Question About Checking Oil

[jestevens]

Thanks everyone, he ended up refilling it to the top mark while warm, which from what he says just reaches the low mark when cold. It seems strange to me but he's driving the car around and there don't seem to be any issues - no oil light, etc. The Car Talk guys did a blog post saying that some manufacturers have started to calibrate the stick to measure when the engine is warm .. that's the only reason I can think for this discrepancy. No burning oil smell or visible leaks under so.. I agree that I would rather fill while cold but he also doesn't want to overfill.

My mom -used- to drive a leftover Chevy Vega in the 80's - she just kept a case of oil in the back and added a little bit every time she stopped for an errand..

[dspace9]

Thanks everyone, he ended up refilling it to the top mark while warm, which from what he says just reaches the low mark when cold. It seems strange to me but he's driving the car around and there don't seem to be any issues - no oil light, etc. The Car Talk guys did a blog post saying that some manufacturers have started to calibrate the stick to measure when the engine is warm .. that's the only reason I can think for this discrepancy. No burning oil smell or visible leaks under so.. I agree that I would rather fill while cold but he also doesn't want to overfill.

My mom -used- to drive a leftover Chevy Vega in the 80's - she just kept a case of oil in the back and added a little bit every time she stopped for an errand..

I drove around with oil in my '85 Rabbit... that was just the reality. The VW would overheat as well in the hot weather. Happy to hear things worked out cheers!

[Loren]

Pffth. My first car was a 1973 Ford Maverick, I think I was the third teenager to own it. That car burned a quart of oil every 200 miles when I bought it... and before I had the engine rebuilt, it was closer to a quart every 50! I had to put oil in it more often than gas! I didn't just keep oil in the car, I kept a quart under the hood next to the battery, along with an oil spout wrapped in a rag!

For those of you who are under 45 years old, oil used to come in cans, not bottles. We had these fancy oil spouts that would jam into the top of the can to open it and neatly pour it.

[Top_Fuel]

...We had these fancy oil spouts...

I couldn't afford an oil spout. I just jammed a screwdriver into the top of the can a couple of times.

[dspace9]

Times have changed..

[Loren]

I couldn't afford an oil spout. I just jammed a screwdriver into the top of the can a couple of times.

I was dumping in a quart of oil twice a day, I had to be more efficient than that! But, before I went that route... screwdrivers... pocket knives... whatever was available! I'm pretty sure one of the scars on my finger came from jabbing an oil can with a knife.