Thread: Low Oil Level light on dash

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  1. #1 Low Oil Level light on dash 
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    I've been getting a "Low Oil Level" light on the dash of my 2001 GP GT.

    It isn't low on oil.
    I has my mechanic replace the oil level sensor on the side of the oil pan and do an oil change.

    I'm still getting a "Low Oil Level" light. Some times it goes out, but usually it's on when I'm driving. Car drives JUST FINE.

    Any clue?

    Disclaimer: This is the "Low Oil Level" light and not the oil pressure indicator light. Two different things. These are words in yellow on the right edge of the cluster that say "Low Oil Level".
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  3. #2 Re: Low Oil Level light on dash 
    GrandPrix Junkie
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    Check the wiring harness to it. Might be damaged/dirty. Also check the plug and make sure it's clean.
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  4. #3 Re: Low Oil Level light on dash 
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    The problem turned out to be a physically broken MAP sensor. The MAP sensor sits on top of the PCV valve housing and has a wiring harness with 3 wires that plugs into it. It has an orange rubber plug that plugs into a hole on top of the PCV housing. The plastic of the MAP sensor cracked around the orange plug and broke completely in two pieces. I suspect the electronics of the MAP sensor were still functioning and just sensing atmospheric pressure rather than manifold pressure, and thus I didn't get any sort of check engine light or code indicating a fault with the MAP sensor, and that somehow this was interpreted as low oil level.

    Having changed the oil and replaced the Oil Level Sensor, I knew it wasn't either low oil or a bad sensor.

    Problem solved.
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  5. #4 Re: Low Oil Level light on dash 
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    Thank you for posting the resolution. Will store this one in my archive of info for sure.
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  6. #5 Re: Low Oil Level light on dash 
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    UPDATE: It turns out that replacing the MAP sensor did NOT fix the problem. The problem, in the end, turned out to be (and I know this is going to come as a shocking surprise): a bad Oil Level Sensor.
    I had taken the car to my local mechanic *because I didn't have time to do this myself* and instructed him to replace the Oil Level Sensor, as well as change the oil and filter. Well, my mechanic did NOT do what I instructed, and instead replaced the Oil Pressure Sending Unit. (Which was not bad and in fact had just been replaced a few months earlier.)

    I'm still glad I found the broken MAP sensor and replaced that, and also found that I was missing the lower O-ring on the PCV valve and fixed that too. But in the end, the problem was simply a failed Oil Level Sensor. I paid dearly for it too, because again I didn't have time to mess with this, so I took it to my dealer, who told me "I've never seen a bogus Low Oil Level light that WASN'T fixed by replacing the Oil Level Sensor." So I told him to trust his gut and swap that if he thought that was the problem. He called me the next day to tell me "Your Oil Level Sensor appeared to be original to the car. Your Oil Pressure Sending Unit, however, appeard to be brand new." —And so my first mechanic had replaced the Oil Pressure Sending Unit instead of the Oil Level Sensor, and that's why I continued to get a low oil level light.

    Live and learn.
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