Just rescued daughters car from motorway as she said the oil light was flickering on and she was getting beeping. By the time we got home and pushed the car off the trailer and into the garage the engine runs fine and no light till engine is hot and it's given 2000rpm. Fine at idle! Pulled the plug off the oil switch on the block and three drops of oil came out. Is this likely to be the switch that has failed?

 

Other issue is no dash lights and no engine start about 90% of tries. Doesn't seem to be recognising the key. VCDS fault 17978/P1570.

 

Any advice on either fault please.

 

Nigel

... Pulled the plug off the oil switch on the block and three drops of oil came out. Is this likely to be the switch that has failed?

 

 

Virtually 100%.

 

For oil to have got through to the electrical connector pin, the diaphragm which operates the switch must have a leak. Once the electrical switch contacts are oily they won't make reliable contact when required.

Hi LB123, 

 

I have the same engine and mine has done this too and i can confirm it is the plug, they're dirt cheap to buy too.

 

The reason that the sensor will only go off when the car isn't at idle is because there's no pressure to push the oil through the sensor and make it malfunction.

 

Funny you should say that the engine isn't starting, mine has an immobilizer problem and its only been recently the same as the oil sensor but i believe them to be unrelated, mine has the immobiliser light flash and just cuts fuel to the engine, meaning that turning over the car does nothing... same thing or not?

 

Hope this helps!

The good news is that it was the oil switch on the block. Pulled the plug off and three drips of oil dropped out. New sender and all sorted.

 

Well not all. After much head scratching and stripping out the column I have changed the electric barrel on the ignition switch and it now starts on the key each time. So I presume a faulty contact in the ignition switch. Stripping down the switch I can't see a fault but there are five contacts in mine. Gazillions of cycles on and off over 13 years so a poor contact is understandable. Anyway, cured.

 

Except when putting it all together I now have the airbag warning light on and it won't delete with vagcom so I guess I have introduced a faulty contact there. Pity, as I hate taking the airbag off and putting it back on. It's going to go bang one day and scare me sh****ss as it breaks my arm.

 

Nigel

Edited 10 October, 201312 yr by LB123