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Oil Pump not working??

8K views 19 replies 7 participants last post by  cmar 
#1 ·
I have a 2009 Sportage v6 with 217k miles. Yes, thats not a typo. Generally its totally drama free, and is just a reliable beast. But twice in the past month, i went out and started it, and had the oil light on, and the audible tick of the top end not getting enough oil flow.

Im pretty mechanically inclined. Done all the maintenance on this truck since new myself. But this one has me totally confused. As the oil pump is mechanical, so just dont see how it would work,then not work, then kick back on again.

The 1st time it happened a few weeks ago, i blew it off as just being cold. But last night as soon as i started it, i heard the ticks, and noticed the low oil light again. So i left it running, went out and popped the hood while my wife watched the gauges for me. And revved it up slightly using the throttle cable. When i reved it up to about 3000rpm, the tick instantly stopped, and i looked up to my wife, and she said the light shut off at the exact same time.


So anyone have any ideas? Oil pumps are generally a mechanical part that uses a basic gear feeding off the crank to pump oil to the top end. If the motor is running, then oil should be flowing, unless something clogged, or the gear itself shattered. But neither of those really fits my issue as it seems to fix it self.
 
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#2 ·
Yes it sounds like a Lubrication System Problem, but it could also be happening due to an improper Bad quality aftermarket oil filter, also a Clogged oil Filter, clogged oil passages and Oil with non-adequate viscosity.

If the car has been under proper maintenance and regular oil / filter changes, and everything else has been under specs (Good quality oil and oil filters) maybe the oil pump is giving up; but if the oil changes history is not clear and / or you are not sure about it, then a Flush using a good quality detergent motor flush additive poured to the old oil, previously to drain completely it, could be helpful to unclog the oil passages.

Kind Regards.
 
#3 ·
Ive done the oil changes myself since it hit 100k and the warranty wasnt an issue anymore. I run name brand stuff, and not the cheapest available most of the time, and stick to 3500-4000 mile oil changes. As i drive it so much, even then, its still generally pretty golden still. The last oil change was probably two weeks ago.

Ive talked to my wife, and she has experienced the light also, but doesnt remember if it had a light tick or not.

Im heading out now to replace the drivers front strut, and rear brakes on it. And ill poke around some, and see if anything seems out of place.
 
#4 ·
You may have a main or crank bearing starting to go...
The oil is "FLOWING" but is probably not under much pressure at idle.
The worn bearing will reduce the oil pressure as the oil is not being held in and is seeping past the bearing...It doesn't take much wear to loose oil pressure and you stated you have over 200k miles on the engine...
You might want to replace the "idiot light" with a true oil pressure gauge and then watch the pressure at idle... On my 06 Spectra SX 2.0L I have about 22~25PSI at idle and it climbs up to 65~70PSI as the engine RPMs climb... I don't trust the "oil lights" as they only warn you when something major is about to happen...I your case the oil pressure is probably close to 5PSI at idle...and climbs above the trigger pressure at 3000RPM and the light goes out...

You might want to try a TRUE KIA/Hyundai oil filter as other filters (like FRAM) have the wrong pressure bypass valve and that could also be causing your idiot light at idle...
A WIX filter will also work as they are the OEM supplier to KIA..
Dave
 
#7 ·
Nope. This is just a recent issue in the past week, week and a half or so. Didnt have any issue with it since draining the little bit out last night, with the test drive yesterday, or this morning. Then my Bro-in-law borrowed it to take to Chicago also, so ill ask him how it went once he gets back. I might just use this as a reason to do an oil change a bit sooner then normal.
 
#9 ·
Did yet another oil change. Along with another engine flush, Used a Kia supplied oil filter just to cover one more thing on the list. Also used a bottle of the STP oil additive. Problem still there. But the engine is noticeably quieter then before oil change. For a 224K mile car, it has pretty much zero engine noise at idle. No rattling, or ticking from anything. I just hope to figure this oil pressure issue out before anything bad happens to the engine because of it.
 
#11 ·
I thought the oil pressure switch did nothing but power the low oil light on the dash? Im not getting oil to the top end when my light's lit up, so its not just a dummy light going off because of a faulty switch.
 
#14 ·
100% sure. When the oil pressure light is on when i start it, There is a noticeable top end tick. To the point ive had passer bys mention it sounds like i need to add some oil. It only ticks on the times when the light is lit, and the tick stops the second i rev it up to like 2000-2800 rpm and the light shuts off.

Thats why ive been so lost on this as like ive said, the oil pump is a mechanical pump, so i really dont see how this could be happening. It may just come down to me just tossing a new oil pump on it as i dont even know what else to look at.
 
#15 ·
If you feel it's not getting enough oil at the top of the motor, then I would replace the pump, at 214,000 miles that pump doesn't owe you anything..

* I would do as suggested above, remove the oil pressure switch, check to see if the pressure opening is restricted, hookup a pressure gauge, and verify oil pressure at idle..

If you are trying to correct the 'ticking' issue w/ additives, if it was my ride, I would be using a 5w-30 synth-blend oil, and if trying to clean - substituting 1 Qt. oil for 1 Qt. Marvel Mystery Oil and a short-interval oil/filter change. In other words, I would go w/ a lighter oil & MMO for cleaning, vs. a heavier oil w/ additives, which will not clean & may just 'mask' the issue.

Above is what -I- would do (and have done) - not telling you what you should do, hope the info helps.
 
#16 ·
Thats actually a heavier grade oil then i run. I run 5w20 as thats whats recommended. The truck has never seen a single oil additive till this most recent oil change, as a member recommenced giving it a try. Typically ive always believed in just running a higher quality oil on correct mileage intervals, and staying away from any sort of additives.

I blow through the 3000 mile oil change interval's in about 3 weeks time. So shortening it up even more would be wasteful. Most of the time im draining clean oil when doing oil changes as it doesnt even get a chance to get very dirty. I typically run Valvoline Maxlife 5w20 through it with a Wix, or higher grade Puralator filter. But went with the OEM KIA filter off the recommendation of this forum on my recent oil change.

Im coming up on having to do the timing belt again soon. So think ill just do the water, and oil pump at the same time while im already in there and have the timing set up already torn down. These have over 200K on them, so it probably isnt a bad idea.

One thing ive hated about this Kia since day one was its lack of gauges. I didnt want to ruin the warranty by adding any, but now thats not an issue, i might just add a 3 gauge dash pod with an actual oil pressure gauge. And while im at it a coolant temp gauge, and a volt gauge.
 
#17 ·
Kinda an update. Havent seen the Low Oil Light now for probably 2-3 weeks. After the 3rd engine flush, it seemed to have pretty much stopped. Ive done two oil changes and flush's since my last post including one last night. I also removed, and cleaned the oil pressure sensor as someone recommended. And also used a screwdriver to make sure where it threads into the block was clean and had no build up. Both were actually really clean to begin with.

So i guess the constant engine flush's did there job. Still going to slap on a new oil pump when i do the timing belt again in about 20K.
 
#19 ·
Its been over a year, but the problem has came back. Good thing is im ready for a new timing belt again, so will just replace the oil pump and everything else while im in there. Hopefully that will be the end of it.
 
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