Oil Pump for 2000 Ford Explorer 5.0L V8

[brop3]

Has anyone with this same vehicle had to replace the oil pump? I am pretty sure that it is the oil pump that needs to be replaced because my Explorer loses oil pressure and the gauge starts bouncing around then completely drops down. I have had this happen a few times and have been able to drain the oil and run an engine flush through then replace the oil and filter. That worked a few times, but now its happening too often and I dont want to blow the engine. I have been told that in order change the oil pump, the engine has to be taken out or the top half does or something like that. I obviously am not going to try to do this myself but I called one place and was told it would be almost $800 to fix because it is a V8 and not the V6! Has anyone else had this same problem or does anyone have any suggestions?

 

[2001gt]

how does it run? could it be just the gauge? have a mechanic hook up a mechanical gauge. When you drained the oil were there any metal shaving on plug? What type of oil filter do you use?

 

[my98nnj]

If you lost oil pressure you'd hear it immediately. Engine would knock like mad.
Sounds more like a gauge issue rather then an oil pump issue.

 

[Delta Dog]

Has anyone with this same vehicle had to replace the oil pump? I am pretty sure that it is the oil pump that needs to be replaced because my Explorer loses oil pressure and the gauge starts bouncing around then completely drops down. QUOTE]

Mine does this all the time.......it will get worse and do it everytime you come to an idle. I just bought the $7 oil sending unit......just need t install it.

I suggest you do the same before any $800 repairs you most likely don't need.

The part is best accessed from the drivers side wheel well. Just jack up the truck till the wheels are almost off the ground, remove the black plastic wheel well shields and the sensor is in the front lower of the block.......it has a white plastic wire connector with one wire coming out of it.

Here is a link with pix...... http://www.explorerforum.com/forums/showthread.php?t=210435

 

[brop3]

i sure hope its something small like a gauge or oil sending unit. someone told me that it sounds like the strainer on the oil pump is getting clogged because if the gauge drops down long enough, it does start making a small ticking nose. ive had the gauge drop completely down and driven it home (which was a few miles) and it started making that ticking noise, but the engine didnt stop or anything and i was able to make it home. then when the oil was changed after that, it didnt make the noise anymore and the gauge was working fine for a while. it made it almost 2000 miles then the gauge started boucing around again the other day. i am going to try the other small things first before i go have an $800 repair done.

2001gt, there have never been any metal shavings on the plug. i use a motorcraft filter most of the time.

 

[Delta Dog]

Well.........I just changed my oil sending unit out and I STILL have the "crazy" needle!!! It is better when I first start it up but once it warms up it goes crazy any time I come to a stop and the engine idles. Once I give it gas and get going it is fine.

 

[99SportX]

Get a mechanical gauge hooked up straight to the pressure port and do a proper diagnosis before paying for any major repairs. It may still be an intermittent wiring issue. It is no easy task to pull the motor so do what you can to save the trouble.

 

[Full Force]

If you hear ticking then it is probably more then the gauge, no tick then probably is the gauge, only real test is a mechanical gauge, how many miles?? I have ran all my Explorers into 170-200K with no issues, I am very **** about maintainence so that helps, how are on oil changes??

 

[brop3]

I ended up finding someone to do the job for a whole lot cheaper (since he wasnt working in a shop it didnt cost nearly as much). Turns out, it was the oil pump. The guy who fixed it said a lot of Fords around that year model had problems with oil pumps getting all gunked up. It seems to be working great now, the needle pops right up everytime now.

 

[tjones9171]

I have a 1999 Ford Explorer, Eddie Beuer, with the 5.0L engine. I changed the oil and put a new filter on. The oil was a 100 % syntheic. I drove it approx. 2 and 1/2 miles, on the way the oil pressure was higher than normal then the engine blew the oil out and the gage went to zero. The valve lifters stared to make noise. I remoed the oil filter and found the the rubber gasket had been blown. I put a new filter and oil back in but the lifters still make the noise like no oil was getting to them. I asked a mechanic about the problem and he told me that the check valve in the oil pump was stuck open and to try draining the oil and putting in diesiel fule in the oil pan for a couple of days and see if that would help free the valve. If that did not work then the engine would have to be pulled and the oil pump replaced. Has anyone had this to happen to them and do you think the diesiel fuel will help. Also would it be helpful to turn the engine over after a couple of days to see if the valve got unstuck.

 

[ezrider440]

regarding all the posts above, you folks are making mountains from ant hills and in reverse. if your oil pressure drops significantly you will see a sharp jump in temperature, you will hear some sort of mechanical knocking / noise , and you will do major damage to you motor, the main cause of a drop in oil pressure is an opening in the system such as a seal busting or a oil retaining ring on a piston releasing. so as mentioned above don't trust the dash gauge especially on a 5.0 they are built-proof motors, the first step is to shut down your motor IMMEDIATELY to prevent damage, then to check compression on all cylinders to ensure they are sealing, next to check the oil pressure with a mechanical gauge.

however this all can be prevented with doing something very simple : changing your oil , and doing it frequently and using a high grade oil that your motor is acustomed to. personlly before i rebuilt my 5.0 at 300k i used castrol, after the rebuild I only use motorcraft synthetic and i am reaching 170k soon enough.

also it's a good idea to run a little deisel through the motor, you pour it in the valve cover, spin the motor by hand using the crank bolt and let it drip out the oil pan this will remove the sludge and not harm the seals, this is a common practice on industrial motors

so my advice change your oil people

 

[StangsandMavs]

FWIW... the arms on the pickup tube can crack and cause erratic oil pressure... especially going around corners where the crack is exposed.

Of course, if you've got the thing apart, replace the pump, pickup tube/screen, and gasket... this stuff is relatively cheap, if you put all the work into pulling the pan to get to it, you may as well replace it all in one shot.

 

[wpurple]

It is my understanding that you have to remove the motor to get the oil pan off and remove the pump??

Is it possible to drop the pan with enough room to reach in and remove/replace the pump..I have done that with my old Mustang, it wasn't fun, but it beat removing the motor.....although that was when I was younger and more agile

 

[StangsandMavs]

I have a 4.0 on my Explorer, I doubt the 5.0 with 4WD would be any different... I had some oil leaks to deal with, and a couple of odds and ends that I wanted to get fixed up.

Since mine had 175k miles on it at the time, I just figured that I'd pull the engine. While I had the engine out, I took off the intake and the oil pan.... Internally, everything looked great (I didn't touch the head gasket or the bearings).

So I cleaned up what I could, swapped the oil pump/screen, new timing chain (and components), valve covers, intake, exhaust, and oil pan gasket... With the exception of a couple bolts, t wasn't that bad of a job. Like everything else, though, it helps to have the right tools.

I know what you mean on those old Mustangs... you could loosen the mount, jack up the engine a bit and wiggle the oil pan out from between the pump and suspension. I don't think you can do the same thing on these.