Car is 1994 Camaro LT1 with 29,400 miles.

I have read that this is normal but I am paranoid and just want to be sure, can anyone take a look at this vid and tell me it is or is not normal? Thanks in advance.

This is warm idle, car has Mobil 1 5w30 in it (because that is what Pep Boys put in it).

Is oil pressure and / or idle too low?

VID 20131016 165926 - YouTube

 

You can not trust factory gages. They are about the cheapest gages on the planet. You should confirm the oil pressure before anything else. If I had to guess I would say that 90% of warrant claims for low oil pressure end up being gage issues. If the complaint is low oil pressure and valve tap, then it is a lot more likely to be low oil pressure.Rule of thumb you need 10 PSI of oil pressure per 1000 RPMs to avoid damage of the bearings.

FYI: what you are seeing would be normal if you had 150K on the motor. 29K better hope its a bad gage.

 

Something I can buy to check myself or need mechanic?

If I am idleing at 500-700rpm wouldn't 20psi be good based on the rule of thumb?

 

You can buy a mechnical oil gauge for verification.
Oil pressure is good, because of thin oil. Idle rpm is good.
At operating temp, the viscosity changes to SAE 5W, when cold, SAE 30.
Thin oil for less power to pump means better MPG - the thought process.
My thought - BS.
You can try a 10W30 and smooth your paranoia. Fifteen PSIG is good at low idle.

 

This is where my paranoia and confusion lie, everything I have researched one guy says too low another says its normal

Here she is first thing this morning (cold idle):

VID 20131017 052808 - YouTube

Both inputs are appreciated.

 

So you're about 50 cold and below 20 hot. That's low, for an engine with only 29k miles on it. My LT1, with 106k miles, has 70 psi on a cold engine, and once it warms up, at idle it drops to 40. It might go down to 30, but it would be on a hot hot day. Is where you're at dangerous, no. But I'd check the integrity of your gauge and/or oil pressure switch first before worrying about it being engine related.
5w30 (w=winter) means the oil has the viscosity of 5 when cold for easier starting, but when hot the oil doesn't get any "thinner" than a straight 30 weight would. It does NOT mean the oil starts out at 5 and then magically "thickens" to a 30 weight when it gets hot, 30 is just a comparison number. I prefer to use 10w40 in my engines, during the summer. If you're going into the cold winter months (I don't know where you are), then I'd leave in what you have.

 

That is what worries me, in another thread I talked about this car and everything about it outside of the odometer and the carfax report seems to indicate a higher mileage car.

I will have my mechanic buddy check it out and see if we can figure out the issues.

What is the solution (assuming gauges are accurate)? New oil pump?

I'm in Chicago area so it is getting cold (and she is going into storage for the winter soon).

 

I know about Chicago area weather, I'm there too. Oil gets more fluid when it gets hot, and bearing tolerances can change due to heat expansion of dissimilar metals. That alone will cause the oil pressure to drop on a hot engine, because there is less resistance to the oil flow. That, to an extent, is normal. If you check your oil pressure with a mechanical gauge, and it registers the same as your dash gauge, then it's more likely to be because of having worn main and rod bearings. Oil pump is a possibility, but highly unlikely at only 29k miles. Also, 29k miles on an almost 20 year old car means the car sat most of it's life. Long term inactivity can sometimes be as bad or worse for an engine than if it was run more frequently.
What is the red flag on the carfax report that makes you doubt the actual mileage? At 29k, your car should look almost like new.

 

Here is what makes sense:
1. Carfax report - shows mileage steadily climbing very small amounts over the years (via emissions testing), no logical place where shenanigans would have taken place.

2. Odometer - shows 29,400 miles

3. I replaced rotors / brakes - rotors were rusted, presumably from the car sitting as I was told it did.

Here is what doesnt make sense:
1. Oil pressure.

2. Had to replace tires and struts - not sure if sitting could have caused the struts to leak

3. Optispark and water pump were replaced in 2010 by previous owner - should that have been needed based on age since miles are low?

Sent you an incredibly forward email asking if you would take a look at it for me and give me your opinion....

 

Yes, the brake rotors can get trashed from the car sitting. I've had it happen inside of a year where the semi-metallic pads ate into the rotors and left a low spot in the shape of the pads.
From sitting, shocks and struts can form rust on the exposed shaft, then tear the seal when the jagged rust pushes past the seal.
The optispark is just a distributor, but a weird one by normal standards. Humidity/moisture can cause corrosion to form inside the cap and muck up the optics and contacts. It probably only needed a cap and rotor replacement, but once you're in that far you might as well replace the whole unit.
The water pump bearings could have gone to heck from sitting so long, possibly by formed acid in the coolant attacking it. If the miles really are that low, there's a good chance the cooling system may have never been flushed, which is bad.
Everything you mention is not so far fetched for them to self destruct just from sitting, especially depending on how and where the car was stored. Was it exposed to a lot of dampness or humidity? Again, inactivity can sometimes be worse than putting miles on the car.