Increased or high oil pressure in your car is an alarming situation and should be dealt with quickly.
Most drivers conclude that it is time for engine replacement when facing a high oil pressure situation; however, that is not always true.
In this post, we will explain what causes high oil pressure and the symptoms to look out for. Let’s begin with the causes to look for.
7 Causes of High Oil Pressure
The most common causes of high oil pressure are a cold engine, the wrong type of motor oil, or a faulty oil pressure sensor. It could also be caused by a faulty relief valve in the oil pump or a damaged oil filter.
While these are some of the symptoms, it’s not all of them! Here is a more detailed list of the most common causes of high oil pressure.
1. Cold Engine
Engine temperature is the most common reason for high oil pressure. Many people do not realize that your engine normally have very high pressure when your engine oil is cold. Mostly twice as high as when the engine is warm or even higher.
Check your pressure when your engine oil is hot instead. If the pressure is too high when the engine oil is hot, it is time to start worrying.
2. Wrong Oil Grade
Experimenting with different oil grades can sometimes be a bad decision, especially if you don’t consult an expert. Different oil grades have a distinct viscosity level and are meant for certain engine types.
If you have the wrong oil grade for your car engine, you may experience a very high oil pressure because of it. The recommended oil grade for your engine can be found in the owner’s manual.
3. Blocked Passage
If the oil changes haven’t been done properly in your car through the years, it may have caused oil sludge in your engine, which may have clogged any oil passage.
Blockage in the oil passages can cause high pressure since the engine is deprived of proper lubrication.
Unfortunately, high oil pressure will also cause low oil pressure in another part of your engine. Therefore it is essential not to let your engine run before you fix the clogged oil passage.
4. Problem With the Oil Pressure Sensor
Are you sure there is actually high oil pressure in your engine or is it a chance that the sensor or gauge shows you the wrong oil pressure?
The high oil pressure problem can also be due to a faulty oil pressure sensor or oil pressure gauge. It can give you a false signal that the gauge shows an overly high pressure, but in reality, the pressure is good.
Diagnose it with a manual oil pressure tester to get the right pressure before you start taking your engine apart.
5. Relief Valve Malfunction
The relief valve’s function is to relieve excessive oil if the oil pressure gets too high. If the relief valve is clogged or faulty, it may not let excessive oil pass it, and instead, it will create high oil pressure in the system.
The relief valve is often located inside the oil pump and very difficult to reach. Most of the time, you have to replace the whole oil pump.
6. Contaminated or damaged Oil Filter
If the oil pressure sensor is installed between the oil pump and the oil filter, there is a chance that the oil filter can cause high oil pressure before the filter, where the pressure sensor is located.
Usually, original oil pressure sensors are located behind the oil filter, so in this case, it would cause a low oil pressure rather than too high oil pressure.
7. Poor Quality Oil
If you bought a very cheap quality oil, there might be a problem with their oil grades, and other specifications do not compare very well to reality.
Using a low-quality oil can be the reason behind high or low pressure. A poor quality oil that is thin or lightweight can easily pass through the engine and will cause low pressure, whereas thick oil would require a high pressure to flow.
If you change the oil to a different brand and notice an increase in pressure, it may mean that it is not good for your engine.
What’s the Ideal Oil Pressure?
The ideal oil pressure ranges between 25 to 65 psi when the engine oil is warm and at 1000-3000 rpm, whereas if the oil pressure reading shows 80 psi or above when the engine is warm, then there is a serious problem.
This is, of course, depending on what engine you have and how worn the engine is. If you want to learn the exact oil pressure you should have in your car engine, I recommend checking your car repair manual!
High Oil Pressure Symptoms
The most common symptoms of high oil pressure are an oil pressure light on the dashboard, oil leaks, and high crankcase pressure. Overall there are really no significant symptoms to look for when it comes to high oil pressure.
You often only see it if you have a manual gauge installed to your engine; some cars have this standard.
Another symptom of high oil pressure is oil leaks around the engine. High oil pressure can also cause high crankcase pressure, which could cause your engine to start to leak oil through the gaskets.
The oil pressure light will flash on your dashboard on some cars if the pressure gets too high!
steve
i have a john deere diesel motor about 3000hrs when running at 1100 rpm oil pressure is at 65 psi and when running over 1800 rpm oil pressure is at 10 to 15 psi ???
Magnus Sellén
Hmm I think you should connect a manual pressure gauge to ensure that the gauge is functional.
Gib Firneisz
I have a 2003 Honda Element with 165000 miles. Since I have replaced the Vtec assembly 5 times in the last year and a half I decided to check the oil pressure. It is high, now trying to figure out what is the cause. All usual trouble shooting has been done. Including two gages one mechanical and the other electronic. Using 5-20 pure synthetic oil, Honda oil filters. Engine internals spotlessly clean. Changed oil pump and got a bit more unwanted pressure 90+ on cold start. Warm engine at 3000 runs about 80psi. Temperature normal, no noise. Valve adjustment a bit tight can that be a cause of excess pressure. Idle warm is about 22 psi. Reving the engine the gage acts just like a tach in response to throttle.
Magnus Sellén
22 psi warm at idle doesn't sound too high? Did you check the specifications on what oil pressure it should have? There is a big difference between when the oil is warm or cold
Greg
I have a 2007 ford f-150 with av6 4.2 engine the oil gauge reads close to3rd line what can cause this??? and should I worry
Garth
Can the rubber gasket on the oil filter get damaged by high oil pressure?
Tim Johnson
My 2005 Silverdo recently went to close to 80 on the oil pressure guage. Looking to see what to do.