Is this enough oil?

SouthArk370Z · 02-03-2014, 09:53 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Minsu

My mom told me one early morning after I left, she noticed black oil on the floor where my car was parked...but it's blacktop, so whether she mistakenly thought it was oil or just something else is beyond me. So I check my dip stick today, and saw that the oil was pretty dark as well as I think it's a bit low? I put cardboard boxes under my car so if my car is leaking i should know asap. Any ideas?

As has been stated, the level is at the bottom of what is considered normal. If you don't know what the level was after the last change, it's hard to say how much you may have burned or leaked. Check the level often - at least once a week.

Whether the dark color means anything depends on the oil you use. Some oils are just naturally dark. At 3500 miles, probably time for a change (the harder you push the engine, the sooner you need to change the oil and I'm guessing you drive pretty hard).

The cardboard-under-the-car trick works very well for finding drips. I'd try that until you can get it on a lift.

More than likely, you do not have a leak but it's possible. You're probably just using the normal amount of oil for the way you drive. One quart for 3500 miles of hard driving is pretty good.

Just in case you didn't catch it before, check your oil (and other fluids) often.