Hey Guys,

So with my car parked on level ground and cold. My dip stick shows to level. On one side 3/4 and on the back side 1/2. Between the L and H.

Should I bother to fill? Which do you go by?

Rob

 

The higher side is just due to the dipstick scraping off oil. You figure you dip your finger in a small cup of oil, you'll never get oil LOWER than the actual level, right? Now say the cup edge is oily...and you dip your finger in while scraping the side...what happens? one side gets higher than the other. The angle the dipstick enters (for some cars) make almost no diff w. respect to the level cuz the distance between front&back is low....

 

I've always read that you should take the lower reading on the dipstick.

Also, a lot of people argue that the oil level should be checked while warm.

 

Take the lower reading. Never check it warm. Always check it cold. If taking the reading warm, go for the top of the "continuous" streak of oil. There will be drips and spots above the actual level when it's warm.

Always keep the oil level at Full. This is critical for AP1s with the old oil bolt design. I've already rebuild a pile of AP1s that died from running just a quart or so low.

The F mark is 5 quarts. The L mark is 4 quarts. 3 quarts will kill the motor with any sort of sustained cornering. 2 quarts will just about do it in a straight line.

With many cars burning 1 qt per 1k mi... it doesn't take long to get low. Check your oil often.

 

The dipstick is the acceptable range - anything between high and low is okay. Maybe its an AP1 thing, but I've never heard of S2000s seizing due to 1qt low oil - still, keep it in the range.