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Dealer overfilled oil? Take a look at this picture
2014 RX350 AWD.
Took it to dealer ~2 months ago for oil change.
When I took the car home after a 200 mile trip, I pulled the dipstick out and noticed level was actually above dipstick upper-mark. I decided not to make much of it.
6k miles later, this is what I see on the dipstick after pulling it out, wiping it clean, then putting it in and pulling it out.
Notice how there's oil way above the upper mark? It's been like this ever since the service.
2. These are mostly highway miles.350 miles of highway cruising each week plus 60 miles in the city over a week.I know the ultimate answer to whether that oil looks good is to get an oil analysis done, but I don't have the patience for this currently. I've wiped some of the oil on that paper. Based on the oil colour on the paper and the oil on the dipstick, does that oil look like it could go for another 4k miles? 10k is the what Lexus has said synthetic 0w20 lifespan is, but I thought about this more and wondered what if the dealer cheaped out and used something else even though they noted down 0w20 synthetic in the line item on the invoice? Just trying to be safe with the engine. I don't mind going for another oil change but dealers in both cities usually have a couple days wait time for an oil change and it's a major inconvenience to have to take the shuttle to/from the dealer to work.
They say the engine is better with less oil than more. I don't know what to say other than suggesting another oil change ASAP. The oil and oil levels are crucial in maintaining the health of the engine...this should always be a main focus. You could also try using a turkey baster or something similar to suck up some oil and then remeasure.
Before you do anything else, allow the vehicle to sit overnight on level ground and then check the oil level first thing in the morning before starting the engine. Wipe the dipstick clean and check the oil level multiple times. Pull the dipstick out slowly to help keep from wicking oil up the dipstick and possibly causing a false reading. And yes, full synthetic 0W-20 oil can indeed do 10,000 miles between oil & filter changes.
That amount shouldn’t hurt anything unless you’re racing a lot and driving your oil pressure up. I change mine myself around 5k to 7k. Better peace of mind and better for the engine in my opinion. I hate it when it looks black!
Before you do anything else, allow the vehicle to sit overnight on level ground and then check the oil level first thing in the morning before starting the engine. Wipe the dipstick clean and check the oil level multiple times. Pull the dipstick out slowly to help keep from wicking oil up the dipstick and possibly causing a false reading. And yes, full synthetic 0W-20 oil can indeed do 10,000 miles between oil & filter changes.
I concur. I don't know why but it takes a LONG time for the oil to settle down to the pan. I can't get accurate reading on mine unless I let the car sit overnight. On my car, my the oil mark comes up about 1/4 inch above the top mark. A bit overfilled. But not a big deal.
2. These are mostly highway miles.350 miles of highway cruising each week plus 60 miles in the city over a week.I know the ultimate answer to whether that oil looks good is to get an oil analysis done, but I don't have the patience for this currently. I've wiped some of the oil on that paper. Based on the oil colour on the paper and the oil on the dipstick, does that oil look like it could go for another 4k miles? 10k is the what Lexus has said synthetic 0w20 lifespan is, but I thought about this more and wondered what if the dealer cheaped out and used something else even though they noted down 0w20 synthetic in the line item on the invoice? Just trying to be safe with the engine. I don't mind going for another oil change but dealers in both cities usually have a couple days wait time for an oil change and it's a major inconvenience to have to take the shuttle to/from the dealer to work.
Those of us who have been servicing our own vehicles for more than 40 years know EXACTLY what we are talking about. Regardless of what you happen to believe, your most accurate oil level reading on ANY vehicle will always be provided by a cold engine on level ground. Use that as your baseline and you will never have to deal with overfill issues.
Sigh, please stop making recommendations if you don’t know what you’re talking about. You don’t check it cold, you check it when warm to account for expansion of the fluid. High oil levels are bad for an engine, due to crankcase pressures, compared to needing extremely low oil for it to be bad. Which is why you’re more concerned about checking it warm.
Check the oil on level ground with the engine off after getting it to temperature, then letting it sit for a few minutes so the oil can flow back into the pan.
You might want to take some time to learn how the lubrication system actually works. It actually works more like a garden hose with it's open end, than a sealed pressure loop.
Going off of your theory on temperatures and expansion of what's in the sump/crank, over filling would actually help with crank pressures since the oil would not expand as much as the air it displaces (although in reality this is a non-issue because of the volumes and temps involved, and there is the PCV valve.)
Over filling is bad because you can get to the point where the crank will start churning up the oil if the level is high enough in the sump. At that point the oil pump will start sucking up a foam mixture of oil and air, and air does not lubricate surfaces in a typical gas engine. You have to go quite a bit over before you have any problems.
To the OP, it does look like the thing was over filled a little, but I doubt you have anything to worry about, it is no where the point where it can cause trouble. Just check it again after everything settles over night.
