tight,you don't need to tighten it hard,then pour in your fresh oil.If you have a manual look to see how many litres of oil it takes to fill it - it'll give you a figure for with and without a new filter.If you don't have the manual then pour about half to two-thirds of the the container in then give it several minutes to drain through then look to see how full it is on your dipstick,keep on filling a little at a time till it's at just below the max mark.

Once it's nearly full start the engine again and let it idle till it's warmed up then pour in the additive,don't worry if it takes the oil level a little over the max mark as long as it's not well over.

Wynns and some other oil additives can be very gloopy and syrupy and hard to pour out of the tin so take a saucepan and boil your kettle,put the opened tin in the saucepan(not on the cooker,by the way)and pour in some hot water and let it stand for 5-10 minutes that'll make it more pourable.

The additive basically thickens your oil thus making it seal better and creates more pressure,if doing this does not improve your engine any then I'm afraid to say you've already damaged your engine and are looking at an overhaul.I presume because your asking about the oil that you don't have a great deal of mechanical knowledge therefore you'd put the car to the garage for the engine work.

On a car the age of an Escort there is little point in spending the massive amounts they'd charge at a garage to rebuild your engine,if you want to keep the car then a scrapyard and replacement engine is by far your best option,specially if you have friends and family who can do the job for you,Escort engines are plentiful,cheap and easy to remove and replace.

One thing you didnt say is whether the engine is a petrol or diesel,obvioulsy everything i've written (long winded but imformative,i hope) applies equally to both but in the case of a diesel engine,due to the extra pressures involved the importance of maintaining good oil pressure and condition is greater.

I hope I've been of help and not too pessamistic but I cannot stress enough how critical oil pressure and condition is to the life of your engine.If your pressure warning light is on you can take it that the engine is already suffering some damage.Pull off the road as soon as you safetly can and switch the engine off.Dont start it again until you know why the light coming on.

Keep a check on your oil level weekly and replace your oil at least every 3500-4000 miles.When checking your oil leave it until the engines been switched off for at least 10 minutes to allow it all to drain into the sump and always check it when the cars parked on a level surface.

Bob.

Answer 2

The oil in the sump is sucked into the oil pump, the oil pump forces the oil into the engine. The first place the oil goes is the main bearings of the engine, after the mains the oil then travels round the rest of the engine.
In other words the main bearings produce the oil pressure in the same way that water in a hose pipe can be pressurized when you put your finger over the end of the pipe.
From the sound of what you have said I suspect that the main bearings on your engine are damaged resulting in both the noise and the oil pressure warning light coming on.
Unfortunately you will need either a complete engine re-build or a re-conditioned replacement engine.

Ja.

Answer 3

I use to have a Ford Escort with the same problem. What i done in the end was to use a engine flush, to clean the inside of the engine. Then i changed the oil filter and put some new oil in it. I think what happend was the mesh on the intake to the oil pump kept getting blocked up with oil sludge, thus causing low oil pressure. hope this helps.

Answer 4

I'm afraid I agree, it does sound like the oil pump. It could be just old and crappy oil, or even a blocked oil-way if you haven't been changing the oil and filter, but I still suspect the pump. The odd noises are because the engine is being starved of oil. I hope you haven't done serious damage, but that's a distinct possibility.

The only way to go now is the garage, unless you have the facilities. They can check the pump pressure and look into it.

Answer 5

Your warning light comes on to indicate low oil pressure, therefore I would strongly suspect the oil pumpgear clearanses are worn and the only thing to do is to have a new oil pump fitted. Another possible cause could be a blocked oil filter. When did you last change the oil and filter. When a car engine is hot, the oil thins as it is heated and the oil gets as hot as a hot kettle of water.Have you got the correct grade of oil in the sump.? hope this helps.

Answer 6

How often has the oil been changed ?
How many miles on the engine ?
Is the oil thick or thin ?
Take a clean white tissue and wipe the dipstick oil .
Do you see a metallic iridescence or particles in the oil ?

The knocking or rattling is probably the rods .
The filter could be stopped up causing a low pressure situation, if you are lucky.

Answer 7

Sounds like an oil pressure problem and since it makes noise it has damaged the engine. I would look into pricing a rebuilt engine or trading the car in.

Answer 8

Engine sludge from someone not changing the oil and filter. The strainer screen at end of the oil pump pickup tube is clogged. It's going to take dropping the oil pan and cleaning the strainer. Then change the oil and filter. (if there's an engine left)

Answer 9

Try giving it an oil change and make sure the level is correct, that wont cost you much and you can do it yourself. It could be your compression is down due to worn rings, you will have used more oil and hence the noise. All this could be quiet costly, to be honest I'd get someone to have a look at it otherwise you could be wasting money on a dead engine

Answer 10

oil pump...dont drive/start until u put a new 1 in...may b to late sorry