low oil pressure alarm on 1996 pontiac bonneville

Your going to have to check the actual oil pressure when its acting up with a manual oil pressure gauge. Remove the oil pressure sender and install the manual gauge, this will allow you to see the actual oil pressure

Check out the guide below on low oil pressure... it will help

https://www.2carpros.com/articles/high-or-low-engine-oil-pressure

My 2001 Pontiac Bonneville has 333,000 miles on it and still runs excellent. The problem is lately I have noticed that the oil pressure has dropped to around 40psi. It used to run around 60psi. Is this a warning that the oil pump is failing? Is it a big job to replace the oil pump? I plan on driving this car for a long time yet. Thanks. notapromike

Check the oil pressure with a mechanical gauge,if normal replace the oil pressure switch. If abnormal could mean oil pump and engine bearing.

1st check the oil- I bet it is low. dummy

My friend recieved a 1993 Pontiac Bonneville 3.8L N.A. with 115k from his grandma after about 7k of him driving, the other day his oil pressure dropped to just above the redline and you can hear a loud knocking. We checked the oil and it's full and had a recent oil change less than a 1000 miles ago. He ended up buying a newer car and sold me the Bonneville for $500. He put new suspension ( for 93 - 95 SSEI ) and aftermarket brakes, new tires and rims ( roughly $1,500 ). Is it worth fixing ( don't know if it's bearings or oil pump, or whatever ) or should I purchased a crate/rebuilt 3.8L and transmission and pay tyo have it in. ( if an engine and tranny w/ instalation is less than $2500, I figured it's a deal ). What would be a good idea, and what do you think it might be?

The only way to find out is to actually check the oil pressure with a mechanical gauge oil pump okay-you might be dealing with engine bearings that might be causing the knocking