Oil Pressure (was Toyota oil filters)

I don't know the specs, but that seems high to me...

I guess I should have added that *cold* was single digits this morning. The pressure doesn't change much (on the dask gauge) when it warms up. I'm wondering if this 95psi is enough to blow out a filter gasket or was the old bypass piston occasionally sticking? I never saw a gauge reading at the exact moment that the filter blew. It was always at a cold startup when it happened. Now, everytime I start it, I watch the gauge and look for oil gushers.

What is the pressure with the engine fully warmed up. Not just by the water temp but driven enough to get the oil hot ?

Did you check the oil pressure before you replaced the bypass piston ? If so what was the pressure?

Are you sure you are getting the oil filters tightened properly ? I don't remember the source but I remember reading one time that a stock filter had a burst rating of around 150 psi and a racing filter was around 300 - 350 psi. That's for the filter can, not the gasket. That means the gasket should not fail at that low a pressure. Are you sure the oil filter mount is not bad as well ?

Mike

I didn't check this. I was lazy this morning and just checked it cold.

I didn't check it, but the factory gauge reads the same after as it did before I changed it. I never saw the gauge at the moment the filter gave way, so I'm not sure if the filter is failing due to an intermitant sticky bypass piston, or constant overpressure. Everytime the gasket burst, it was on a cold start at idle.

It's not a tightening problem. I've marked the filter at the 6 o'clock position and the mark was still there after the filter failed. I've tried from hand tight to cranked with a wrench. Although the filter mount looked fine, I had a spare and changed it.

Sounds like you've tried quite a bit. I wouldn't think the dash gauge would be real accurate, just a rough guess as to wether or not pressure is good.

Did you find anything wrong with the bypass piston? Was it sticking?

I have never run across this problem or even heard about it before so I am curious as well. Like I said before I saw a website that gave the oil filter can burst strength. The site actually showed oil filters that had been split open by the pressure that were still attached to the engine. The gasket didn't give out, the metal can was split.

You mentioned that the engine had been rebuilt. Is it possible you got the wrong oil pump?

That's why I temporarily hooked up a test gauge, and got the

95psi@3000rpm and 75psi@idle cold readings. This does tell me the approximate pressures of the dash gauge. 1/2=idle=75psi and 3/4=3000rpm=95psi. Somewhere I read that the max pressure is supposed to be 75psi.

One side and the leading edge were scuffed up a little bit. I replaced it and the pressures remain the same, although I haven't burst another filter gasket yet. I'm not sure if it was sticking. I never saw the dash gauge at the moment the filter burst. The highest I ever spotted the dash gauge was at the 3/4 mark.

It bolted right up. I'm not sure if they make anything for a 22re that's not the right pump, but would bolt up.

What I'm hoping is that the piston sticking was the problem AND I won't do the engine any damage by running it at 20psi over the max specs. I plastigaged all the bearings and really blew out all the journals well before assembling the engine. I would think the pressure would drop some as the engine gets more miles on it, but it's a nerve racking drive trying to constantly watch icy roads and a pressure gauge at the same time.

If the oil filter fails again (I hope its at startup in my drive as before) I'll have no choice but to try another pump.

The pressure you stated cold sounds fine for a cold engine. I would expect

95psi at Single digit temps.You really need to check it hot and see what it is, I think that would be more meaningful. Oil pressure specs are always for a hot engine.

I don't think you will see much of an oil pressure drop as the engine breaks in. If you did I think that would indicate a problem. Bearings don't wear that quickly.

Another possibility is that you just got a bad pump. It's not real common but it does happen.

I hope you don't have any more problems. Let us know how it turns out.

Mike

I'll check it hot next weekend. In the meantime I'm hoping that it was the bypass piston and I'll keep a constant eye on the gauge with a gallon of oil and a spare filter in the back. I expect it to read on the high end of specs hot though.

Thankfully, if it is the pump, it's a simple job on a 22re.

Thanks Mike. Your advice is appreciated. I expect to have this 87

4runner for at least another 10-15 years, so I guess I need to know my way around it.

I bet it will last that long if you take care of it. I hope that you have no more problems.

Mike

I guess it turned out to be the bypass piston. I checked the pressure at operating temp and it was 75@3000rpm and 30@idle. It also must have created a slight leak in the sending unit diaphram. When I pulled the rubber cover off of it there was oil inside it. After changing the sending unit the guage reads about 1/4 warm idle and in the center at driving speeds.

I guess I won't know absolutly for sure till spring because I got a steal on a s15 Jimmy and will save my 4runner from another salty Michigan winter.

Sounds like it's working properly now, those pressures sound good. Glad you got it figured out.

Yeah, that salt can be hard on a vehicle. It would be great if someone could come up with something that would melt snow and ice yet be automobile friendly.