Installing Oil Light On 2004 Ford With Idiot Gauge

[crazyoildude]

My Mom drives a 2004 Mercury Grand Marquis which we purchased new in 2004.. It is still in showroom condition with low miles and it came from the factory with No Oil Light Just the idiot gauge ford is famous for (Another fine idea from ford) NOT!
I want to install an oil light does anyone know of any "Kit" sold for this purpose... My Mom will not notice the oil gauge in any position i think the oil light is important for anyone who does not look at gauges every minute.. There is no check gauges light or anything.
Any ideas would be great.

 

[raytseng]

why don't you just set an oil change schedule based on time: e.g. 6months or 1year or whatever.

Set a calendar reminder and call your mom to go get the oil changed on those dates regardless of miles. You can even do it like on a birthday or holiday or other event like daylight savings time.

There's no way installing a device to get the same goal is going to make things "simpler" or more cost effective then just using a time-based maintenance schedule.

 

[Stewie]

Originally Posted By: raytseng
why don't you just set an oil change schedule based on time: e.g. 6months or 1year or whatever.

Set a calendar reminder and call your mom to go get the oil changed on those dates regardless of miles. You can even do it like on a birthday or holiday or other event like daylight savings time.

There's no way installing a device to get the same goal is going to make things "simpler" or more cost effective then just using a time-based maintenance schedule.


+1

 

[crazyoildude]

No.. LOL you misunderstood my post I want to install an oil pressure light on her dash just in case she loses oil pressure and does not notice the gauge.. We do all her service at the shop. She gets QSUD and a Motorcraft filter every 5000 miles or one year whichever comes first.

 

[OVERKILL]

Originally Posted By: crazyoildude
No.. LOL you misunderstood my post I want to install an oil pressure light on her dash just in case she loses oil pressure and does not notice the gauge.. We do all her service at the shop. She gets QSUD and a Motorcraft filter every 5000 miles or one year whichever comes first.


It will trip a CEL or Check Gauge light of some sort if oil pressure drops below the safe level.

And many gauges are "dummy" gauges these days, being heavily dampened. Coolant temp is another example. It isn't just Ford, it is common on all marques. People have no freakin' clue what oil pressure even is. They don't know where it is supposed to be or not be, but many still want the "gauge" and hence, it became the "dummy" gauge.

My M5 doesn't even have an oil pressure gauge. Instead, it has an oil temperature gauge. The Charger doesn't have one either.

 

[crazyoildude]

it will Not trip a cel or anything there is only one oil sender on that engine and while running the engine i disconnected the wire to the oil sender and the gauge went down to nothing and no other lights or buzzers or anything happened. This is the problem and why i want to install a bright oil light

 

[bvance554]

The infamous 'shop' that only rebuilds engines, and doesn't service vehicles (except for Mom's apparently). The shop that has emperical data on what a particular oil does to an engine... Based on 'what we see in the shop' because all they do is rebuilds. The same shop that stocks a particular brand of filter to install on the rebuild because it gives the customer the warm and fuzzies when they come pick up their rebuild.... As if lots of people actually drop off their engine for a rebuild at 'the shop.' Are we afraid this engine is just going to lose oil pressure? Why not just do a rebuild.

 

[OVERKILL]

Originally Posted By: crazyoildude
it will Not trip a cel or anything there is only one oil sender on that engine and while running the engine i disconnected the wire to the oil sender and the gauge went down to nothing and no other lights or buzzers or anything happened. This is the problem and why i want to install a bright oil light


I wouldn't expect a buzzer or anything, just a check gauge light. How long did you leave it disconnected for? And if she wouldn't notice a gauge bottoming-out why do you think she'd notice a light?

Also, why do you think that this engine will lose oil pressure to warrant all of this? Is she likely to run it low on oil to the point that this is an issue? It's a low mileage modular, it's not like it is an engine known for lunching oil pumps

This sounds like a solution in search of a problem.

As I noted earlier, you chose to rip on Ford for this, but the fact is that the elimination of the oil pressure gauge is universal. The presence of the "dummy gauge" was even an option! It could have just had the "check oil" light, which is the same circuit and pressure switch, but even cheaper since it lacks the "gauge". This is simply the manufacturer(s) responding to the market. The "people" don't want a myriad of gauges just like most of them don't want manual transmissions. It is the evolution of the car as an "appliance".

 

[hansj3]

You could get an oil pressure switch, tap and install it in the galley, or tee it in, your choice, and wire it into the car. It most certainly won't have a clean install factor though.

But a switch, wires, and a light are all you need.

Maybe you can install it on top of the dash, like a security light, to at least make it hidden somewhat

 

[OVERKILL]

Originally Posted By: hansj3
You could get an oil pressure switch, tap and install it in the galley, or tee it in, your choice, and wire it into the car. It most certainly won't have a clean install factor though.

