Oil temp low warning?
Thread Starter
Pro
Joined: Dec 2014
Posts: 682
Likes: 276
From: Cincinnati Ohio
Oil temp low warning?
Not concerned here, just curious. I will say that I rarely drive my ‘99 in very cold temperatures. We recently had an overnight low of about 10 degrees F and when i went out to start my car it was a whopping 14 degrees. I start it up and the DIC says “Low oil temperature”. I didnt hit the reset because i was curious to see when it would show a temperature. After a few miles i got to my destination and the warning remained. Shut the car off, got my bagel and coffee and returned to restart. Started it up and the oil temp read something like 120 degrees and continued to warm up as I drove home. Everything is fine; not concerned about the sensor or wiring. Just wondering what GM wants the owner to do when the warning comes on.
I looked through the owners manual and the GM shop manual and could not find anything describing low oil temp. Perhaps its there somewhere and i just missed it. I assume its to warn followed by some recommendation about RPM or avoiding heavy throttle.
I looked through the owners manual and the GM shop manual and could not find anything describing low oil temp. Perhaps its there somewhere and i just missed it. I assume its to warn followed by some recommendation about RPM or avoiding heavy throttle.
Intermediate
Joined: Feb 2020
Posts: 47
Likes: 10
I think your assumption is correct to just take it easy and keep the RPMs down. Just a courtesy warning by GM.
This is more a factor of what weight oil you use. If you're running 5W30 or better yet 0W-XX you're probably set for these temperatures. Even with the thinner oils it's a good idea to let her warm up a little You don't want to rev up the motor too much when the oil is just syrup at these frigid temps.
To see an extreme case of this read up on the 10W-60 BMW specified for the S54 powered E46 M3. Even in the summer you had to ensure the engine was completely up to temp before you started beating on it. In fact, there are some (including me) who theorize that the rod bearing failures some early motors suffered was due to the oil being too thick for the bearing clearances (under normal street driving). The 10W-60 was designed to survive track duty and I'm sure for a track day it is the right oil to use.
This is more a factor of what weight oil you use. If you're running 5W30 or better yet 0W-XX you're probably set for these temperatures. Even with the thinner oils it's a good idea to let her warm up a little You don't want to rev up the motor too much when the oil is just syrup at these frigid temps.
To see an extreme case of this read up on the 10W-60 BMW specified for the S54 powered E46 M3. Even in the summer you had to ensure the engine was completely up to temp before you started beating on it. In fact, there are some (including me) who theorize that the rod bearing failures some early motors suffered was due to the oil being too thick for the bearing clearances (under normal street driving). The 10W-60 was designed to survive track duty and I'm sure for a track day it is the right oil to use.
Safety Car
Joined: Dec 2011
Posts: 4,704
Likes: 239
From: Redondo Beach CA
modern car oils are optimized to work best at around 210 degrees, without optimal oiling, probably best to throttle back on the stop light hero clowning. Clearly a warning light is the way to go, since few people would read the manual for best use operating instructions.
Racer
Joined: Sep 2019
Posts: 427
Likes: 121
It is something to be concerned about, That light means just let me warm up. If your oil is at 14 degrees that is is below the oil temp sensor can read so you get “Low oil temperature” . It needs really to get to 80 degrees before you take off. Keep the RPM's low till the oil temp comes up. Hope you are running ow-30. You need to drive around 15 miles at least to get the oil up to 180-190 degrees to get the condensation out of the oil. The oil needs to get up to temp either way, to get the moisture out of the engine.
Last edited by Sunwarrior; Feb 20, 2021 at 09:14 PM.
