I believe oil dipsticks are calibrated to be read with warm oil and oil
drained into the sump. Oil, like most other things expands when hot, so you
will get a slightly different reading with cold oil. Also oil gets thinner
and drains down into the sump very quickly when the engine is at operating
temperature.
Therefore, if you check your oil after your warm engine has been turned off
for a couple of minutes, you will probably have 98% or more of the oil in
the sump. I believe that this is the correct procedure and certainly as
accurate as you can get reading a dipstick. As one lister said, fill your
tank up and then check the oil.
BTW, oil measurement with a dipstick is a pretty gross measurement. Your
engine is not really in jeopardy if you are off by a few ounces one way
or the other. I have always seen the difference between checking oil cold
(after engine has set for several hours) and hot to be very slight. If you
like to check your oil with a cold engine, go ahead. Much better to check
it cold than not at all!
Jim S.
>
> I dunno folks, some of these oil checking proceedures seem rather odd to me.
>
> If the engine functions with oil throughout, then why would you want to
> check it after it's all drained back into the sump?
>
> I have always checked the oil level on my Bs (both with the upright
> renewable filter cannister) immediately after start-up. Example - EVERY
> morning before driving away, I start up the car, allow the oil pressure to
> build (a couple of minutes), then shut 'er down, and check the level (on
> level ground, natch!). That way, I am assured that the oil the engine
> requires is in the engine, not the sump. I would think that you would get an
> artificial, or at least inaccurate reading by determining your oil level
> with all the oil in the sump.
>
> Opinions? John Twist - what's yer policy?
>
> Terry 'On The Level' Williams
> '70 BGT
> '68 roadster
>
>
|