1992 Golf GL Oil Light

It may be nothing but a sensor acting up, but I would check it. First make sure the oil is at the correct level. That is between the two lines, not above or below.

Second have a mechanic hook up a mechanical gauge and see what is happening.

You did not say how many miles you have, but if it is a typical 92, you are getting around the mileage where you may expect some bearing or pump wear to show up. That you want to get fixed.

The 1.8 has two pressure sensor systems.

The first one measures oil pressure at idle.

The second one measures oil pressure "at speed". This goes off at about

2000 rpm if your oil pressure is low (6 psi or something like that). If you downshift then the motor goes faster, and the buzzer goes away.

First, you need an oil pressure guage, which will tell you exactly what's going on with the pressure. Besides, it will be cool looking.

Second, you need to make sure that you're running 20w-50 conventional oil, or 5w-50 conventional oil. Anything less and you're gonna get this problem on a 1.8 motor with a few miles on it. Mind you, this doesn't mean that your motor is in trouble, as this happens to all 1.8L motors.

Third, if you're running the proper oil, and you've got this problem, then you've got some problem somewhere. If you've got the gauge installed then you already know if the sensors are bad. The oil pump might be bad, or clogged. BTW, there is an aftermarket high-volume pump that will fix this problem if the rest of the motor is healthy.

In my case I had a gash in a cylinder, causing lots of blowby, bubbles in the oil, and was fixed with a new short block. That was 100,000+ miles ago, and was the best weekend investment into any car I've ever owned.

Tim Wohlford '89 Golf,

246,000 miles

its the 1.8L that comes in GL's I guess.

If you have a US or Canadian model, then it's Digifant.

All 1.8L gas-fueled 8V engines in Golfs, GTIs, and Jettas from late

1987-1992 for the US and Canada were Digifant injection.

Good write-up, but a few other things:

1. If the buzzer goes off, it's the high-pressure (2k+) switch, not the low-pressure. The buzzer and light combo indicates less than 1.8 bar at 2k, which is a very common problem decelerating from 5th on an

8v with a lot of miles. The pump just doesn't quite make the right pressure at that cutoff point.

1. Having the right oil filter really matters. The only safe bet is an OEM-spec Mann filter. Aftermarket manufacturers tend to be kinda like store-brand food at the grocery store--the same box might not contain exactly the same product from one week to the next, and you never know exactly what you're gonna get. Overall, most store-brand stuff is perfectly edible (or usable, in this case), but with Mann filters not being much more, I think they're very worth the peace of mind. (some people have had very good luck with other filters, though)
2. You do, of course, have enough oil in the car?
3. If you have the right oil in and a good mechanical gauge indicates not enough pressure (I have an electric gauge in the cockpit, but if I had to troubleshoot the oil pressure system, I'd want to hook up a good mechanical gauge to confirm the electric readings...that might just be me, though), the pump could be suspect. When I replaced the pump in my 1991 GTI, I used the pump from an A3

2.0 8v (it's a direct-fit replacement but makes a bit more pressure) and added a VWMS windage tray. Part numbers available on my website at you need them. The pump isn't too hard to replace, it's justmessy and some of the bolts can be a PITA (I had two thatwere severely rusted and virtually unreachable with most of myextraction tools).

If you haven't already, give Google Groups

the VWVortex search tool shot to see some of the other threads on this. HTH, Kevin

"Matt B." wrote in news:Cdt0c.22463$aZ3.1309@fed1read04:

WOW thanks for all the help guys. Yes I've been checking my oil level, its where it should be. I need to get an oil change now anyway so maybe it was just the oil filter gettin old. What kind of oil you guys suggest? I have the book but I just wanna get some opinions. The weather is still coldish, drops to maybe -10C and is upto about 10C during the days.

20w-50 conventional. I prefer Valvolene racing oil. 5w-50 synthetic. Mobile 1?

Tim Wohlford '89 Golf