'Oil down 1 qt, etc.' How do you know?

[wemay]

How does one know by how many quarts the oil level is down when checking the dip-stick?

(just curious since i read this a lot. My oil level is fine so far)

 

[HerrStig]

The owner's manual, if well written, usually has a table which shows when it's down a quart, which seems to be the standard measure.

 

[skaughtz]

It usually says in your manual what the difference between the high and low marks are on your dipstick. For example, that range is 1.2 quarts on my '07 Camry. So just gauging it by your eyes, if it is halfway between those marks I know that I am down about a half a quart.

 

[DemoFly]

I've never experienced a passenger vehicle where the difference on the dipstick wasn't 1 quart.

Some commercial equipment I've worked on with 14+ quart sumps the difference is 2 quarts.

 

[RedOakRanch]

My 1953 D4 is one gallon on the dipstick. And it burns a gallon a day with heavy use. All my engines have included that info in the manual.

 

[stchman]

My truck takes 6 quarts of oil. Just for grins, I added 5 quarts of oil on an oil change, started it up and checked the dipstick after a few minutes. The dipstick was dry. I added the 6th quart and waited a few minutes. The level was on the full mark. I concluded that the min and max marks on the dipstick is ~1/2 quart.

This by no means reflects EVERY car. The only way to truly say "my car was 1 quart down" is to actually ADD 1 quart and see if it indeed puts the level back on the full mark.

 

[HTSS_TR]

Originally Posted By: DemoFly
I've never experienced a passenger vehicle where the difference on the dipstick wasn't 1 quart.

Some commercial equipment I've worked on with 14+ quart sumps the difference is 2 quarts.

The difference on the 2000 MB E430 dipstick is 1.5 quarts.

 

[SirTanon]

Originally Posted By: stchman
My truck takes 6 quarts of oil. Just for grins, I added 5 quarts of oil on an oil change, started it up and checked the dipstick after a few minutes. The dipstick was dry. I added the 6th quart and waited a few minutes. The level was on the full mark. I concluded that the min and max marks on the dipstick is ~1/2 quart.

This by no means reflects EVERY car. The only way to truly say "my car was 1 quart down" is to actually ADD 1 quart and see if it indeed puts the level back on the full mark.


This is essentially what I do. How many to get from the "just a tiny dot at the end of the dipstick" point, to the "min" mark, and then to the "max" mark? You then have a working scale to figure out roughly how much you are 'low'

 

[raytseng]

You first look in owner's manual.

But also, after you've owned your car for some time, and you've had the occasion to top off, you'll also learn through practice how much it takes to go from low to high.

 

[Quattro Pete]

Originally Posted By: wemay
How does one know by how many quarts the oil level is down when checking the dip-stick?

(just curious since i read this a lot. My oil level is fine so far)

I guess you need to look in the owner's manual, as this is not standard by any means. For my 530i, the manual says that the volume between min and max on the dipstick is 1 liter (1.1 quarts).

As for the Q5, it does not come with a dipstick from the factory, and the only thing the manual says is that when you get the low oil level warning, to add 0.5 qt and then check the oil level (through the onboard computer).

 

[turtlevette]

Originally Posted By: Quattro Pete
For my 530i, the manual says that the volume between min and max on the dipstick is 1 liter (1.1 quarts).




That's not even worth mentioning. Its 1.8 oz difference.

 

[Quattro Pete]

Originally Posted By: turtlevette
Originally Posted By: Quattro Pete
For my 530i, the manual says that the volume between min and max on the dipstick is 1 liter (1.1 quarts).




That's not even worth mentioning. Its 1.8 oz difference.


I'm just quoting the owner's manual.

 

[wemay]

Just checked my manuals and it only states the level should be between L and F. No mention of what the value between those two is.

Thanks for the replies.

 

[Merkava_4]

You divide the space between ADD and FULL into 4 equal parts. Each 1/4 of the distance between ADD and FULL represents 1 cup. It gets even easier if the dipstick has holes in it. Mine has 5 holes between ADD and FULL.

 

[Quattro Pete]

Originally Posted By: Merkava_4
You divide the space between ADD and FULL into 4 equal parts. Each 1/4 of the distance between ADD and FULL represents 1 cup.

You're assuming it takes 1 quart to go from ADD to FULL, but it is not always the case, as many previous responses illustrate.

 

[Merkava_4]

Originally Posted By: Quattro Pete
You're assuming it takes 1 quart to go from ADD to FULL, but it is not always the case, as many previous responses illustrate.


If it's not one quart between ADD and FULL, the engineers are bunch of lunkheads and people shouldn't be buying a car from such an abominable manufacturer.

 

[Quattro Pete]

Merk, I'm sure you pass on otherwise great cars just because it's not 1 qt between ADD and FULL. Most people don't.

For cars with large oil sumps, being 1 qt low may not be a big deal, as that 1 qt may only represent 10% of the overall capacity. Now, if your car has a 3qt sump, being 1 qt low means you're missing 33% of the overall capacity, which likely is a big deal.

I guess what I'm saying is that requiring a manufacturer to maintain 1qt difference between ADD and FULL regardless of sump volume is silly, and I would not expect them to adhere to it if they have smart engineers in the house. However, I would expect the owner's manual to clearly state the amount of oil needed to go from ADD to FULL so that there is no misunderstanding.

 

[Merkava_4]

Originally Posted By: Quattro Pete
However, I would expect the owner's manual to clearly state the amount of oil needed to go from ADD to FULL so that there is no misunderstanding.


I'll agree with you on that point.

 

[Dallas69]

Every car I've owned was 1qt between full and add marks.

 

[THX1138]

Our '03 Volvo manual states it's approx. 1.5 quarts between the marks. The dipstick has 6 cross-hatched areas between the marks, so I figure 0.25 quart for each section between the marks. Different, I know. Manual also says 6.1 quarts for oil fill with filter change. But it always takes 6.5 quarts. Think I'll check the manual again.