Oil Pressure Light

[ftcollinsmuscle]

My wife is on the road in our 2010 Altima. It has only 3000 mi. She is about 50 miles from home. Should she pull over immediately as the driver's manual says or is it safe to drive on home? She checked oil level and it's ok.

[telcoman]

My wife is on the road in our 2010 Altima. It has only 3000 mi. She is about 50 miles from home. Should she pull over immediately as the driver's manual says or is it safe to drive on home? She checked oil level and it's ok.

Welcome to NICO

Hope your wife made it home ok.

I've gotton a few panic calls from the wife over the years.
We belong to the AAA and it is well worth it. I have the AAA plus which offers free roadside assistance and up to 100 miles free towing. Here in the east there are toll roads and should you have a breakdown or an accident you first have to use an approved towing service for the toll road and then another tow service from the nearest exit where the first one drops you off.
With AAA it is no problem. You do not have to lay out any money.
Back to your original question.
If it were me I would have it taken back to the dealer to check the oil pressure switch and the oil pump.
You need to establish a paper trail just in case of a future catastrophic engine failure.

Telcoman

[tomd333]

My wife is on the road in our 2010 Altima. It has only 3000 mi. She is about 50 miles from home. Should she pull over immediately as the driver's manual says or is it safe to drive on home? She checked oil level and it's ok.

I had the oil pressure light come on in my Altima a couple weeks ago. I have a 2008 3.5SE sedan, completely stock, with about 45,000 miles on it It would only come on at idle, and if I even slightly touched touched the accelerator the light would go off. It would never come on while driving, just after sitting at a stoplight for awhile. I checked the oil level and it was perfect.

I have been driving it with no problems. The funny thing is that in the past week, the oil pressure light is not coming on anymore, even at idle. It just did it for about a week. It's pretty rare these days for an engine to have oil pump problems unless it has many, many miles on it, and even then it's rare.

In general, I would say if the oil light comes on at idle, it's probably ok to drive home, but if it comes on when driving that could be a problem. THe first thing is to check the oil level as you did. If the oil level is fine and the the light only comes on at idle, it could be a problem with the oil pressure sending unit on the engine, which can be replaced pretty inexpensively.

[kscott]

When the oil light comes on, does it make any sound to notify you?
It beeps when you're low on gas, so I sure hope it also does this if the oil pressure drops.
(I already checked the owners' manual, and it doesn't say anything about this.)

[QR25DE]

OMG

If your oil light comes on at all while you are driving PULL OVER and DO NOT continue driving it.

The following can be the cause:

1. Low oil. Check it. If it's low, add oil.
2. Your oil pump is not working.
3. Low oil pressure (caused by the above).

The pressure sender reads the pressure. If the pressure drops the light will come on. This is NOT an indicator of just "low oil" or "something minor" is wrong. It's an indication of low oil pressure.

If the light is on at idle, there is not enough pressure at idle. If it goes out when you drive, that means the oil pump is going bad (more engine speed, the better the pump will pump).

Replace the oil pump if necessary. Not doing so and depriving the engine of oil will RUIN it.

Hopefully this clears everything up...

[QR25DE]

When the oil light comes on, does it make any sound to notify you?
It beeps when you're low on gas, so I sure hope it also does this if the oil pressure drops.
(I already checked the owners' manual, and it doesn't say anything about this.)

Nope. The light will come on when it senses low oil pressure. It will not beep, most cars wont. If you are periodically checking your speed.gauges, this wont be an issue. You'll notice it right away.

[ARKQX33V6]

Take it to the dealer! At idle there should be enough pressure. The sensor may be going, it's under warranty and they will change it out or worse yet is replace that gear pump, in any case take it in...it should not come on...at 300,000 miles perhaps but at 3000 the system is warning you and that's what the light does. It warns after the fact. The fact is too low oil pressure at idle, maybe your car's idle is too low...whatever is the cause, too low idle, bad pressure switch, wrong grade of oil, low oil, bad conduit, bad T fitting whatever...have it repaired now.

[tomd333]

In my situation, I am 95% sure that the oil light was being triggered by too low of an idle. Once my car is totally warmed up, it idles pretty low.. and it stutters for a second after sitting at a stoplight for about 30 seconds or more. For a moment, the idle will drop to like 300-400rpm and you feel a shudder through the whole car, but then it regains the normal idle (goes back to about 600rpm) and idles smooth. I wonder if Nissan techs have any way to slightly boost the idle with their Consult diagnostic machine? Or if this is a fixed value in the car's ECU that cannot be edited. I could use just like a 100rpm boost when the car engine is hot and idling.

[QR25DE]

In my situation, I am 95% sure that the oil light was being triggered by too low of an idle. Once my car is totally warmed up, it idles pretty low.. and it stutters for a second after sitting at a stoplight for about 30 seconds or more. For a moment, the idle will drop to like 300-400rpm and you feel a shudder through the whole car, but then it regains the normal idle (goes back to about 600rpm) and idles smooth. I wonder if Nissan techs have any way to slightly boost the idle with their Consult diagnostic machine? Or if this is a fixed value in the car's ECU that cannot be edited. I could use just like a 100rpm boost when the car engine is hot and idling.

Something is wrong, obviously. That can be a number of things, not something you would edit on the ecu...

1. Coils/Plugs.
2. Bad battery/alternator.
3. Bad O2.

Among other things.

[Da Gambit X]

are you sure thats your oil pressure light and not possibly your oil change reminder light? a car with that few of miles shouldn't even have problems with oil pressure unless you drilled a huge rock with the bottom of your car. i noticed you said it only has 3000 miles on it. thats the usual interval to change your motor oil.

[Da Gambit X]

also...did that light have a wrench on it? if so, then i am right.