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Cat SkidSteer 246 Oil pressure warning

Nige

Senior Member
Joined
Jun 22, 2011
Messages
28,977
Location
G..G..G..Granville.........!! Fetch your cloth.
There is only one specification I can find.
At normal engine operating temperature (fully warmed up in other words) and maximum engine RPM the oil pressure should be a minimum of 41psi. You are seeing around 65-70psi with oil probably not fully warmed up, but still not bad.
Try the test again after changing the oil & filter.
 

Steve Frazier

Founder
Staff member
Joined
Oct 30, 2003
Messages
6,599
Location
LaGrangeville, N.Y.
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.

Hopefully low oil is all it was. Your pressure check looks pretty good.

The oil pump is located behind the front cover housing, it's a cast aluminum piece. The part that fails is internal, you wouldn't see it unless you took the engine apart. It's quite a job to get that cover plate off, lots of integrated parts. I wouldn't wish it on anyone!
 

Werty246

Member
Joined
May 1, 2020
Messages
24
Location
Australia
Hey Shawn my oil pressure light has been on and beeping for months. I was slack and ignored it for way too long. I recently changed oil and filter using W 15/40 oil nulon brand. It stopped for a bit then returned. After my hydraulic radiator fan shat itself l think the hyd oil created a bad connection between oil pressure sensor and wire connector as l degeeased the engine from hyd oil spilage it seems to have stopped. I know l should test oil pressure, check oil pump pick up etc . But it seems ok atm. Could end up expensive l guess but a dirty connection seems to have rectified it so far. Good luck. Still waiting on my electric thermo fan to come. Keen to get some work done on our property in garden beds and maintain tracks on our 18acre block.
 

shawnseveras

Active Member
Joined
Apr 22, 2020
Messages
41
Location
roscoe texas
I mean a clean connection from wire to oil pressure switch seems to have sorted it so far

Yeah I just got done draining the damn engine it took about 5 hours to drain thanks to the massive ballast/counter weight installed on the back. But i at least know that the sensor is bad on this machine. The engine oil pressure sensor part number is 7w1238 . But yeah about to take off the old filter and then put the new one and fill up the engine with new oil. I already ordered the sensor and it will be here Tomorrow/Friday. but yeah after the new engine oil is in there tonight ill do a test of everything. oil pressure at hot and cold and post the results. oh and since Australia is like Texas weather your going to want to go with 15w-40 and no lower due to the temperature outside if you have your machine sit outside during summer. oh and make sure you clean out that radiator real good. dawn dish soap and a water hose with a decent amount of pressure got everything out. it also de-greased the entire engine compartment in the back too. oh and 15w-40 hydraulic oil is also the go to. and if you ever have to drain out the oil or hook up a pressure tester to the oil sample valve then taking the air filter and detaching it from the inside wall helps. Just position it above the engine or just disconnect it. also helps for getting the engine oil filter out. Opens up that side of the engine! Oh and since you told me about your farm/block I work on a 12000 acre ranch out in Texas and we have 20 miles of fence to put up by end of year! So I have to get this working good to get it done.
 

shawnseveras

Active Member
Joined
Apr 22, 2020
Messages
41
Location
roscoe texas
There is only one specification I can find.
At normal engine operating temperature (fully warmed up in other words) and maximum engine RPM the oil pressure should be a minimum of 41psi. You are seeing around 65-70psi with oil probably not fully warmed up, but still not bad.
Try the test again after changing the oil & filter.

Oh I called cat over here and they said the same thing. These damned Perkins engines are an enigma lol. They said that is the only thing they see on them too. That the oil pressure should be a minimum of 41 psi.
 

shawnseveras

Active Member
Joined
Apr 22, 2020
Messages
41
Location
roscoe texas
so oil filter replaced and oil replaced. starting pressure was normal upon initial startup at cold @45psi and at full throttle reaching @55 psi. that was running cold. so i ran it for 30 minutes and that was 2x5 minute intervals of full throttle then back to idle. the end result was 38-39 psi on idle and 53-55 psi on full throttle. oh and i also found out that the old oil filter was put in @3621 hrs the machine has 36741 hrs on it atm. i think it was a little overdue for an oil change. now i know the minimum psi operating range for oil is @41 psi but it’s new oil, also it could be the placement of the gauge. but idk what’s y’all’s theory on this. the owner says they don’t care if it blows up after all it has 37000 plus hours on it with a perkins engine. the fact it’s made it this far is a testament to sheer ignorance to fail lol. anyways i still have to tear open that old oil filter. what’s the best way of doing that?
 

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shawnseveras

Active Member
Joined
Apr 22, 2020
Messages
41
Location
roscoe texas
here is the other photos one of the oil filter hours and the machine hours.
 

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shawnseveras

Active Member
Joined
Apr 22, 2020
Messages
41
Location
roscoe texas
The last digit on the RH side of your photo is 1/10ths of an hour, as explained by the white line around it and the "1/10" written right below it.
It is 3654.7 hours on the meter, not 36547...........
A decimal point can make all the difference.
lol i didnt notice that ha ha i feel pretty stupid now. Id also like to blame the owner as they have said the same to me repeatedly too lol. anyways what do you think about the pressure on the engine? is that well within safe operating range? do you think that it is just because the oil hasn't settled in everywhere yet ?
 

Nige

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Joined
Jun 22, 2011
Messages
28,977
Location
G..G..G..Granville.........!! Fetch your cloth.
53-55psi at full RPM with a warm engine sounds plenty above 41psi to me.
Unfortunately unless someone else chimes in with measurements from another machine then the 41psi minimum is the only yardstick you have.
Now you've done the tests the numbers you measured can always serve as a baseline for future measurements.
 

heymccall

Senior Member
Joined
Feb 19, 2007
Messages
5,349
Location
White Oak, Pa
My 248B did the same thing for over a year. The other guy here changed the hydraulic filter and hydraulic restriction switch several times, to no avail. He thought it was a hydraulic warning.

Turns out that the engine oil pressure switch wiring was compromised somewhere between the engine and cab. I did a standalone wire and it's been good for 4 years now.
I have zero clue where it was compromised in the engine harness, though.
 

Werty246

Member
Joined
May 1, 2020
Messages
24
Location
Australia
Regardless of hydraulic fan motor and oil pressure switch dramas. I love this 246 cat. Its a beast. Cuts awesome roads on my hilly block and is a great allrounder on acreage. Thanks to Nige, Shawn, Steve Frazier for all your help comments and posts. This is a great forum. Happy to be a member. Tganks again guys. Werty246
 
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