But a switch, wires, and a light are all you need.

Maybe you can install it on top of the dash, like a security light, to at least make it hidden somewhat


Comically, the plumbing for all of that increases the odds of actually creating a low oil pressure situation

 

[crazyoildude]

i happen to like ford and i know the reason for the dummy gauges.. I think the modular is one of the best engines out there. I think i will hook up a bright red led or bulb to the wire coming off the sender so when it gets the ground it lights up the led or bulb i connect to it and just to be safe i am going to diode isolate it with a 5 amp fuse... Sound good?

It will be a professional ocd type of install done by me. I thought there might be a kit made for this application someone knew about. Oh and i left it disconnected for much longer than it would take for the engine to seize.

 

[crazyoildude]

Absolutely no plumbing required all done with 2 wires..

 

[eljefino]

My dad burnt a two-week-old dodge omni to the ground by poorly installing an oil pressure gauge. It leaked oil all over something hot, and, boom. Leave well enough alone.

 

[tig1]

Originally Posted By: eljefino
My dad burnt a two-week-old dodge omni to the ground by poorly installing an oil pressure gauge. It leaked oil all over something hot, and, boom. Leave well enough alone.


I agree. When was the last time you heard of a Ford 4.6 losing oil pressure, especially one that is well maintained.

 

[Colt45ws]

Originally Posted By: eljefino
My dad burnt a two-week-old dodge omni to the ground by poorly installing an oil pressure gauge. It leaked oil all over something hot, and, boom. Leave well enough alone.

He doesnt want to add a separate gauge. What he is saying is that when the existing, OE, factory stock, installed at Ford, pressure switch reads low oil pressure, the only thing that happens is the existing, OE, factory stock, installed at Ford, cluster gauge reads at the bottom of its sweep instead of in the middle.
What he wants to do is hijack the wiring to the existing, OE, factory stock, installed at Ford, cluster gauge and have the existing, OE, factory stock, installed at Ford, pressure switch turn on a bright red light instead.

If I remember right, though, the switch grounds out when oil pressure is seen, and reads open otherwise. Check for this.
If so, you can use a relay to switch it around the other way.
Wire Key ON hot to terminals #30 and #86
Wire the pressure switch return to #85
Wire + side of the light (matters if its an LED) to #87A
Then just find a spot to ground the light.
87A terminal is normally closed, so the the light will turn on with Key on, Engine off. When OP is seen by the switch, it wwill ground the relay coil and open the circuit.

 

[Colt45ws]

Btw, Ive looked at the schematics for the vehicle in question and the pressure sender is wired directly to the gauge cluster. It does not pass through the PCM or any other device. Direct to the gauge cluster.

Ie, the PCM could give two [censored] what the oil pressure is. It will never set a CEL.

 

[OVERKILL]

Originally Posted By: crazyoildude
Absolutely no plumbing required all done with 2 wires..


The post I quoted described plumbing in a separate pressure switch for the light with either a "T" or a new hole tapped for it. Hence my reply.

 

[OVERKILL]

Originally Posted By: Colt45ws
Btw, Ive looked at the schematics for the vehicle in question and the pressure sender is wired directly to the gauge cluster. It does not pass through the PCM or any other device. Direct to the gauge cluster.

Ie, the PCM could give two [censored] what the oil pressure is. It will never set a CEL.


It's been that way forever. Usually when something poops the bed on the cluster it triggers a "check gauge" light, which doesn't involve the ECM/PCM like a CEL does.

It varies by vehicle of course and I see in the manual that this vehicle had either a "gauge" or a "check oil pressure" indicator/light combo. The "gauge" being the more upscale option, LOL

As I'm sure you are aware, with coolant temperature, historically Ford used two different "sensors", one that the ECM read and one that just fed the cluster.

 

[Colt45ws]

Originally Posted By: OVERKILL
Originally Posted By: Colt45ws
Btw, Ive looked at the schematics for the vehicle in question and the pressure sender is wired directly to the gauge cluster. It does not pass through the PCM or any other device. Direct to the gauge cluster.

Ie, the PCM could give two [censored] what the oil pressure is. It will never set a CEL.


It's been that way forever. Usually when something poops the bed on the cluster it triggers a "check gauge" light, which doesn't involve the ECM/PCM like a CEL does.

It varies by vehicle of course and I see in the manual that this vehicle had either a "gauge" or a "check oil pressure" indicator/light combo. The "gauge" being the more upscale option, LOL

As I'm sure you are aware, with coolant temperature, historically Ford used two different "sensors", one that the ECM read and one that just fed the cluster.


Yup. Ive never seen a check gauge light on one of these, though.

 

[OVERKILL]

Not surprising. My old Townie had "check oil pressure" that would come up on the digital screen it had, LOL! Also had a low oil level (down 1L) sensor and other things that (many) newer cars now lack.