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Idle sputtering and oil lamp

1K views 5 replies 2 participants last post by  yaofeng 
#1 ·
Hi everyone, and thanks for reading this post by a newbie. I'll keep it as concise as I can, but I'm aware it may wander into the TL;DR category.

Some notes before I begin:
1. I DID read the "idle problems" posts stickied here, but they were either not describing my problem, or I simply didn't understand them (more on this later).
2. I'm not mechanically-oriented; in fact, I have a knack for making things worse. Further, I'm new to the scene and I don't understand many of the abbreviations used. Last but not least, my native tongue is Turkish and I will have to relate any recommendations here to my mechanic in a mechanically-intelligible Turkish, which makes things a bit harder.
3. Finally, I'm not that knowledgeable about the names of parts or Brit vs. US terminology, so I'll try being clear about them.

Here's the problem: I own a 1997 9000 CSE 2.0 LPT with approx. 165K miles on it. Starting last month, I noticed that the oil lamp comes on when the engine is at normal temp., and only at idle. We cleaned the oil pan (sump, whatever);it did have sludge and little parts belonging to the timing chain rails (they made noise before, when the engine was cold, but had grown silent since a while; I guess this is why). We replaced the oil press. sensor. Nothing has changed. The lamp begins to illuminate (blink) when the engine is growing warmer at idle, especially when the fan comes on, and after it has reached full operating temp. it stays permanently lit. Increasing the RPM to only slightly above idle (approx. 925-950 RPM) clears the issue. Do note that the oil pump was taken out and cleaned, but it has streaks and scratches on it. There is significant oil leakage from god knows where in the engine, although lack of oil is not an issue. The head gasket and cam cover gasket were replaced some time ago.

The second issue is with idle. This too happens when the engine is hot, but more so when the engine is switched off, and then back on after a short while (actual example: I drive 200 miles at 75 MPH, stop at a gas station. No problem when idling. I stop the engine to refuel, and when I restart it 5 mins later, the issue begins). The idle control valve has been swapped out with a new one, and the DI cassette was changed with a used (but presumably working) one. The problem cleared momentarily, but reappeared after a short while. We put the old ICV in with the new DIC, problem persisted. All old parts went back on, the problem disappeared, but resurfaced later. It sounds like one of the cylinders is misfiring or something, and is strong enough to make the car stutter up until 2000 RPM in first gear (auto); it clears after that. Do note that the mechanic adjusted something with a wrench and a scredriver to make the engine idle a little fast, hoping that this would clear the oil lamp issue (it didn't).

I'm simply looking for a solution that doesn't involve the replacement of the timing chain assy., the balance chain assy., the oil pump and the DIC. Only the parts cost when shopped online is running to a total of 700$, and I simply can't afford that.

So any help would be appreciated greatly. Just remember to keep it simple. :cheesy:
 
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#2 ·
Barring a defective oil pressure sensor, your engine is toast. And from your description of the sludge and parts from the plastic parts I don't think your oil pressure sensor is at fault. You can spen $25 to get a oil pressure gage from Harbor Fright to confirm the engine oil pressure.

My money is on a bad engine. The damage is already done. Call the coroner after confirming the oil pressure.
 
#3 ·
I wa thinking more along the lines of "replace the oil pump and see what happens". I don't have much hope for the engine either at this moment, but I've been driving the car for approx. 12K miles, and just did a 1200-mile trip with the engine in this condition.

What gives me hope is how the oil lamp comes on only when at idle and the engine hot (the oil being the thinnest, thus most difficult to transport), and disappears immediately once the RPM goes slightly above idle.
 
#4 ·
I'd like to be as optimistic as you. My experience tells me otherwise. My 94cde was in the same condition at one time. I screwed up during the 5 speed conversion installing the oil pump cover snap ring the wrong way. It came off soon after making the oil pump unable to pump oil. I was out of town. Came home to find the engine clicking very loud at idle but left me scratching my head until I eventually found the reason.

The damage has already been done even though I fixed the snap ring. The oil lamp would come on at idle but went off at higher rpm. It didn't lose a beat. It could literally run around slower cars in circles. But I knew it was on borrowed time. You can keep driving. But I can almost guarantee it will die on the highway one day soon. Drain oil and watch for the last scoop coming out of the sump. I bet you'll see traces of metal shaving in it.

The following pictures show the damage on the 94cde engine before I replaced it.







 
#5 ·
Hmm... That's sad, but also enlightening. So I'd like your honest opinion: Should I spend anywhere between 1200 and 1500 bucks to go for a complete revamp of the timing chain, balance shaft chain, oil pump and gaskets? Or any other thing to prolong the life of the engine as it is? I'm asking this because if the engine does die on me, and soon as you suspect, I won't have the funds to replace the car.

Also, would the engine show any more severe symptoms before it packs up and goes south? The last thing I'd want is the car dying on me in the middle of nowhere at 3 in the morning.

Finally, did your engine just die, or did you change it before it did? And if it died, how much mileage did you get before it did?
 
#6 ·
I would pick up a good engine to replace the one in your car. The problem areas in your engine is mostly in the bottome end, the crank shaft, bearings, etc. The timing chain and guide may or may not have been damaged if you open it up you will know. I don't know how much longer the engine will run like this because I tore it down and replaced the engine. or rather replaced the engine first and tore the bad engine down.

I drove with the engine oil lamp on for about two months.
 
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