Difficulty reading dipstick to accurately check oil level?

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I don't know if it's the oil, the color, how thin it seems, etc., but I'm having a really tough time actually seeing how much oil is on the dipstick!

I need your help/advice.

I have a new 2019 Toyota Tacoma with the 3.5L, V6 motor. I drove my truck on a few errands around town to get the motor and oil hot and then I changed my factory fill oil today, with appx. 1,500 miles on it, I refilled with the factory specified 0W-20 TGMO oil and installed the TRD (PTR43-00082 - https://bit.ly/2Y2uo2R) filter rather than the OEM cartridge (04152-YZZA1 - https://bit.ly/2XObs3P) filter.

My manual says my capacity is 6.1 qt. To be on the safe side, I've added, maybe, 5.5 qt., started my truck and let it run for a few minutes to check for leaks and then parked in my garage. For the last few hours, I'm waiting for all oil to drain back into the pan and hoping to be able to get a good read on my dipstick, but it's challenging. I find it very difficult to see where the oil line is!

I'm one of the picky people who likes to get my oil full...without overfilling.

Maybe I'm agonizing too much. Should I just dump in the remaining amount from the quart bottle (it might be about .5 quart?) and call it good?

smile.gif


Thanks for your thoughts!

Ed
 
After an oil change, I add the prescribed quantity, run it a few minutes, park it in the garage, pull & wipe, re-insert part-way, and leave the hood up overnight as a reminder to check it the next morning. Stick & pull the next morning, and check the level under a light fixture. You should be able to see a definite line. If not, you may need glasses. (I have to wear mine to check oil).

I always check oil cold, for consistency.
 
Get those blue shop paper towels and lay it under the hood. Pull the dipstick and rest the end on the paper towel and see where it's wet.
 
The 3.5 we have in the Sienna is similar. Very difficult to check the oil on for the first few thousand miles after a change. I've found that it's easier to check when completely cold and without wiping off at all. Fortunately, I've never had to add a drop in 200,000 miles! (And that's with some OCIs in excess of 10,000 miles with Mobil 1 or similar.)
 
Angle the dipstick in the light you should be able to see it
 
I've given up trying to read my Toyota dipsticks (different engine--both have 3.3L) after running the motor. I have since taken to pulling the dispstick first thing in the morning, before engine is turned on. I don't even wipe it off to insert it back in and then pull it out a second time. I read it with the first pull out, and I can always see clearly where the oil level is.
 
Honda uses an orange plastic dipstick on their newer cars, and it is impossible to see the oil until it darkens during the OCI
mad.gif
 
Similar problem w/1.6 liter Ford Fiesta SE Manual. Hard to see. Also, the marks on the dipsitck do not jive w/reality. I do an oil and filter change, add the prescribed amount of oil, it is never up to the full mark. Even after running the engine, and then checking cold in the morning. Either the marks on the stick are wrong, or the owners manual is wrong.
 
Originally Posted by Nick1994
Get those blue shop paper towels and lay it under the hood. Pull the dipstick and rest the end on the paper towel and see where it's wet.


That's not a bad idea.

The dipstick I have now, and previously on the Mazda, had a hole at the top. I just changed the OE fill @ 1k miles. The oil is very light but you can see it if you look close enough. Once the truck is at operating temperature, wait about 10 minutes then check it.
 
I have three cars ... Honda Pilot has a wonderful etched aluminum tip dipstick which is super easy to read, new oil, old oil, hot, cold. Works awesome. The Mazda has a standard flat steel oil dipstick with high and low notches. Works ok, but seeing brand new oil is a bit of a challenge sometimes. After a few 100 miles, works fine...

The Subaru dipstick is terrible. Check the oil three times in a row, get three different readings. The dipstick itself goes thru an S curve to get to the pan, so half the time the reading is scraped / smudged too much to read. Worst dipstick ever. And, of course, it is the car that actually burns / leaks a measurable amount of oil ... so I need to check it more frequently than the others.
 
Originally Posted by CT8
Put in the rest of the oil to make it 6 qts and drive it.



+1
 
Originally Posted by Nick1994
Get those blue shop paper towels and lay it under the hood. Pull the dipstick and rest the end on the paper towel and see where it's wet.



This is the ticket in my opinion ^^^^^^^
 
Originally Posted by Ed_Flecko
I don't know if it's the oil, the color, how thin it seems, etc., but I'm having a really tough time actually seeing how much oil is on the dipstick!

I need your help/advice.

I have a new 2019 Toyota Tacoma with the 3.5L, V6 motor. I drove my truck on a few errands around town to get the motor and oil hot and then I changed my factory fill oil today, with appx. 1,500 miles on it, I refilled with the factory specified 0W-20 TGMO oil and installed the TRD (PTR43-00082 - https://bit.ly/2Y2uo2R) filter rather than the OEM cartridge (04152-YZZA1 - https://bit.ly/2XObs3P) filter.

My manual says my capacity is 6.1 qt. To be on the safe side, I've added, maybe, 5.5 qt., started my truck and let it run for a few minutes to check for leaks and then parked in my garage. For the last few hours, I'm waiting for all oil to drain back into the pan and hoping to be able to get a good read on my dipstick, but it's challenging. I find it very difficult to see where the oil line is!

I'm one of the picky people who likes to get my oil full...without overfilling.

Maybe I'm agonizing too much. Should I just dump in the remaining amount from the quart bottle (it might be about .5 quart?) and call it good?

smile.gif


Thanks for your thoughts!

Ed

On our 2016 toyota 4 cyl,the manual calls for 4.7 qt. for a change,I use a 5qt. container and the dip stick shows the oil at the full mark,if we try 4.7qt. of oil the reading is all over the dip stick,its never the same reading for 2 oil changes in a row.Go figure!
 
This works. Hard to see oil level check. It's a variation of what I've been doing since shop class in the 70's, and the blue paper towel method. I found ATF can be a PITA to check after a transmission service and fluid exchange.
 
Originally Posted by slacktide_bitog
Honda uses an orange plastic dipstick on their newer cars, and it is impossible to see the oil until it darkens during the OCI
mad.gif



I was going to say the same thing. It's very difficult on my 2012 Civic and my old 2006 Civic to read the orange dipstick.
 
I just use a paper towel. Pull the dipstick and lay the end on the white paper towel and you'll see exactly where the oil level is.
 
Originally Posted by slacktide_bitog
Honda uses an orange plastic dipstick on their newer cars, and it is impossible to see the oil until it darkens during the OCI
mad.gif



Is an aftermarket metal one available?
 
A good case to use Royal Purple?
lol.gif


My Mazda 3 is the same. Very hard to read with fresh oil, but I've learned to live with it and look at various angles to see the light reflect from the wet oil.
Plus I know it takes 4 liters to get it to the full mark.
 
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