I am soo confused cause i have heard so many different ways to check and top off oil from various dealers and such. But a HOT check is within 15 minutes after the car is shut down. Now correct me, but I did a HOT CHECK and only had 1 diamond on my stick so i added a quart and now it reads 3 diamonds after a HOT CHECK. But after some driving, i got these tiny bubbles on the bottom of the stick, whats the deal? Is that dangerous?

 

yikes. when you overfill, the crankshaft can start to "churn" the oil and will create air bubbles in the oil.


let the car sit overnight and recheck(this is the most accurate way of checking the oil). the oil mark should be right near the FULL mark(top of the X's). if the oil level is not that much higher than the full mark, just unscrew the oil filter and let all the oil out. reinstall the filter(its safe to get a new filter) and that will probably get rid of 1/2 quart of oil. if it overfilled by a lot, you need to slowly unscrew the oil drain plug and let it drain out(this can be very tricky though, you need to be very precise). just drain all of the fluid at once if it's time for your oil change.

if possible, don't drive the car anymore until you get this problem resolved.

 

If I'm reading you right, you had one diamond of oil, added a quart and it only raised it to three diamonds. If that's the way it worked you're definintely getting some bad readings because adding a quart would have raised it over the full mark.

Just check it cold now and see where you really are. If you're over full drain some for sure. It's easy to dribble some out of the drain plug and if you drain too much you can always top it up again.

I just check my oil cold even though it's not the recommended way.

 

I have to put in my recommendation for the Fumoto valve here. I overfilled by half a quart and was able to drain it in only a few minutes without even jacking the car back up. As precise as we have to be with our oil levels, this comes in very handy.

 

When you check the oil hot, I'm assuming you're not shutting the car off and immediately taking a dipstick reading. Because if you do, you're not going to see much on the dipstick.

You need to let the car sit for at least 10 minutes (in my opinion) before taking a hot reading, to allow all the oil to drain back into the pan.

By the way, the difference between a hot reading and a bone cold reading is only about one or two X's on the dipstick. I find it much more reliable (and safe) to take cold readings, and just make sure I'm an X or two below full.

 

I see the possible problem being that some people are checking the oil when it is in fact, not HOT. They are checking the oil when it is cool or cold but think it is hot because the temp gauge has "just" gotten to 3 bars. The oil is still only warm and will not fall back down into the oil pan effectively. When doing a true HOT check, shut the engine down and immediately pull the dipstick and leave it out for 3-4 minutes. This allows oil in the dipstick channel to also flow down better and minimize or eliminate the "splash factor". The presence of the stick in the hole tends to act as a "wick" and keeps oil in the dipstick channel, making an accurate read tough.
Once you've done a good HOT read, do a COLD read the very next morning to see the comparison. Then do only COLD readings from that point on.

 

i keep my crx 1 quart over full, that cause it leaks oil though! about a quart a week give or take depending on how much i drive it. The S is kept right at full all the time, no over or under. I always check oil after the car has sat for at least 8 hours1

 

Exactly. Always check it when it is cold and on a level ground.

 

I did a COLD check this morning after letting the car sit all night and have 3 diamonds on the dipstick. But why are those tiny bubbles there, they are very, very tiny but still there.

 

[QUOTE]Originally posted by Kyushin
I did a COLD check this morning after letting the car sit all night and have 3 diamonds on the dipstick.