Thread: oil level?
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      01-03-2008, 11:14 AM   #3
rrosen
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Quote:
Originally Posted by noro View Post
Also on the new engine the oil level indicator is based on pressure not an actual level of the oil. There is direct correlation between oil level and oil pressure but it can vary based on the oil type.
Are you sure about this? It really makes no sense to me since the oil pressure is derived from the pump which will pump oil at the same pressure regardless of whether the car's oil sump is full or low until the intake to the pump starts sucking air because it's no longer in the oil. I see no way that oil pressure can indicate the amount of oil present in the sump.

Now if you're saying it's the pressure (weight) of the oil in the sump (since the pressure of the oil on a sensor at the bottom is directly proportional to the height of the oil in the sump) then OK I buy that. But that's not what I would think of when someone says "oil pressure" in a car.

Can you clarify?
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