What is the proper method of checking you oil?

I check after the car is warm at tank fills.

As the car fills I check it. That's usually at least a minute after the cars been shut off warm.

I read turn the stick over and read the back.

I then fill it and check as I fill.

I was told at the track today that maybe one side of the stick is for cold checking and one side for warm checking. Is this true?

Which side is which if so.

Thanks...
-mikey

 

[QUOTE]Originally posted by neko_cat
What is the proper method of checking you oil?

I check after the car is warm at tank fills.

As the car fills I check it.

 

The easiest and best time to check the oil in any car is first thing in the day BEFORE you start the car for the first time, HOWEVER, this is NOT the way Honda wants us to do it (they want a hot check). So, this is what I recommend you should do (as your last use of the car for the day):
Make sure your engine has reached operating temp remembering that the oil temp can be a bit behind the water temp (3 bars). Cool oil will not drain back down into the pan efficiently.
Stop the car on a known level surface and shut off engine. Immediately go out and pull the dipstick, clean it off and leave it out. Wait 3 - 5 minutes. This will allow the oil to drain back into the pan, including any oil that is in the dipstick hole. The presence of the dipstick would interfere with this process and give you a "splotchy" and poorly defined oil line.
When the time is up, put the stick back all the way in for a couple of seconds and pull it out. You should be able to get a good read. You should also discover that the difference between one side and the other should be no more than 1/2 to 1 "X" if done this way. Take note of this reading. You have just done the required "hot" check.
If you are home, great. If not, then take the car home and park it for the night where you usually park it.
The next day, before you start the engine, pull out the dipstick, clean it and put it back in for another reading. This reading will now be the "cold" reading and also on the type of ground you normally park on (level or not, doesn't matter). As the oil has had all night to settle and also to fall out of the dipstick hole, you should be getting a clear read. Compare this reading with the one you got "hot" and on the level and note the difference. Now whenever you need to top up to full, you will know where you need to fill it to in the most convenient place to do this check - your home and without having to wait the 3 - 5 minutes for the oil to drain down.

 

I agree with XViper, and the distinction between Honda's recommendation and the "common wisdom" of a cold check is important - warm oil expands and will give a higher reading. So it is possible that a cold check that is near the top of the line on the dipstick could actually be a bit over when doing the check "by the book". In most cars, slightly overfilling has not negative effect, since many mfr's deliberately underrate the oil sump capacity to lower TCO which is important for their fleet sales.

My Outback has two marks on the dipstick - one for cold, one for hot - that is smart - they must have smart owners who would not get confused by actually having to think about what they are doing.

Howver, in car with a windage tray and a high RPM redline like the S2000, overfilling is possibly a risky maneuver - foamed lubricant is essentially zero lubricant. One way to check is to rev the engine hard a few times before letting the idle stablize and shutting down - immediately pull the stick and look for telltale bubbles. There should not be many if any.

 

i only check when the car has been sitting overnight. you want to make sure all the oil has drained back to the pan before you take a reading.

 

I check mine in the morning after sitting overnight. Luckily the only thing I

 

mine didnt use any oil during the first 600 miles. when i started using vtec, it started to "sip" oil. my car consumes oil, but not very much. i can honestly say i haven't added more than 1/2 quart of oil(to top off) in 6k miles.

 

Now after a "HOT" check as viper stated, how many X's should be there to be in the safe zone? I checked mine today according to vipers recomendations and only have 2 diamonds and i called honda and they told me this is the normal level??? Only 2 diamonds?

 

I have found that on the worse day, the difference between a properly done "HOT" check and a properly done "COLD" check is no more that 1.5 to 2 "X's".
If you are showing 2 "diamonds" (or X's) when HOT, then you are close having the "ADD" oil as Honda wants you to check the oil when HOT. If you were to check it COLD tomorrow morning, you should be at between 3 and 4 "diamonds". You may be close to 1/2 qt (or more) below "FULL".

 

you have to remember that when the engine is still warm, all of the oil hasn't had a chance to drain down to the oil pan. there is some oil lingering around the internals. 2 x's for a warm/hot check sounds about right. just to be safe, check it when the engine is cold(from my previous post). you can't go wrong doing this and i find its the most accurate reading possible.


good luck.