Squeaking Sound Coming from 225 /6

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chinze57

Push Button tranny and a Slant 6 that'll never die
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Location
Georgia, USA
I daily my ‘64 Dart (225 Slant 6) and usually have no issue. The past few weeks i had a low oil pressure light on, but had plenty of oil so I changed my oil a week or so ago.

I should note, after looking through service records, my mechanic most recently put 15W-40 during an oil change, whereas I use the recommended 10W-30, so I had mixed oil weights when topping off after checking fluids previously.

Well after the oil change, light stayed on. I haven’t driven much this week, last time I drove was Sunday. Today when I started my car, the engine didn’t so sound right, slightly bogged down, and when revved (in neutral), squeaked. I revved again and it’s squeaked again. I have enough oil according to the dipstick.

I suspect there’s an issue with the oil pump and the engine is running dry. Any thoughts?
 
Could be, but don't assume the worst. Check the belt(s) for tightness. Listen closely to see if you can identify the squeak source. If you cannot, Drain the oil into a CLEAN container and check for metal filings.
 
I daily my ‘64 Dart (225 Slant 6) and usually have no issue. The past few weeks i had a low oil pressure light on, but had plenty of oil so I changed my oil a week or so ago.

I should note, after looking through service records, my mechanic most recently put 15W-40 during an oil change, whereas I use the recommended 10W-30, so I had mixed oil weights when topping off after checking fluids previously.

Well after the oil change, light stayed on. I haven’t driven much this week, last time I drove was Sunday. Today when I started my car, the engine didn’t so sound right, slightly bogged down, and when revved (in neutral), squeaked. I revved again and it’s squeaked again. I have enough oil according to the dipstick.

I suspect there’s an issue with the oil pump and the engine is running dry. Any thoughts?
I would put a mechanical gauge on it and find out what the oil pressure really is at idle and at crusing speeds.
From that you can make a determination if there is an oil delivery issue or not.
Typically slant six oil pumps are robust, but the oil pressure bypasss valve should be serviced every 100,000 miles or so.
The squeaking could be an oiling issue, like maybe there is no oil getting to the rockers,,,anything is possible, so put a mechanical oil pressure gauge on it and respond with the oil pressures.
And mixing 15w40 and 10w30 is not the cause of the issue.
 
Could be, but don't assume the worst. Check the belt(s) for tightness. Listen closely to see if you can identify the squeak source. If you cannot, Drain the oil into a CLEAN container and check for metal filings.

The belts are all tight, no play. I had them replaced in February but checkerboard then today. The squeaking came from the engine close to the firewall.
 
The belts are all tight, no play. I had them replaced in February but checkerboard then today. The squeaking came from the engine close to the firewall.

I would drain and inspect the oil.
 
I would put a mechanical gauge on it and find out what the oil pressure really is at idle and at crusing speeds.
From that you can make a determination if there is an oil delivery issue or not.
Typically slant six oil pumps are robust, but the oil pressure bypasss valve should be serviced every 100,000 miles or so.
The squeaking could be an oiling issue, like maybe there is no oil getting to the rockers,,,anything is possible, so put a mechanical oil pressure gauge on it and respond with the oil pressures.
And mixing 15w40 and 10w30 is not the cause of the issue.
My dad had a amc 258 that had a blockage to the rockers and it did squeak really bad, his fix was to make a spray bar from the oil sendor and run it through a cast aluminum valve cover. Ran for 2 yrs like that.
 
I would put a mechanical gauge on it and find out what the oil pressure really is at idle and at crusing speeds.
From that you can make a determination if there is an oil delivery issue or not.
Typically slant six oil pumps are robust, but the oil pressure bypasss valve should be serviced every 100,000 miles or so.
The squeaking could be an oiling issue, like maybe there is no oil getting to the rockers,,,anything is possible, so put a mechanical oil pressure gauge on it and respond with the oil pressures.
And mixing 15w40 and 10w30 is not the cause of the issue.

I'm just going to go ahead and ask, how would i install a mechanical gauge, is there one in particular i should get, etc. I know very little about installing gauges aftermarket but im open to learning
 
I'm just going to go ahead and ask, how would i install a mechanical gauge, is there one in particular i should get, etc. I know very little about installing gauges aftermarket but im open to learning

Just unscrew you’re oil pressure sending switch that on your engine now . Then screw your line or fitting to that hole . Then screw the mech gauge onto that !! But before you do anything drain your oil and I would cut the filter open and see if there is metal in your oil and filter !!
 
Just unscrew you’re oil pressure sending switch that on your engine now . Then screw your line or fitting to that hole . Then screw the mech gauge onto that !! But before you do anything drain your oil and I would cut the filter open and see if there is metal in your oil and filter !!
got it, will do. ill drain it into my catch pan and see if there's metal in it and then check my filter and then do a gauge
 
got it, will do. ill drain it into my catch pan and see if there's metal in it and then check my filter and then do a gauge

If there is metal in the oil ! Well the next step is finding out where the metal is coming from !! In all likely hood it’s not going to be good !!
 
If there is metal in the oil ! Well the next step is finding out where the metal is coming from !! In all likely hood it’s not going to be good !!
im worried about their being metal, that's never a good sign. thanks for the advice
 
Yeah if it has metal filings in the oil, it's time to pull it.
 
