HkRxTjBx

Hey guys I'm new here an little lost I just recently got myself a 5.7 l v8 camero 1996 now having a little problem my oil. The gauge is at zero on idle an I'm thinking my oil pump is bad when you accelerate it increases how hard is it to change the pump myself ?
Also the previous owner put water in the engine coolent an it leaks bad is there anyway I can diagnose what's wrong or where the leak is coming from ? ? I'm new with cars iv done a little work nothing major mostly with motorcycles .

Is it an expensive fix?

If I'm in the wrong forum please move it to the correct one but any help would be much appreciated

Thomas

PHXLT1

Ok, first lets address you oil issue. First off, at idle the oil pressure will be low and as you accelerate it will increase. You can do a couple things. One, try changing the oil and see if your pressure goes up a little. Clean oil and filter may help. It normal for your pressure to rise and fall as your in idle and during acceleration. If your engine is not knocking as a diesel then your probably ok. Check your oil sending unit. Second, get an pressure tester for your coolant leak. You can rent them from autozone. Pretty simple to use. You remove the cap, put the tester and pump. You should see where the water is coming out of. 2 things to know. Make your car is cool and no, changing the oil pump is not easy. Hope this helps.

bw_hunter

If you truly have zero oil pressure, you're in a heap of trouble. If there is a bearing knock, you can believe the gauge...if it isn't knocking you may have a gauge issue. Test the oil pressure with a mechanical gauge..you can tap into the pressure side of the oiling system at a plug on the side of the engine just above the oil filter. If you have approximately 10 psi per thousand rpm you're OK. If you have no oil pressure, you really need to look at the bearings...they'll be close to toast.

You can change the pump in the car. It's a pain as you have to jack the engine way off it's mounts and turn the crank to allow the pan to clear the throws. Once the pan is out you can replace the oil pump...remember the drive and coupler....easily. The rod bearings can be changed rather easily but the mains are tough. It can be done...it just takes some ingenuity.

It's probably just as easy to pull the engine to do this work...

The cooling system could leaking anywhere, including the head gaskets...we'll need more info to help there.

Let us know what you find...