Oil pressure warning light is always on, 2004 Suzuki GS500F

[mishchea]

Hi,

I'm looking for advice about my GS500F. The oil light is on.

I believe it's been on for quite some time, and I was just riding on it not realizing that it's a potentially serious problem.

I had the bike in winter storage with a local shop, and when they took it out of storage they said that the light is on because of a faulty sensor. They've since replaced the sensor, but the oil light is still on. It's on the second you turn the bike on, with the engine off, cold, and it does not go off after the bike warms up.

I've gone on some longer (1–2 hour) rides recently, so it seems like the bike probably has oil pressure.

A buddy checked the wiring and it looks like the electronics are good, so the sensor actually believes there is no oil pressure. Now both my buddy and the guys at the shop suggest that it's a clog of some sort.

Is there anything I can do myself to try to diagnose this? Is there a guide somewhere about how to measure the oil pressure? Is this a common problem with these bikes? I've done a fair bit of googling and I don't see others complaining about this.

Thanks,
Andrey

[The Buddha]

Sensor is bolted to the bottom of the case @ the under side of the ignition advancer plate. By your right foot, under that round cover.
Cool.
Buddha.

[mishchea]

Thanks, but I already knew where the sensor is.

[Big Rich]

It's one of 3 problems:

1) Bad wiring grounded out
2) Zero oil pressure, sensor working fine
3) Faulty sensor

You say the wiring has already been checked (no offense, but check again since it's cheap and easy), and the engine hasn't chewed itself up from oil starvation. ....what's left? Pull the sensor out and test it for continuity with a multimeter.