Forgot to update. Last weekend I changed the leaking fuel pump, and the idle is back to normal. I drove it for about twenty miles, and the oil pressure gauge generally stayed at 50 at all ranges. At two lights, it may have dropped to 30. Still any need for concern? Seems pretty good though the manual says 50 at all ranges.

You're saying that the engine is original?  So, it's well over 50 years old & never rebuilt?  Unless low mileage can be confirmed that could be the source of the problems. Maybe the oil that was in it was heavy weight & or the oil pump could be worn, causing low psi at idle? Too many unknowns here... 


Paul

I've owned a lot of 55/56 Fords, 20 lbs of oil presure at idle is fine, I don't see a problem here.

Thanks, seems like a good idea to at least run it by him.

Using a 1" open end wrench on the gland nut on the oil pump will insure that the nut itself is snug which in turn should be eliminating a potential air leak into the oiling system.  Beyond that, I’ll suggest switching to a 10W-40 oil and see if that is an improvement on the low rpm hot oil pressure readings.  I use Valvoline oil without any issues.  Getting back in touch with the previous owner and finding out exactly what oil was in the engine when you got it may give you a better idea on the internal condition of the engine.

Lorena, Texas (South of Waco)

My mistake. It's a 292, but it has a 2 BBL Holley 2100 on it.

In your first post, you said it was a 292.  In your last post you said it has a 289 intake.  A 289 intake will not fit a 292.  Which engine do you really have?

John - "The Hoosier Hurricane"

I made it a point to not try and cross everything off my list all in one day so I wouldn't end up with problems I couldn't trace back. I only get to work on it on the weekends, so the first week I got a new carburetor base spacer cause the other was pretty beat. it already idled pretty well, but it made a big difference. The next week I did the fuel filter, didn't really change anything. Then I hanged the oil, and it began to have that strange idling. Like I said, seems a little low and the oil pressure was low with it. I didn't do anything else that day to it. Normal when driving. After that I did an ignition tune up, and that didn't effect anything. All plugs looked good and uniform when I took them out. I'm not sure what the idle and timing are at right now, but I'll have a chance to check tomorrow. I tried turning the idle up yesterday manually. It came up a little, but didn't really make much of a difference. I guess I should also check for any possible vaccuum leaks as well. All I really know about the history of the engine is that it's all original, never rebuilt with no known issues with it when I got it. The car hasn't had many owners. It has a 289 intake with a Holley 2100 carburetor. The distributor is original, but retrofitted with an electronic ignition module. thanks.

What are the odds that the previous owner put in 20W50 or something similar? If it was only driven around a parking lot then there would be no way to let the oil get really hot so that you could see any kind of a real oil pressure drop. If you put in 30 weight oil after that, and the oil pressure does not go back up where it should be, then they may be a sign of significant bearing wear. If that is the case, you may get better oil pressure from a heavier weight oil but it would be a matter of time. I have never had any oil pressure problems from Valvoline, but there is a first time for everything I guess.Why don't you put a bottle of LUCAS oil additive in there? That way you won't waste the oil change you just did.What is the history on the engine?EDIT: "The idle comes down too low, and the oil pressure drops to around 20." What does this mean? Do you mean that after the oil change the idle is different? Oil changes won't affect timing and/or idle characteristics. Did you do anything else AT THE SAME TIME YOU CHANGED THE OIL (I see that you mentioned a tune up and all)? If your idle is coming "down too low" then you probably don't have an oil pressure problem - it would be just that your low rpm's aren't turning that oil pump fast enough for good oil pressure. What is your timing at?

Daniel Jessup

Lancaster, California

aka "The Hot Rod Reverend"
check out the 1955 Ford Fairlane build at www.hotrodreverend.com

Thanks for your input. So as far as you know the 10w30 is probably not the problem, just try another brand? I shortly switched it to Pennzoil after the initial Valvoline, just because it sat for awhile and figured I should change again. It did the same thing, but I never normally use Pennzoil, just wanted something cheap to run for a few miles. I've had good luck with Castrol on my modern engines, so maybe I'll try that in there. I just don't want to jump the gun and start tearing things out when it could be as simple as the oil I'm using. It was literally a huge change as soon as I turned the key that first oil change and the idle was off and the gauge went way down.