C5 new oil sending unit leaking

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Jan 29, 2019 | 08:34 PM

Kylem7793

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From: Kentucky

C5 new oil sending unit leaking

I just bout an 02 coupe. Today I replaced the oil sender and pcv hoses. Took it for a drive and the oil gauge now works. As I was getting home it was smoking. Steady drip of oil under the car. It looks like it is the sending unit. Could it be bad or did I just screw up and not tighten it enough?

Jan 29, 2019 | 08:57 PM

pjdbm

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From: Long Island New York

The torque is like 15ft lbs, some of the aftermarket replacements failed often but this is the first time I heard a day later. Could be a defective out of the box and got worse??
I just did the oil sender relocation when I swapped to LS6 intake for this reason. Where did you buy it from?

Last edited by pjdbm; Jan 29, 2019 at 09:25 PM.

Jan 29, 2019 | 09:07 PM

Vetteman Jack

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Jan 29, 2019 | 11:07 PM

Kylem7793

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From: Kentucky

Bought it from napa. I'm going to try to take it out and put it back in, in case it's not threaded properly. Thanks for the response.

Jan 29, 2019 | 11:12 PM

pjdbm

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From: Long Island New York

Make sure there is thread sealer on it, if not white plumbers tape would help, dont over torque it. Also, that oil sender unit should have had a ring seal.

Jan 31, 2019 | 03:08 AM

Irish31

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From: Princeton IN

Very, very important not to over tighten it past 15 ft lbs. Use your torque wrench to slowly work you way up to this value and STOP at 15. Over-tighten can also cause your leak condition as you might have damaged the sensor.

Feb 1, 2019 | 01:29 AM

BigGun

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From: Bahama North Carolina

Most people don't use a torque wrench to to install the sensor due to its location and it's not that important. It is an electronic part and as long as you don't use gorilla strength when you tighten it all will be well, You just need to be sure to crush the ring seal. All of the senders I have seen already come with sealant on the threads when you buy them.

Feb 8, 2019 | 06:22 PM

Kylem7793

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From: Kentucky

I took it out and reinstalled it with plumbers tape. Works great now.
It would probably been much easier if I took the intake off. Thought I was saving time, but I was wrong.