saneproductions

Just a reminder that in these cold winter months your car my never get up temp all the way where the valve to the front oil cooler will open and the gauge will read accurately. I have to do a decent drive and let it idle for 10 minutes before the temp gauge will read properly. You can actually see the valve open up on the level gauge.

Todynot

Anyone have any tips on how to see clean oil on the dipstick? I'm checking oil on my new 993 and it's very tough to detect.

steve porter

shine a torch on it, the reflection makes it easy to see

Todynot

OK, that seems a little extreme, but I'd be willing to do it if noone has any "cooler" ideas?

Dplus

By "torch" he meant flashlight.

steve porter

[QUOTE=Dplus;10886063]By "torch" he meant flashlight.[/QUOTE

correct, we also call hoods bonnets, trunks boots, fenders mudguards and thongs are worn on the feet

saneproductions

I think you should use a blowtorch

Todynot

I might.

bogie23

FYI, with my new inspection camera , looked inside oil reservoir , there is a metal screen , so if one drops anything in the oil, it will never circulate in the system, how cool is that !

nowata

Skipping ahead thru all the back and forth dick measuring bull**** non answers here

what is the correct process? And if it’s the dipstick then where on the dipstick should it be?

my needle is in the red and I had the oil changed before storage

it dropped a small amount of oil over the winter but nothing significant

dipstick shows oil right before the twisty part

when I bought the car the mechanic said the oil level and oil temp should point horizontally at one another

so based on the gauge I’m way low

HalfGerman

Todynot, hold the dipstick with a paper towel, it will get wet and help with visibility. Trust the dipstick more than the needle. From what I have read on the forums here, anything from 1/4 to halfway on the dipstick (twisty part) is totally fine.

rk-d

The difference between middle of the twisty part to the bottom third of the dipstick is minuscule. It’s like 1/4 of a quart. When the car is warmed up, if you see any oil whatsoever on the dipstick you’ve got plenty of oil. I’d shoot to keep it on the bottom third of the twisty part.

The gauge will show red until the oil hits halfway or higher on the dipstick. A tiny amount of oil can cause it to shoot up. I wouldn’t sweat the gauge being red.

nowata

Based on these responses it would seem that the dipstick is really only considered to be the twisty part and the inch or so of straight rod below the dipstick is irrelevant then?

Really wish the dipstick was like the one in a Skylane where it’s graduated and you pretty much expect to add a quart before taking off and never leave home without a couple qts of aeroshell

rk-d

No the bottom part is not irrelevant. If there is any oil at all on the dipstick of a warm car, then there is sufficient oil so as not to worry about damaging your car. I think it’s prudent to keep oil at least on the bottom third of the twisty part.

The oil gauge is practically all or nothing. It shows very little movement until you are over halfway up the twisty part. Different cars can have different behaviors with their gauge as well which makes it difficult to compare. You have to learn how your gauge behaves. I’ve just found that it takes such a small amount of oil to get the gauge from red to halfway that I’m not worried about it. We’re talking fractions of a quart in a 10 qt system.

Ed Hughes

What a dumbass post from someone looking for help, and apparently doesn't know what is right and what is wrong. The correct info HAS been given. It's in the middle of the twist on your dipstick. The needle is arbitrary. If the sending unit's float is out of whack, and very well could be, it's meaningless. That's been stated. You check your stick on level ground, fully warmed up and idling for about a minute after you park. I'd find a new mechanic, and have them adjust the float to correspond to what is shown on your dipstick.