Cat SkidSteer 246 Oil pressure warning

[shawnseveras]

so this machine is sending out all sorts of sos crap as of late. anyways..... so the low oil pressure light came on. its pretty dim and not fully lit. here is hoping it is a simple fix. so i took a look at engine oil and its showing 3/4 full atm. so i looked up online which oil.... well i cant find crap. so if anyone knows what engine oil will be fine that would be awesome to know too. but from what i have seen online there is alot of posts about the oil pump going bad on this model and i sure hope i dont have to replace it.. thoughts anyone???

 

[shawnseveras]

anyways serial number is 5sz26011 and there is the pic of the warning light.....

 

[92U 3406]

First thing I'd do is put a mechanical test gauge on the engine and see if the pressure is within spec. Result of that test will indicate what to troubleshoot. Low oil pressure or electrical fault.

 

[shawnseveras]

First thing I'd do is put a mechanical test gauge on the engine and see if the pressure is within spec. Result of that test will indicate what to troubleshoot. Low oil pressure or electrical fault.

test gauge?? do you have a link for one i can buy by chance?

 

[mikebramel]

Look up OTC oil pressure test kit

 

[shawnseveras]

Look up OTC oil pressure test kit

thanks for that. ill be looking at getting one tomorrow after memorial day. side question what engine oil will do for this make/model? i see on some places it says 10w40 others say 15w40 and some others say 10w30? any thoughts on the oil type or where i can find this out?

 

[Nige]

Get a manual for it..? $50 give or take to download from Cat.
Engine oil viscosity recommendations will to a certain extent depend on the ambient temperature. That might explain the different numbers you are finding on the net.

 

[Nige]

Here's the engine oil recommendations table. As I suspected very much based on ambient temperature range.
Oil type options (as opposed to viscosity) start with Cat DEO Multigrade and go down to a multigrade oil meeting Cat ECF-1 or API CG-4 specification. Of course Cat are going to put their own brand of oils at the top of the list. That doesn't mean that what's at the bottom of the list is any worse than Cat-branded oil provided it meets the spec.

 

[shawnseveras]

Here's the engine oil recommendations table. As I suspected very much based on ambient temperature range.
Oil type options (as opposed to viscosity) start with Cat DEO Multigrade and go down to a multigrade oil meeting Cat ECF-1 or API CG-4 specification. Of course Cat are going to put their own brand of oils at the top of the list. That doesn't mean that what's at the bottom of the list is any worse than Cat-branded oil provided it meets the spec.

View attachment 218290

yeah when i went to the online store for cat they didnt have the manual when i looked. it just comes up with No Results Found. but if you manage to find one that would be awesome and i have no problem purchasing one. and from what it looks like on the table you sent ,the 15w-40 would be best. im in west texas and usually it reaches at max 120 f and lowest in winter is 15f-30f during the summer it is usually 100 f on average.

 

[Nige]

Go to https://catpublications.com/ and search for SEBU7468. That is the one you want. You should see the illustration below.
FYI. 5SZ1-Up means machines with S/N 5SZ00001-Up, so it is good for your machine.

 

[shawnseveras]

ok awesome sauce i have it and im downloading it atm. thanks again for all of your help man! you have been helping me a lot and i appreciate it!

 

[Steve Frazier]

Be very careful running this machine with the light lit and beeper sounding. The engine in this machine has a history of blowing the oil pump housing cover off the pump resulting in no oil pressure. It starts out as a crack until it lets go completely.

 

[Steve Frazier]

Take a look at this thread:

https://www.heavyequipmentforums.com/threads/another-perkins-pukes.21592/

 

[shawnseveras]

Take a look at this thread:

https://www.heavyequipmentforums.com/threads/another-perkins-pukes.21592/

Take a look at this thread:

https://www.heavyequipmentforums.com/threads/another-perkins-pukes.21592/

hey so i looked at your forums post and i cant locate the cover that you are talking about. is it at the front of the engine up against the door when it is shut? or is it located at the back? also im guessing that it is located in the back right section of the motor as i referenced the photos on your forum post. and looked in that section. i do not see any visible cracks. also the oil level in the engine is 1/4 below full ie it is 3/4ths to the full line. so i believe it may be just that it needs some more oil. so i will be doing an oil and filter change.

 

[Nige]

I suggest don't just do an oil & filter change and trust to luck.
Get a mechanical gauge and check the oil pressure. Cold, hot, at idle and at max RPM. Be prepared to abort this test if you see any reading you are not happy with.
If everything appears OK, then change the oil & filter.
Repeat the measurements above with the new oil & filter.
Post your results here.

 

[shawnseveras]

so where would be a good location on the motor to test the oil pressure? i contacted cat to ask them the same question and they said i could use the oil sample valve just unscrew the bottom hookup. what are your thoughts?

 

[Nige]

It’s a live sample point so it would work as well as anywhere. Best part you can just screw the sample valve back in afterwards.

 

[shawnseveras]

ok awesome ill give it a try. ill pick up a kit from napa today and see what the pressure looks like if i can get it all hooked up and running
and of course ill post the results as requested! thanks again nige!

 

[shawnseveras]

hey @Nige is there any way you can give me the oil pressure chart for this machine. idk it may just be me but ive been looking for the last two hours trying to find what the normal oil psi should look like so i could get an idea of what it should look like when running/idle or even running max throttle ect.

 

[shawnseveras]

fired it up and it goes to around 40-50 on running idle then around 65-70 on full throttle then back down to around40- 50 on idle and the last pic of it near 0 oh and best way to get to that tester end is taking the air filter enclosure off of the frame and moving it to above the engine so you have enough room to listen it by hand. well with a wrench. but yeah no jumping at all ran it for a minute each interval. and like i said before i think it just needs oil. doing the filter and oil change tomorrow. i’ll do another test with new oil and a new filter. the needle on the gauge never faltered at all it stayed steady. it didn’t drop or anything of the sort or wiggle the whole time.