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Low Oil Level Light Still Comes On After Low Oil Level Sensor Replacement

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LoveMyGPGT

New member
I recently replaced the low oil level sensor in the oil pan of my 2002 Grand Prix, 3.8L K engine. The light still comes on when I first start the car when the engine is cold. If I turn the engine off and then restart, it usually will not come back on. I'm wondering if:

1) Does the oil sending switch also affect the low oil level light?

2) Could the new low oil level sensor be bad?

3) Could the wiring have something to do with it and cause this to happen on a cold engine?

4) Could a faulty ignition switch some how have something to do with this light coming on? (According to the manual that come with the car, the only time that the low oil level sensor checks for low oil is for a short moment while you are turning the ignition switch to start the car.)
 


I'm taking a wild stab at this so I could very well be wrong but look up the light in your owners manual. You have to do something like pump the gas three times in 5 seconds with the car on but then engine not running to reset the light. Like I said i'm not sure if it's that simple but give it a shot.
 
Thanks, but that procedure is for resetting the Oil Life to 100% in the Driver Information Center (DIC). My problem is with the Low Oil Level warning light.

The Low Oil Level Warning light is a common problem that occurs in 97-02 Grand Prix's yet no one seems to have any answer other than changing the sensor. I guess I could have a bad replacement sensor, but I would like to know if there is a way to test without swapping parts until I get it to function correctly. I would also like to know if there are any other issues or conditions related to the system that could cause the light to come on when the sensor itself is not the problem and the oil level is not low.
 
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LoveMyGPGT said:
I recently replaced the low oil level sensor in the oil pan of my 2002 Grand Prix, 3.8L K engine. The light still comes on when I first start the car when the engine is cold. If I turn the engine off and then restart, it usually will not come back on. I'm wondering if:

1) Could the new low oil level sensor be bad?

2) Could the wiring have something to do with it and cause this to happen on a cold engine?

3) Could a faulty ignition switch some how have something to do with this light coming on? (According to the manual that come with the car, the only time that the low oil level sensor checks for low oil is for a short moment while you are turning the ignition switch to start the car.)
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Still don't have this one solved. I'm leaning toward number three, a bad ignition switch, but I would really like to find out if anyone else has had the same or similar problem and solved it without just removing the light from the dash.
 
my light stays on for the first thirty seconds after starting the car everytime. Its not a big deal though. The light is just for lazy people who dont check their oil the old school way (dipstick) atleast every two weeks . I would just take off the bulb if its possible.
 
chev1988rolet said:
my light stays on for the first thirty seconds after starting the car everytime. Its not a big deal though. The light is just for lazy people who dont check their oil the old school way (dipstick) atleast every two weeks . I would just take off the bulb if its possible.
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Thanks, but I don't like to settle for a half way solution. If it's broken, no matter the level of importance, I like to fix things right and have everything working on my cars just like they were meant to work when they were new. Anybody else, please?
 


ok sorry about that. I'm the exact same way but sometimes there is some difficult diagnosing in finding that kind of problem. maybe you have a partially torn or pinched wire. my bad if i'm wrong but i think its a resistance sensor so try looking up what the reference voltage should be at the harness. If its good, then try wiggling the harness it comes out of while watching the voltage and see if it fluctuates. other than that I wouldn't know what else besides an oily connection at sensor harness or corroded/oxidized connecting pin at pcm.
 
The way to reset the system on my 01 GP GTP is to turn the key forwards three times in a row, but not far enough forward to turn the engine over. I got this info from the head service tech at our local GM garage, and it has worked for me in the past. If after doing this the light is still on, then there is an issue, as the computer won't reset if the problem is ongong...
 
Did you ever find out the problem to this? I just had my oil pan and oil level sensor replaced and now my oil level light is on.. It goes on and off... The mechanic told me to bring the car back and they will replace the sensor..
 
OP, sounds like you might have a wiring fault somewhere.

Andremike, My guess is that the sensor is physically broken.
 
andremike said:
Did you ever find out the problem to this? I just had my oil pan and oil level sensor replaced and now my oil level light is on.. It goes on and off... The mechanic told me to bring the car back and they will replace the sensor..
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I replaced the sensor to no avail. I gave up because there is nothing else wrong anywhere else that is causing any issues so it's no big deal, just annoying. It's also somehow tied into the ignition system, but I'm not up for spending more $$$ to change parts until I come across someone who has the right answer and the fix. Unitl then, I just ignore the light.
 


That's unfortunate.... they replaced the sensor for the second time, and the pigtail harness and the light was off for a week. The light is now back on... anyone else with ideas? Ill have to bring it back to the shop... the thing there was nothing wrong with the other sensor, I just had it replace because they changed the oil pan....

Maybe ill call the dealer.. it has to be faulty sensors..
 
Is this a common problem?
Maybe its a certain kind of sensors
I was thinking about ordering one from gmpartsdirect to make sure they are giving me a Oem sensor
 
I had a similar issue. the red oil light would flicker and then solidly stay on at idle, a tap on the gas would make it go away, but it would return when at idle. replaced the switch twice and checked many other things, but the most recent fix is switching from 10w30 to 20w50. the car has loved the change so far.
 
^ If you had to switch to 20w 50 to keep the oil light from coming on, your engine is extremely worn out. Might be replacing some internals in the near future...
 


It was running fine before, just the light would be on. Mechanic and I couldn't find anything wrong, but also confirmed the sensor was working. He said the oil pressure may be dropping faster than the sensor approves when going to idle, and with the summer heat the thicker oil may not be a bad idea. I do plan to switch back to 10w30 when the temperature cools off in the fall.
 
What does the low oil level light have to do with engine performance. There is another oil light for the engine if there were pressure problems.
 
maybe I'm talking about the wrong light... the one i'm talking about is a red symbol on the left side.

The OP was asking about the oil sender which was a part of triggering my light.
 
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