Opinions

[Baseshakers]

allright, so i'll check the pressure with a mechanical, then if it's bad order a melling HV. does this seem reasonable for an oil pressure tester?

[nostaw]

My XJ ticks a little when it first starts up too.... I think part of the issue for me is that, because I don't run it a lot, the engine oil drains out of the valves. I usually rev it a little to get the pump going and let it idle until it stops ticking. Makes me wonder if I should be using a heavier weight of oil.

JW

[ZAEDOCK]

My XJ ticks a little when it first starts up too.... I think part of the issue for me is that, because I don't run it a lot, the engine oil drains out of the valves. I usually rev it a little to get the pump going and let it idle until it stops ticking. Makes me wonder if I should be using a heavier weight of oil.

JW

Thinner oil would get to the valve train faster.

Remember that ALL motor oil is too thick when cold.

[Northshore Jeeper]

My jeep has made that tick for years (about 5) Only when cold at idle for the 1st few minutes I had a friend look at it (owns his own repair shop and worked at a jeep dealer before that) he said it is pretty common with those engines (at least the tick that mine makes) That was about 5 years ago and it hasnt casued any problems, I had another friend (kind of a backyard mechanic) claim that during an oil change I should add 1 less quart of oil and replace it with ATF. He did it in his and it helped, but I am not balsy enough to dump ATF in the engine

[ZAEDOCK]

My jeep has made that tick for years (about 5) Only when cold at idle for the 1st few minutes I had a friend look at it (owns his own repair shop and worked at a jeep dealer before that) he said it is pretty common with those engines (at least the tick that mine makes) That was about 5 years ago and it hasnt casued any problems, I had another friend (kind of a backyard mechanic) claim that during an oil change I should add 1 less quart of oil and replace it with ATF. He did it in his and it helped, but I am not balsy enough to dump ATF in the engine

Adding ATF to an engine only dillutes the properties of the motor oil. ATF was once thought to help "flush" an engine because at one time, it may have had more detergents. That definitely has not been the case for many years. ATF is not designed to withstand the environment in an ICE.

[Northshore Jeeper]

it seemed odd to me, so I decided against it. The oil is the life blood of the engine and I only put oil in mine

[Frank]

Its just typical for our engines to have poor upper cylinder lubrication at idle and at all the angles we run at dont help either. My engine has 60 psi when cold and 20ish at temp.It will pump 40-45 while driving. All the books require 13psi at idle to be inspec. Seems a little shy but, thats what they call for. I change oil alot cause its cheap , and it is the life in your motor. As with grease its cheap also. Some of you on our two day runs have seen me grease my Jeep after the first day to be ready for the next. Ive never wheeled a run without at least new grease. We torture these things , Help em out any way you can. Ive heard of flushing the engine with Kerosine and then running the engine till you here the lifters. Then you change the filter and oil. I dont know if I even like that idea. Change the oil alot. I really dont care what brand you choose , new and clean oil will protect you engine better. FjR68

[ZAEDOCK]

Ive heard of flushing the engine with Kerosine and then running the engine till you here the lifters. Then you change the filter and oil. I dont know if I even like that idea.

OUCH! I can hear the cam and main bearings from here....

Change the oil alot. I really dont care what brand you choose , new and clean oil will protect you engine better. FjR68

Changing oil more often than you need to causes more wear. Also, studies have shown that motor oil starts to protect best after a couple thousand miles or so. Many of the additives are heat activated. I perform UOA's (used oil analysis) on my vehicles, including my Jeep. I've found that I can go two years on one change in my Wrangler. That's with tracking hours of use instead of miles (she's a 98% trail rig). On my regular vehicles, I run out to 7500 miles in my truck and follow the Oil Life Monitor in Angie's car. No need to change oil at 3K anymore. That's the quick lubes looking for $. The latest API rating of SN just went into effect this year. The difference between conventional and synthetic is also getting smaller. The Group II+ conventional oils we have now are awesome! Also consider that 95% of our vehicles do not NEED syn as well, unless you're looking for extreme cold flow or doing extended drains.

In the end, I think most of us who only run our rigs for limited use or trail runs can get away with changing once a year or even two!

[Kurt]

...In the end, I think most of us who only run our rigs for limited use or trail runs can get away with changing once a year or even two!

That's good to hear. I just noticed I haven't changed the YJ oil since 6/2009

[Frank]

Did the light come on in the dash ? FjR68

[Baseshakers]

does this look like the right pump? http://www.summitracing.com/parts/MEL-M167HVS/
while i'm in there i'm replacing the rear main seal. i'll need a new oil pan gasket, any recommendations? just go to the dealer for that and the RMS?

[johnsxj]

Looks like the right one.
For the pan gasket go with this: http://www.summitracing.com/parts/FEL-OS34308R/ which you should be able to get at any decent parts store.
Autozone lists the HV pump for $79.99, felpro 1pc pan gasket for $19.99 and felpro dual lip rear main seal for $13.99 You can order it all online, have it shipped for free, and they'll send you a $15.00 gift card

[Baseshakers]

thanks john!

[Baseshakers]

one (hopefully) last question. is there a concern with dry starting the oil pump? i've read something about potentially needing to prime it before startup... true?

[ChrisD]

I would