HI!

It started with a routine oil change. Everything went smooth. Got done, went to go to a meeting I had to go to and all H**L broke lose.

Heard a noise then saw what I first thought was steam coming out from under the hood. Stopped popped the hood expecting to see and smell antifreeze everywhere. NNNOOO!!!!! Oil everywhere and smoking. First thing I checked was the filter. It seemed a little lose. So after a nice conversation with myself regarding whether I tightened the filter fully, I tightened it up some more. NO cell phone with me, so I limped it to the gas station 1/4 mile down the road. Checked oil level, put 4 ½ -5 quarts more quarts in (don’t buy that much oil at a gas station even the cheep stuff is $$$$) and had to get to my meeting which was 1/4 mile past the gas station. It did it all over AGAIN by the time I got to my meeting!!!!!!!! Finally got a cell phone, called the wife and she brought me MORE oil!!!!!!! Limped the thing home and checked the filter again. This time I noticed something. It looked like the rubber seal on the filter had blown out. So I pulled the filter and to my surprise the seal on the filter was fine. What I was seeing was the seal from the old filter stuck to the seal on the new filter. Apparently when I took the old filter off the seal stuck on the block and I did not notice it. I tightened the new filter on top of it and once enough oil pressure built up – BOOM!!!!!

The needle on the oil pressure gauge always read straight up in the center. Now is fluctuates falling low and if I come up to a stoplight sometimes it REALLY drops low, not all the way out but low.

So a few questions:

What kind of engine damage has likely occurred?

What would it take to fix?

And until I have time/money to do all that it there anything I can put into/add to my oil to help??

Lucas, some kind of high milage oil, one guy said Slick 50 High Mileage ?????
(I remember when Slick 50 was an informercial)

Any help would be wonderful!!!

Brad

 

Assuming you have taken of the old gasket by now, and you have put enough oil in it to be full:

All the oil additives in the world will not help or reverse severe engine damage.

Minimum oil pressure at hot idle is 13 PSI; running hot pressure should have 10 PSI per 1000 RPM.

Question #1` is, is pressure really fluctuating that much? If it is, then bearings are spun or wiped. Oil pump creates flow; bearing clearance affects pressure.

I know it's a little late now, but always visually check the oil filter; and on the block, that the old gasket really did come off.

Upon start up after an oil change, get out and look under the vehicle for leaks while it is idling.

 

 

It sucks to say but I agree with the first response. Greatly fluctuating oil pressure and only mean either oil pump damage and/or internal engine damage.

 

^^^This, without exception. I caught the same mistake on my old 89 XJ and in my case it dumped the entire oil on my driveway as soon as the pressure built up while idling. Looks like you didn't lose all the oil as soon as you left your place origin so I'm not sure what happened in your case. I now double check for the old gasket every time I change my oil on every car I own.
Is the engine making any noises?

 

 

ALWAYS check to see if the o-ring came off with the old filter.

 

I know it's possible on any filter, but what kind of filter were you running?

 

Before you panic to much you should verify your oil pressure with a mechanical pressure gauge. With a little luck your pressure will be ok and you damaged the sending unit. Keep you fingers crossed.

 

This is good advise. The sender could be damaged or the connector could be full of dinosaur squeezins and causing a bad connection.

 

Any knocking? If not, cross your fingers and hope the the sensor just went bad.

 

Put a filter on it, add oil and start it.

 

I'm really wondering if the oil pressure will come up. If it does not the mains are shot and time for a major overhaul I would guess.

I hate to hear about that happening to anyone, we feel your pain. But I bet one thing you will never forget to check that again.

 

A guy at work had this happen twice to him. First on his Dodge pickup after he changed the oil, he got 15 miles down the road then it blew. The next week he drove his Dad's Durango and the same thing happened, it was a couple days after his Dad had changed the oil.

I believe both of the filters he had the problem with were Fram(what he always used up until then).

 

Those guys should stop breeding.