Engine Oil Temp
Senior Member
Joined: Mar 2021
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Consider the following; often the >>oil pressure << and cooling system >>temperature failure<< modes are combined into one monitor.
The reason is failure of either one can result in engine damage.
Bottom line is by combining the two, either one can be active to save the engine before permeant damage occurs.
Oil temps can run way above cooling temps such that oil temps if too high, is already to late to save from damage.
You really don't need a separate monitor unless your racing 500 miles on a race track and see the temp climbing toward a limit.
That's not what we do on the street.
Transmission temp is monitored and can be seen directly in the Dash display but not it's cooling system temps that is a sperate cooling circuit.
Both are important but the highest temp system gets preference and covers the lower one.
Good luck.
The reason is failure of either one can result in engine damage.
Bottom line is by combining the two, either one can be active to save the engine before permeant damage occurs.
Oil temps can run way above cooling temps such that oil temps if too high, is already to late to save from damage.
You really don't need a separate monitor unless your racing 500 miles on a race track and see the temp climbing toward a limit.
That's not what we do on the street.
Transmission temp is monitored and can be seen directly in the Dash display but not it's cooling system temps that is a sperate cooling circuit.
Both are important but the highest temp system gets preference and covers the lower one.
Good luck.
Last edited by Bluegrass; Jun 8, 2023 at 10:56 PM.
5 Year Member
Joined: Nov 2016
Posts: 3,263
Likes: 1,177
^^This^^
Ford has had this philosophy for a very long time about combining failure monitors into one warning when they could result in engine damage. When they started moving from full gauges to mostly warning lights in the late 60's they didn't have separate oil pressure and temperature warning lights, they had one light that said "Engine". In the '90's the trucks started using a "Check Gauges" light.
Oil temperature will usually run higher than coolant temperature but as Bluegrass stated oil temp can run much higher than coolant temp. Also keep in mind Ford doesn't use coolant temperature sensors either, they calculate coolant temperature based on cylinder head temperature,. You should think of the coolant temperature gauge more as a engine temperature gauge.
Ford has had this philosophy for a very long time about combining failure monitors into one warning when they could result in engine damage. When they started moving from full gauges to mostly warning lights in the late 60's they didn't have separate oil pressure and temperature warning lights, they had one light that said "Engine". In the '90's the trucks started using a "Check Gauges" light.
Oil temperature will usually run higher than coolant temperature but as Bluegrass stated oil temp can run much higher than coolant temp. Also keep in mind Ford doesn't use coolant temperature sensors either, they calculate coolant temperature based on cylinder head temperature,. You should think of the coolant temperature gauge more as a engine temperature gauge.