Oil Over Filled

[jims-terrano]

Hi guys, I took my truck into a local garage last Saturday to change the oil and filter as I just don't have the time at the moment. Anyway today I checked the oil and have discovered that it is a little over filled. The gauge part of the dipstick has two bends in it and the high and low level markings are between the two bends. The oil level is just at the top of the top bend which if you check yours is above the high mark. I checked the oil whilst cold and hasn't been run since yesterday. Fortunately I haven't done much driving since the oil was changed.

Is this harmless or should I take it back and get them to drop some out?

 

[stevew]

i wouldn't worry too much a couple of mm wont hurt. someone i know topped there oil up right to the top of there rocker box:doh that smoked a bit but did no harm,but it did run better when i droped some out for him :thumbs

 

[macabethiel]

Oil light warning.

If it is seriously overfull pretty sure there is a level warning light that will come on. This will often just come on when the engine is hot and running at speed on a motorway as the oil mist / foaming builds up. You can cause major damage if it seriously overfull at the Dealership where I work they never fill Diesels up the the full mark but just halfway or so between the dipstick makings.

When I have slightly overfilled in the past I use a length of Aquarium / Screen washer type tubing and pop it down the dipstick hole, suck and drain into a container. As the pipe is transparent you don't have to get a mouth full.

Its quite slow to drain unless the oi is warm. I use the same pipe for draining PAS fluids, and brake fluid from the reservoir prior to changing and bleeding through the bleed nipples. When finished I wash out the pipe and put it away in the Garage in a safe place and spend 30 minutes looking for it next time I need it ! lol

 

[solarman216]

Hi guys, I took my truck into a local garage last Saturday to change the oil and filter as I just don't have the time at the moment. Anyway today I checked the oil and have discovered that it is a little over filled. The gauge part of the dipstick has two bends in it and the high and low level markings are between the two bends. The oil level is just at the top of the top bend which if you check yours is above the high mark. I checked the oil whilst cold and hasn't been run since yesterday. Fortunately I haven't done much driving since the oil was changed.

Is this harmless or should I take it back and get them to drop some out?

No it is not harmless, the manual of any Turbo engine states you must not overfill, as this can lead to oil being sucked into the turbo with very bad results, as the garage did it take it back to them rather than you risking pulling the drain plug and draining more than you bargand for, macabethiel's method is good but why should you have to muck about with this, Rick

 

[Davey Boy]

Do you Terrano guys check your level oil when warm or cold?

 

[solarman216]

Do you Terrano guys check your level oil when warm or cold?

All engines are supposed to be checked when hot, unless the dip stick is marked with hot and cold marks, this to me has always been an anomaly, as the most convenient time to check is before you start a journey, Rick

 

[don simon]

No it is not harmless, the manual of any Turbo engine states you must not overfill, as this can lead to oil being sucked into the turbo with very bad results, as the garage did it take it back to them rather than you risking pulling the drain plug and draining more than you bargand for, macabethiel's method is good but why should you have to muck about with this, Rick

I'm sure overfilling the oil killed the first turbo on my Pug, the second turbo went because the garage didn't clear all the broken bits from the first turbo blowout.

 

[Banshee]

I've read it should be checked when cold as the oil has all drained back to the sump then, otherwise if you do it warm then the oil hasn't had chance to drain back from the oil cooler etc. :nenau

 

[solarman216]

I've read it should be checked when cold as the oil has all drained back to the sump then, otherwise if you do it warm then the oil hasn't had chance to drain back from the oil cooler etc. :nenau

The whole point is the engine manufacturer has determined an oil level that fills the sump but not so high the the crank hits it when running, this by definition has to be when hot, so to comply with manufacturers specs it should be checked a couple of minutes after shut down, oil drains very quickly when hot, Rick

 

[Davey Boy]

The whole point is the engine manufacturer has determined an oil level that fills the sump but not so high the the crank hits it when running, this by definition has to be when hot, so to comply with manufacturers specs it should be checked a couple of minutes after shut down, oil drains very quickly when hot, Rick

Thanks Rick, I agree, this is an anomaly.

A reading when the oil is cold and settled would be far more accurate.

I think a hot reading has the chance to be so inaccurate.
Taking into account....
1. Ambient temp
2. Oil viscosity.
3. Time elapsed for reading is taken after engine stop.

The Patrol book says take reading when hot. For the ZD30 engine that likes to be full but not overfilled, this is a fine line.

Currently I overfill mine to achieve a hot reading after two minutes of shutdown bang on the top mark. But either side of two minutes this will read differently.:nenau

 

[macabethiel]

Oil level checking my experience over 50 odd years.

On petrol engine vehicles I have owned I would check when up to running temperature.
The difference between hot and cold has been relatively small looking at the dipstick depending where the oil filter is mounted.
With modern top of the engine mounted filters even though they have a valve fitted the drain back into the sump would raise the level to slightly overfull. I have been surprised by how little oil is actually contained in oil coolers making little impact on the dipstick reading as they often don't drain back much.

On diesel engines with turbos I check when hot after standing for around 20 minutes to allow for drain back. I then top up to the top mark, rarely have I had to top up between oil changes that I do every 6k miles. Only exception has been prolonged hot weather and long journeys that tend to lead to a drop in oil level due to the emulsified fluids absorbed by the oil being evaporated off.

I have seen the massive improvement in engine tolerances and block rigidity design during my lifetime. When I ran a Cooper S in the 1960's my engine would need a pint of oil every time I filled her up ! Twin tanks meant 11 gallons at 30 mpg that was a pint of oil every 300 miles or so often a quart in the summer. There was no visible smoke when the consumption increased to a 100 mile for a pint oil !!

The first car I owned that used no oil between changes was a Mk 1 MR2 circa 1990 since then oi consumption seems to be a thing of the past even on engines that have done 100k miles!

 

[jims-terrano]

Phoned the garage today and they said bring it in so I did. Took one of my dogs in the back of the car they asked if I could give them 45 mins so no probelm I'll give you an hour. Had a nice walk up home with the dog, had a cuppa and then took the other dog back down with me. The oil is now at an acceptable level complete with an apology :thumbs

 

[CarpenterRacing]

Daimler V8s used a pint of oil every 100 miles as standard in the 60's.
Mind you, the manual also said bearings needed changing at 40k which meant a full engine out and rebuild! Could you imagine service intervals like that these days?