I'm just going to go ahead and ask, how would i install a mechanical gauge, is there one in particular i should get, etc. I know very little about installing gauges aftermarket but im open to learning
For a mechanical oil pressure gauge, get one from any of the auto parts sellers that you typically buy from,,,Napa, Advance, Autozone, Western Auto,,,,,
 
youll find the pressure sender at end of oil pump right under oil filter. You can T it and run the gauge and a sender or just replace with sender. Slants will almost idle without oil (seen it on a Slick-50 demo, no pan!) but I would get the pressure tested ASAP.
 
youll find the pressure sender at end of oil pump right under oil filter. You can T it and run the gauge and a sender or just replace with sender. Slants will almost idle without oil (seen it on a Slick-50 demo, no pan!) but I would get the pressure tested ASAP.

My 64 has the sender in the block on the passenger's side toward the rear.
 
shoot us a pic of that sender location. I've read you had it back there, was it tapped or stock? Back in the age of penny pinching I wonder what the logic was with another machining step in the block process. They even had remote trans filters back then so anything is possible I suppose.
 
youll find the pressure sender at end of oil pump right under oil filter. You can T it and run the gauge and a sender or just replace with sender. Slants will almost idle without oil (seen it on a Slick-50 demo, no pan!) but I would get the pressure tested ASAP.

I’m looking for a mechanical gauge not an electric gauge right?

I think the persistent oil pressure warning light is indicative there’s possibly an Issue with the pump.

I’ve got a guy in my town who has a ‘62 valiant (he’s the second owner, got it off the original with all the original papers for 2k) with a /6 so I’ll see if he has some parts he’d be willing to part with for less than msrp once I have a clue what the issue is.
 
I read something about this issue, many years ago on slantsix.org. IIRC, I think there was an issue with the oil pump drive. It usually surfaced when people added HV oil pumps. The extra load on the oil pump would tear up the drive gear somehow. Or maybe it was that the gear was not pinned to the shaft, but pressed-on and it would spin on the shaft.
Or maybe, that's not related at all. It could just be a failed bearing. Do not drive anywhere, or rev up the engine, until you confirm you have oil pressure. Plumb an inexpensive mech oil pressure gauge into the oil pump. You can also remove the valve cover to see if it is getting oil upstairs.
 
I read something about this issue, many years ago on slantsix.org. IIRC, I think there was an issue with the oil pump drive. It usually surfaced when people added HV oil pumps. The extra load on the oil pump would tear up the drive gear somehow. Or maybe it was that the gear was not pinned to the shaft, but pressed-on and it would spin on the shaft.
Or maybe, that's not related at all. It could just be a failed bearing. Do not drive anywhere, or rev up the engine, until you confirm you have oil pressure. Plumb an inexpensive mech oil pressure gauge into the oil pump. You can also remove the valve cover to see if it is getting oil upstairs.

I haven’t had the oil pump serviced since I got it, and from the service records, it doesn’t look like the previous owner did either. Removing the valve covers isn’t a bad idea. I found a cheapo gauge I’m going to see if I can get ordered today (none of the local auto parts stores stock mech gauges). I’m considering t-ing off the line and mounting the actual gauge under the dash and keeping my oil pressure light in the cluster.
 
shoot us a pic of that sender location. I've read you had it back there, was it tapped or stock? Back in the age of penny pinching I wonder what the logic was with another machining step in the block process. They even had remote trans filters back then so anything is possible I suppose.

Let’s say time=mileage. I haven’t had my oil pump serviced in the ~year I’ve had the car, the previous owner didn’t have it serviced while they had the car (~5 years) and no clue about the owner before them. Would it be prudent to replace the oil pump once I drain my oil and check for filings, eliminate that variable? And if that’s the case, should I go standard volume or high volume? Summit sells a standard volume for a bit over $80 which doesn’t seem bad, but what am I in for if I replace it myself?
 
Let’s say time=mileage. I haven’t had my oil pump serviced in the ~year I’ve had the car, the previous owner didn’t have it serviced while they had the car (~5 years) and no clue about the owner before them. Would it be prudent to replace the oil pump once I drain my oil and check for filings, eliminate that variable? And if that’s the case, should I go standard volume or high volume? Summit sells a standard volume for a bit over $80 which doesn’t seem bad, but what am I in for if I replace it myself?
What year is your car. The early A bodies have tight engine compartment but it is still possible to remove the oil pump with the engine in the car.
Worst case you will need to loosen the passenger side motor mount, then use a jack to raise that side of the engine to get the pump out. You will be able to reach the bolts, but will need the clearance to extract the pump.
Don’t be surprised if your OE pump has six mounting bolts and the replacement has five. The five bolt pumps seal up fine. Also look at the photo of the pump in the ad. Does it come with the drive gear installed? If not get one with the drive gear installed. Moving the drive gear from the old pump to the new pump is doable,, I have done that many times, and can walk you through it, it is just one more thing for you to deal with.
With that said, I would mount the mechanical oil pressure gauge first and verify what the oil pressure is before changing out the pump. If you do have an oil pressure issue, it could be the oil pump bypass is stuck open,, to fix that right you will still need to remove the pump from the engine, but you don’t need to spend 80.00 on a new pump. If you do the standard volume is fine.
 
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