It sounds like you checked it at 200 miles, and now at 6000 miles it appears that there's even more in the thing, which would point to a measuring problem, although if this did happen you would have found a source for free oil
The exact amount for the motor is something like 6.8 qts if you include the filter, so what they probably did is just dump 7 qts in, which is technically over, but is something they have been doing a while because they know it doesn't hurt anything.
Does the OP smell any gasoline on the dipstick? If yes, there might be other bigger problems. That is fuel dilution. Did the OP have a sudden "increase in engine oil appearance on the dipstick"?
A recent example of this problem in the late model Honda CR-V where gas get mixed into the engine oil and on the oil dipstick it is WAY overfilled suddenly (although started out as just at the top of the high mark on the dipstick?
You might want to take some time to learn how the lubrication system actually works. It actually works more like a garden hose with it's open end, than a sealed pressure loop.
Going off of your theory on temperatures and expansion of what's in the sump/crank, over filling would actually help with crank pressures since the oil would not expand as much as the air it displaces (although in reality this is a non-issue because of the volumes and temps involved, and there is the PCV valve.)
Over filling is bad because you can get to the point where the crank will start churning up the oil if the level is high enough in the sump. At that point the oil pump will start sucking up a foam mixture of oil and air, and air does not lubricate surfaces in a typical gas engine. You have to go quite a bit over before you have any problems.
To the OP, it does look like the thing was over filled a little, but I doubt you have anything to worry about, it is no where the point where it can cause trouble. Just check it again after everything settles over night.
It sounds like you checked it at 200 miles, and now at 6000 miles it appears that there's even more in the thing, which would point to a measuring problem, although if this did happen you would have found a source for free oil
The exact amount for the motor is something like 6.8 qts if you include the filter, so what they probably did is just dump 7 qts in, which is technically over, but is something they have been doing a while because they know it doesn't hurt anything.
Does the OP smell any gasoline on the dipstick? If yes, there might be other bigger problems. That is fuel dilution. Did the OP have a sudden "increase in engine oil appearance on the dipstick"?
A recent example of this problem in the late model Honda CR-V where gas get mixed into the engine oil and on the oil dipstick it is WAY overfilled suddenly (although started out as just at the top of the high mark on the dipstick?
What does gas mixed in oil smell like? I had the 10th gen Civic for a while which had a recall out for the oil dilution issue but never really saw that issue because most of my miles are highway miles. With the 10th gen Civic I'd occasionally waft for the smell of gas, but really it just smelled like used oil with a vague hint of gas.
I think what happened here was that the dealer just didn't bother to check the level after filling.
BTW, I cold checked after 24 hours, and after taking out the dipstick multiple times, on level ground, and yes, the oil level is always about there.
I guess this experience of mine is just another data point to the belief that the best person to do an oil change is yourself.
TBH the cynical part of me is wondering if the dealer did this to screw with the car.
Whatever, I'll just do an oil change myself next time. I care about the engine more than the dealer does. And tbh, this makes me wonder what kind of a job they did on the transfer case + rear diff gear oil changes, and the transmission fluid service.
That amount shouldn’t hurt anything unless you’re racing a lot and driving your oil pressure up. I change mine myself around 5k to 7k. Better peace of mind and better for the engine in my opinion. I hate it when it looks black!
This gives me comfort. I don't race it, RPM is kept under 2.5k 99% of the time
The dealer tech working on your car was just sloppy on the oil change. Many of these big dealer repair shops just pump in the oil from 50 gallon drums via hoses that run around the shop. They set the level to pump out and may not double-check the actual oil level. It could be they did not drain all your old oil by working fast and sticking the drain plug back in before it was done draining. . Or did not change your oil filter, accounting for the overfill. You can always take off the oil filter, drain it and put it back on to get the oil level lower. Repeat as needed
. Transfer case and differential are filled until oil comes out the fill hole. No way to mess that up. The transmission is much more complicated involving overflow ATF temperature measurements to make sure it is at the proper level. If it shifts fine, then the fluid level is probably accurate.
The dealer tech working on your car was just sloppy on the oil change. Many of these big dealer repair shops just pump in the oil from 50 gallon drums via hoses that run around the shop. They set the level to pump out and may not double-check the actual oil level. It could be they did not drain all your old oil by working fast and sticking the drain plug back in before it was done draining. . Or did not change your oil filter, accounting for the overfill. You can always take off the oil filter, drain it and put it back on to get the oil level lower. Repeat as needed
. Transfer case and differential are filled until oil comes out the fill hole. No way to mess that up. The transmission is much more complicated involving overflow ATF temperature measurements to make sure it is at the proper level. If it shifts fine, then the fluid level is probably accurate.
09-17-19, 05:56 PM
Dealer overfilled oil? Take a look at this picture
What for?