RedJeepster1
Active member
First off, sorry for the long post. Started looking into my run issue last night after the axles got picked up. Some info I have so far.
Jeep performs as normal when cold. No issues, you would think nothing was wrong. Run issue started to show up after driving a few miles when the vehicle is up to temp.
When accelerating, the Jeep will completely cut out, lose power, gauge cluster shuts down, check engine light clears, as if the battery was unhooked. This happens only for a split second, and then the vehicle comes back to life. It's fast enough that the engine never stops spinning. However, if often happens many times in a row. Jeep will cut out and catch itself 4-5 times until I change find a throttle position where it will keep running without cutting out.
Whatever is causing the issue is somehow related to the oil pressure sending unit. This is either a shared 5V or ground or something similar because the oil pressure sender no longer works. It is either the cause or was shorted as a result of the actual cause. Currently the gauge reads 10 psi whenever the key is on. Running or not, regardless of RPM. Typically this engine makes 50 psi cold and 20 at a hot idle. Engine is still quiet with no ticks or knocks, I don't suspect any sort of oil pressure issue, just a sensor issue.
This issue only happens when the vehicle is in gear. When I am in park, I can rev the engine as much as I want to any RPM or throttle position. It runs normally. Once in gear, it will cut out as described above.
What I have checked so far:
All my hot and ground wires appear to be tight and clean. Tonight I am going to remove them all and clean and reattach them anyway to be sure.
Wires going to oil pressure sensor still have sheathing on them and are are not rubbing anywhere that I can see. Tonight I will be pulling the sheathing back and doing a better check, as well as replacing the oil pressure sender with a spare from my parts Jeep.
The Jeep did throw an engine code multiple times but it was always instantly cleared before I was able to check it because the engine would die again so quickly afterwards.
Other info:
Jeep is charging and shows 14V when running
All battery cables are about 2 years old, 2 gauge with copper connections and marine terminals on the battery
Being a 2000 it's a coil pack motor, no distributor. Cam sensor is only a month or two old.
I don't know when the crank sensor was last replaced. I know they typically go when hot. I need to check if the crank sensor is on the same circuit as the oil pressure sending unit.
When running, all other gauges work other than the oil pressure which reads 10 psi.
Anyone have thoughts on what I should look into first? I have literally a Jeep load of spare parts and sensors at the house (literally an XJ loaded with 2 or 3 XJ's worth of spare parts) so I plan to do some swapping of sensors tonight to see if any of that will make a difference.Just didn't have time to dig into it last night.
Jeep performs as normal when cold. No issues, you would think nothing was wrong. Run issue started to show up after driving a few miles when the vehicle is up to temp.
When accelerating, the Jeep will completely cut out, lose power, gauge cluster shuts down, check engine light clears, as if the battery was unhooked. This happens only for a split second, and then the vehicle comes back to life. It's fast enough that the engine never stops spinning. However, if often happens many times in a row. Jeep will cut out and catch itself 4-5 times until I change find a throttle position where it will keep running without cutting out.
Whatever is causing the issue is somehow related to the oil pressure sending unit. This is either a shared 5V or ground or something similar because the oil pressure sender no longer works. It is either the cause or was shorted as a result of the actual cause. Currently the gauge reads 10 psi whenever the key is on. Running or not, regardless of RPM. Typically this engine makes 50 psi cold and 20 at a hot idle. Engine is still quiet with no ticks or knocks, I don't suspect any sort of oil pressure issue, just a sensor issue.
This issue only happens when the vehicle is in gear. When I am in park, I can rev the engine as much as I want to any RPM or throttle position. It runs normally. Once in gear, it will cut out as described above.
What I have checked so far:
All my hot and ground wires appear to be tight and clean. Tonight I am going to remove them all and clean and reattach them anyway to be sure.
Wires going to oil pressure sensor still have sheathing on them and are are not rubbing anywhere that I can see. Tonight I will be pulling the sheathing back and doing a better check, as well as replacing the oil pressure sender with a spare from my parts Jeep.
The Jeep did throw an engine code multiple times but it was always instantly cleared before I was able to check it because the engine would die again so quickly afterwards.
Other info:
Jeep is charging and shows 14V when running
All battery cables are about 2 years old, 2 gauge with copper connections and marine terminals on the battery
Being a 2000 it's a coil pack motor, no distributor. Cam sensor is only a month or two old.
I don't know when the crank sensor was last replaced. I know they typically go when hot. I need to check if the crank sensor is on the same circuit as the oil pressure sending unit.
When running, all other gauges work other than the oil pressure which reads 10 psi.
Anyone have thoughts on what I should look into first? I have literally a Jeep load of spare parts and sensors at the house (literally an XJ loaded with 2 or 3 XJ's worth of spare parts) so I plan to do some swapping of sensors tonight to see if any of that will make a difference.Just didn't have time to dig into it last night.
