Too much oil...problem?

vermithrax

Took my Z to get an oil change today. Went to a local garage that usually does it for me. I bring my own oil and filter(Mobile 1EP and a K&N Filter).

New guy was there and I tell him only use 5 and 1/8 quarts, and save the rest for next time. He comes back when he is done and hands me the left over oil.

Looks like he put almost 5 1/2 quarts in. I ask him about it and he blows it off, saying that little more won't hurt anything. Kinda pissed me off, since I specifically told him what to put in.

Question is, how bad is this? Do I need to find a way to take some oil out? I don't have a lift, or ramps, otherwise I would be doing it myself in the first place.

Davey

Maybe he spilled some... Where is it on the dipstick with the car cooled down and on a level surface? It should be between the dots. If it's above the upper dot then yeah, it's got too much oil.

Jordo!

Going up to 1/2 qt over should be okay. More would be potentially bad.

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Bonzo

I bought Mobil 1 in the 5 quart jug. It's actually 5.25 quarts I think. I just told them to put the whole thing in there and didn't even think twice.

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vermithrax

ok, I'll have to check the level. So up to an extra 1/2 quart shouldn't bother anything?

Spikuh

You should be ok and not see any adverse affects from being over so little. If you are really overly concerned, just pull the drain plug out for a quick moment to drain it out.

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wstar

The quarts are just a rough guideline, you have to judge by the dipstick reading (on level ground, preferably cold, but at least let it sit ~15 mins). Ideally you want the mid-point between the two dots/holes, but anywhere between them is acceptable.

The consequences:

... of being severely underfilled: no oil pickup, engine tears itself apart pretty quickly.
... of being slightly underfilled (e.g. just off the bottom of the dipstick): you'll get oil pickup parked, but you'll lose oil pickup when you apply G's (braking/cornering/accelerating), leading to temporary oiling problems and slower damage.
... of being even a little overfilled: your oil will foam from air and/or moving parts sloshing into it, and foamy oil doesn't lubricate well or move under pump force the same -> increased engine wear, possible immediate problems on a really hard drive at the track if you really cook something.

Check the dipstick!

(And learn to do your own oil changes. It's the easiest maintenance job and one of the most critical. Nobody cares about your engine more than you do! Ramps are cheap! Get the larger of the two sizes of Rhino Ramps that every local parts store carries, and get Home Depot to cut you two little 2ft sections of 2x4 to put in front of the ramps (to clear the front air spoilers on the way up))

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vermithrax

I checked the dipstick and it seem to be over but it is hard to tell how much. Definitely past the second dot, maybe up to the bend in the stick.

I don't see how it could be that high. I still have almost 75% of a quart left out of a total of 6 quarts. I should only be over by a bit over .25 of a quart. I'm buying ramps and doing this myself next time.

Is there any easy (without ramps), way of removing some oil?

FairladyZ

id drain it if its over that top dot

sfearl1

Get an automotive syringe from a parts store and pull it out of the dipstick tube with a silicone/rubber hose. Had to do it to mine. Pretty simple to do.

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wstar

What he said. It's not gonna destroy anything in a calm drive or two, but it definitely should be addressed. It should be easy to tell by the way: either the oil is past the upper of the two holes on the dipstick, or it's not. Be sure to draw out the dipstick, wipe it, re-insert, then draw it again to read.

You can snake a long thin silicone hose into the dipstick tube to draw it out with some kind of syringe or pump like another person said above, it's a little tricky to get the hose in unless it's tiny, but it totally works.

As for your amount of leftover oil: that just means the car wasn't fully drained before re-adding, perhaps.

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wstar

I just noticed you're in Houston btw There's a Houston meet tomorrow night, maybe someone there can help ya out too. I'm not yet sure whether I'll make it or not. http://www.the370z.com/texas/52170-h...ml#post1877633

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Mt Tam I am

If your engine is like mine, you'll be where you want in a week.

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cosmicdust73

Same here... mine failed the TSB test and is getting a new short block which will hopefully fix the oil consumption problem.