99 Intrepid Oil Pressure Problem Need Help

I replaced the timing chain and the oil and water pump. After doing this, I have no oil pressure. I hooked up a mechanical guage where the pressure sensor is and it reads zero. I have unscrewed the tubing from my pressure guage and no oil came out of it so I do not think oil is making it that far. I know the pump is pumping oil because I pulled the oil filter off, turned over the motor and had oil all over the floor in my garage. I am going to try a new oil filter today to see if possibly it is defective. If it is not the oil filter, does anyone know if the oil passage goes straight from the filter to the oil sending unit area. If so and this passage is plugged some how, does anyone have any suggestions for clearing it out.

I am at a loss because before I started replacing the parts, I had oil pressure.

did you prime the new oil pump before you installed it in the engine?

I packed it with vasoline and it is pumping oil. Last night I put a new oil filter on and I unscrewed the pressure guage from the block. Oil did come out but not under any pressure.
I took of the right side valve cover and turned the motor over. The vent hole and accumulator appear to be getting oil (there was fresh oul at the vent hole) but there is just no pressure. My new tensioner is not getting any oil and from what I read that is the last thing that gets oil.
Where does the actual pressure build up from, is it from the pressure release valve? That is one thing I have not checked yet. I did not oil that when I put the new pump in.

Thanks for the help. It has baffled me on how I could have pressure before but not after.

Did you make sure that the oil pick up tube was mounted to the new oil pump properly. Usually there's an O-ring and if that O-ring is missing, you could have a significant pressure drop right there. What I meant by priming the oil pump is the suggested method of doing that is remove all your spark plugs, and crank the engine over; that will allow the pump to build the pressure it needs. If you didn't do that, you could cause chaos in your engine.

When I took the pickup tube off, I checked the O-Ring and it looked in good shape. I did not replace it with a new one.

When I first started this, I left the old oil pump in, started the car and that is when I noticed no oil pressure. Then I replaced it with the new pump and I have the same problem.

I did not prime the new pump that way. From what I read in the hayes manual, start the car wait 5 - 10 seconds and the tensioner should stop clicking. Mine didn't so I stopped the motor.

Tonight I am going to remove the presure release valve and inspect that.

Do you have any other things that I can look at?

If you had no oil pressure from the old pump, I'd first take off the oil pickup tube and see if it's clogged; if necessary, replace that pickup tube.

I got it figured out. I dropped the oil pan again last night and was going to take the oil pressure relief valve out. Well, it was in there tight and I could not get it with what I had.

So, I took the pan over to the bench and started cleaning the rim up, wiping off excese oil and such. I noticed that where the gasket sits, it is real shiny. It looks almost brand new. Now where the inlet and outlet for the oil filter goes was shiny as well. I could not figure out why it was shiny. I pulled the metal gasket off of the pan, put liquid gasket around the pan and the inlet and outlet for the oil filter. Guess what, I have pressure again.

When I started this project, I took pictures of the car at different stages. I had a picture of the oil pan when I first took it out. Guess what was in the picture, the gasket that went around the oil filter inlet and outlet. I must have taken it off, wiped it down and put it some where so I would not forget it.

I thought I was so organized when I started taking this apart. This proves two points. When you are an amature doing this type of project, you can not afford to miss anything and its the little things that will get you.

Thanks for all of your help on this.