Thinking about oil pressure monitoring for the 1.0 Ecoboost.

For a given temperature and viscosity the oil pressure will be the same at a given engine speed so if it drops, there is a problem. If it is not possible to have a display on the instrument panel, I wonder if  I could make a small data logger that would analyse the trend and warn me before the game over light comes on.

I would need to sense:  engine cycle starts. Temperature ok, revs at threshold then oil pressure.

Compute against average of  100 readings  from 100 engine cycles ago should give a decent reading. 

47 minutes ago, anon said:

game over light comes on

I like that !! 🤣

That would be a much better way of labeling the light and make it easier for the many who drive round with flashing on and off - but its OK because they've checked the oil level.

What about if you monitored the oil pressure for example 5 minutes after the engine was started and had a tolerance band that the pressure must remain within under normal running. Then you could set an alarm if oil pressure is out side of the limits for more than say 1 minute.

I expect that when problems with oil pressure (or lack of it) are developing it probably takes more than a couple of days before it reaches the point when the "Game Over" light comes on. Monitoring would at least give an advanced warning that normal operating pressure was consistently below what it should be.

The data logger idea would work but could in practice be difficult implement as it will require a number of inputs, and need quite a bit of work to connect it up.

I don't think so. A pick up from a plug lead, a tap in from the temperature sender and an oil sender will do the lot. It is all that you need. You need to have all three parameters at the same point and possibly also have to detect an open throttle so the pump is at pressure. Fitting a sender is no big deal and an Arduino will not only do the computation but store the trend data. There are displays that are small and fairly easy to site without having to drill a 2 inch hole in the fascia and there are all sorts of cunning plans that could Bluetooth the data to the central display.

The trend indication might be better by computing temperature and then time from start to a known pressure. This should catch debris buildup before it becomes an issue. Developing the idea, start temperature, start cycle, time to pressure from cold start, taking a database of engine starts to idle over two minute intervals from cold which will give twenty startup temperatures on the map to cover seasonal variations. That would be even easier.

Time to pressure is just when the switch opens. Temperature  signal comes out of the sensor. The starter solenoid will be the trigger so that the car learns quickly with the help of the Stop/start to populate a data table for calibration which should create a map within a couple of weeks driving. Three wires carrying signals. Once the map has been established, it can be used as a look up table whenever the engine starts. 5% time increase  averaged over 50 readings would be a warning to get the sump off.

Or, make a modified sump with an inspection plate, of course! I would need to create a gasket but if you could get to the oil pump strainer, you could clean it out every 24,000 miles which should sort the problem. Need a comprehensively mangled Ecoboost motor to get some dimensions from. 

This is coming along. My alloy welding guru will weld a web onto the sump with a ring of bolts around an o ring groove for a nitrile O ring. The section will be about 6 mm deeper than the normal sump and the 4 mm cover will be alloy but fitted with a couple of bolted on magnets on the basis that swarf that doesn't go through the pump is the only tolerable type. Time to dig out some alloy plate and rig the lathe up.