how low is too low for a 6 quart engine oil capacity

Originally Posted by Chris142
I have had cars come into the shop with hardly any oil in them. Did not seem to hurt them any..


I have seen the same thing. I do free oil changes for low income people, sometimes I barely drain anything out!

Some smaller engines seem to do fine with as little as 1 quart in the pan!
 
Many 5 or 6 quart engines are tolerant of operation down to 3 quarts. Some even tolerate running with just 2 quarts. I guess it depends on how the oil pickup is configured and how fast the oil drains back down into the sump.
 
Originally Posted by Linctex
I have seen the same thing. I do free oil changes for low income people, sometimes I barely drain anything out!
There is a reason they are low income .
 
Sounds like you have a handle on it.

As you stated, after 6000 km or 3600 miles, you have lost less than a quart. So every time the odometer clicks off another 1000k or about every other full tank of gas, give or take, check the oil level.

I've driven leakers for years. Oil is a lot cheaper than a RMS and similar repairs. I just filed a low sided box full of cheap kitty litter when parked in the garage. I'd not park in the driveway of my friends when I'd visit to avoid dropping oil there.

Some cars lose a quart every 1000mi/1600km and live to drive several hundred thousand miles.

You'll be fine.

Since you know it leaks, keep an eye on it. Have it fixed if there is something else in that vicinity that needs repair such as an oil pump or if the transmission has to come out, etc.

Save it for a time when similar labor is required.

Originally Posted by apollo18
so my vehicle has a rear main or oil pan area leak and the labor is just gonna be $1000 to fix it so i dont want to spend that much.
its a truck with a 6.0l v8, i just drive in the city and highywa, nothing extreme.the oil capacity is 6 quarts for my engine.
so ive had this slight rear main leak or oil pan leak for like 1-2 yhears so far and for the longest time it just drip when i parked the vehicle etc but it would never drip too much.
like for example at my oil change i would be full and then 6000km later i would be in the middle or at the lower part of the hashmarks which is still fine

but now its summer and maybe this accelerated the leak but i got a message on my dash saying check oil level and i did and it was low, so i added 1 quart and now its in the middle of the dipstick.

i obvs want to keep it high as possible but i am wondering how low would i have to be to notice or experience effects of the low oil? would it have to be like more then 1+ quart?

i will be switching to a hm oil soon to see if it helps
thanks!
 
Originally Posted by madeej11
Originally Posted by Gene K
It's vehicle dependent. I've had cars that required 1.5 at overfill to avoid starvation in continuous high g sweepers and I've had trucks that could handle 50% without loss of pressure with gentle driving.

My suggestion is to try Valvoline Maxlife 10W-30 and/or a product called AT-205 Reseal. If neither of those slow or stop it just run 15W-40 HDEO like Shell Rotella, Mobil Delvac 1300 or Chevron Delo 400 as long as it has a gas rating to slow the leak. Of course that only applies if you don't have a AFM Engine.

15w40 you say? A little thick for the Canadian climate wouldn't you agree?


Do you normally get to -10C in the summer? OP stated the excessive leakage was a warm weather issue.
 
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You have received a lot of good advice .

When I was a teenager , a quart down every 1000 miles was not considered too bad . Certainly not bad enough to justify an overhaul . Now , expectations have changed .

I will throw in my recommendations .

Do not let it get lower than the add oil mark on the dip stick . Check the oil every time you put gas into the vehicle .

I have never used high mileage oil , so I have no opinion .

Best of luck to you ! :)
 
Originally Posted by clinebarger
Originally Posted by bdcardinal
If your truck is a 2WD it is somewhat easy to replace the pan. I need to do the oil pan in my truck, the drain plug came out and went back in really rough on the one oil change I have done. If it is 4WD, then may God have mercy on your soul.


It's really not that bad as the axles unbolt from the front diff flanges, You don't even have to remove the front wheels. The oil pan on your truck is likely okay as it has a steel thread insert, Run a 12x1.75mm tap in there to clean up the threads & buy a new drain plugs.


I will try that the next time I change the oil. At least the threads will be lubricated
lol.gif
 
Why not try a product like AT-205 Re-Seal? Not a huge risk @ 12 bucks.
One quart low would be the maximum in my opinion. Keep it full.
 
With good synthetic oil, a decent filter, and appropriate OCIs, your engine should be fine at 2 qts low. If you work it real hard, then you should not let it drop below the low mark on the dipstick (1 qt low) for various reasons.
 
Back in the 2000s in my walmart TLE days we would frequently see distressed vehicles with no oil on dipstick. They had to sign a waiver before we proceeded. Tons of vehicles would only have a quart come out or less. a 4 quart saturn 1.9L giving up less than a quart was common. Maybe 10% of the cars we saw were off the stick low and well past the suggested OCI.
 
Only time in recent memory I let a vehicle go below the add oil mark was , naturally , my fault .

2015 Sonic 1.8 l with a cartrage filter & plastic filter cap . When I changed the oil , I was in a hurry & failed to change out the O-Ring on the filter cap , with the new one that came with the new filter .

Well , it leaked . Oil ended up low . :-(

Removed the cap , installed the new O-Ring , put the cap baack on and all was well . Topped off the oil and away we went .
 
I haven't personally seen HM oil do much of anything, The rear main itself isn't known to leak....The rear cover gasket is far more common. I've also seen the Cam Sensor O-ring leak.

Originally Posted by clinebarger
The rear main seal on LSx engine is PTFE/Teflon, High Mileage oils will not help if the rear main is leaking.


Mine has a minor seepage from the rear main too. It also leaks from the valve seals a bit (occasional puff of smoke on start-up and build up on plugs over time), can hm oil help at all with the valve seals or the oil pump o ring that is known to go bad?
 
I agree with other posts: below the low mark is too low. There's a reason the engineers put the low mark at that point. How much oil is that? Depends on the engine and dipstick.
As long as you aren't towing, hauling or doing long uphill runs, your engine will be OK as long as the pickup screen is submerged but also that's treading in dangerous territory. For example, when 3 quarts of oil have to do the work of 6 quarts, it will break down more quickly. Just keep an eye on it.
 
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