Too much oil?
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Junior User
Joined: Sep 2010
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Thanks y'all for all the thoughts. I want to assume that I am still under the max fuel dilution number since no one has yet reported an oil sample where they have exceeded 4% or so. My concern is that at 4% this would still increase total oil volume by 1/2 a quart. I guess my question is still whether I should try to drain the oil down so its in the dipstick range or not worry about since there appears to be at least a 1/2qt worth of measurement error on these crappy dipsticks anyway (the comment about the different readings on the cable vs the blade dipsticks shows that FMC is not super concerned about oil level accuracy).
Any opinions - drain or just leave it alone. Thanks
Any opinions - drain or just leave it alone. Thanks
Post Fiend
Joined: Apr 2004
Posts: 5,158
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From: North of Salt Lake City
I would not want to have too much oil in my engine. Too much oil = extra pressure on seals, etc. I'd get under there with a pan and see if I could remove some. Might make a mess but would be worth it.
Postmaster
Joined: Sep 2006
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From: Maryland
It's easy enough to drain some off if you are that worried about it, but I don't see what it's going to hurt. Unless the crankcase is so full that oil in the sump is coming into contact with moving parts (i.e. the crank) or preventing oil from draining down off the top of the valvetrain, it should not cause any problems.
As far as the percentage of contamination goes, I once believed that the number they are giving you was an actual percentage of total volume, but have been told otherwise. Hopefully one of the oil analysis gurus will chime in and enlighten us.
As far as the percentage of contamination goes, I once believed that the number they are giving you was an actual percentage of total volume, but have been told otherwise. Hopefully one of the oil analysis gurus will chime in and enlighten us.
Senior User
Joined: Apr 2011
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From: Sugar Land, TX
It's easy enough to drain some off if you are that worried about it, but I don't see what it's going to hurt. Unless the crankcase is so full that oil in the sump is coming into contact with moving parts (i.e. the crank) or preventing oil from draining down off the top of the valvetrain, it should not cause any problems.
As far as the percentage of contamination goes, I once believed that the number they are giving you was an actual percentage of total volume, but have been told otherwise. Hopefully one of the oil analysis gurus will chime in and enlighten us.
As far as the percentage of contamination goes, I once believed that the number they are giving you was an actual percentage of total volume, but have been told otherwise. Hopefully one of the oil analysis gurus will chime in and enlighten us.
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For those of you with the flat metal oil stick, here are a couple of pictures of the challenge we cable type guys are dealing with. These are 2 pulls of the oil dip stick after a 12 hour soak. Am I overfilled? If I do this several times, it will be sometimes up on the cable, sometimes in the hatched area.
You will notice on the second pull that there is some oil up near the cable.
You will notice on the second pull that there is some oil up near the cable.
Postmaster
Joined: Sep 2006
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From: Maryland
Been there done that and it's nowhere near as difficult as everybody seems to want to believe. My first oil change resulted in a 1 quart overfill due to a miscount on the 1 qt bottles. I carefully pulled the plug our far enough that it still interupted the oil stream and just took a wild guess at when approximately 1 qt was in the pan. The plug went back in with no issue. I'm not going to lie and say that it wasn't messy, but other than my hand and having to wipe the plug/pan off with a rag, it wasn't all that bad.
Senior User
Joined: Apr 2011
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From: Sugar Land, TX
For those of you with the flat metal oil stick, here are a couple of pictures of the challenge we cable type guys are dealing with. These are 2 pulls of the oil dip stick after a 12 hour soak. Am I overfilled? If I do this several times, it will be sometimes up on the cable, sometimes in the hatched area.
You will notice on the second pull that there is some oil up near the cable.
You will notice on the second pull that there is some oil up near the cable.
Maybe Epic will trade with me since he says in his video that he wants the cable.
Posting Guru
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These pictures are a perfect example of what I'm getting. Before leaving on a camping trip a few weeks ago, I pulled it just to check - no oil whatsoever. Stuck it back in and it came up with oil all the way up on the cable with the hashmarks totally covered. I'm thinking of ordering the old school flat one where the bottom hole is a qt. low and the top hole is a qt. high.
Maybe Epic will trade with me since he says in his video that he wants the cable.
Maybe Epic will trade with me since he says in his video that he wants the cable.
I'm do for an oil change. Maybe I will just drain it and measure everything...
Post Fiend
Joined: Apr 2004
Posts: 5,158
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From: North of Salt Lake City
These pictures are a perfect example of what I'm getting. Before leaving on a camping trip a few weeks ago, I pulled it just to check - no oil whatsoever. Stuck it back in and it came up with oil all the way up on the cable with the hashmarks totally covered. I'm thinking of ordering the old school flat one where the bottom hole is a qt. low and the top hole is a qt. high.
Maybe Epic will trade with me since he says in his video that he wants the cable.
Maybe Epic will trade with me since he says in his video that he wants the cable.
I've found that if you pull the dipstick up a couple of inches and pause 5 seconds before pulling it through the tube it produces better results. Repeated readings deposit oil inside the tube and on the cable. The more you dip and pull, the less reliable the read.
I've also noticed that the normal reading is in a very narrow range. If you have 13 quarts in the engine, it reads right at the point where the cable joins the end or exactly as Maurader shows. Last time I filled 12 quarts and the reading came up right at the bottom of the cross-hatch. I haven't tried 12 and a half but I'd wager it would be easily readable right in the middle of the fill range.
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Only Ford could make something as simple as measuring your oil this complicated... So, Epic, if I am hearing you right, I should see oil all up to the bullet shaped tip right where the cable meets the measurement piece if I am holding 13 quarts?
Post Fiend
Joined: Apr 2004
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From: North of Salt Lake City
I just changed my oil last night and added 13 quarts. My dipstick reads exactly like yours. I know I have the right amount of oil in the engine and I know where it measures on the stick therefore THAT is where "normal" is. If Ford comes out and says 12 and a half quarts is what we should put in the engine, the dipstick would read properly.