Oil warning light - how does it work ?

[ross]

Hi,

I asked this in the 'old' forum, but received no replies, so I hope no-one minds if I ask again.

How does the low oil warning light work ?

Not such a daft question, because I drained all the oil (of unknown origin and vintage) from my tank, turned on the ignition - and the light came on and then, slowly, went off. Huh ?

I then removed the level sensing tube thingy - no change.

I wouldn't have thought that the sensing tube (presumably with a float in it) would drain so slowly as to keep the float high - but maybe it does.

Does anyone have any ideas what I can test to see if its working ok ?

I know that there's now oil back in the tank, but in the long term, it would be kinda nice to know when I'm about to run out of oil.

Thanks,
Ross

[Shaftoflame]

Hi
Not sure about the tank sensor, but the oil light comes on when the ignition is switched on anyway - then dims out - so you know that the bulb was working when you switched on - at least. Could be kinda critical if you have one of the older tanks that are black and cannot see through them. The sensor - no idea!

R