How often do you check your dipstick...

[Patman]

With my wife's car, since it uses no noticeable amount of oil in 5000 miles, I usually only check it once at around the midway point of her interval, then again close to the end, just in case.

With my Firebird, I check the level every 3000km, since I know at this point it'll be down one notch on the stick, and then I'll add 250ml.

 

[Spector]

on one car almost every day, others once a week others when the car is available.

 

[jakuraz]

At least twice a week for me.

Man...I think about oil while I eat, sleep, work, just about all the time.

Issues like:
When's my next oil change?
Which oil brand I am gonna try?
Which filter I am gonna use this time?
When was the last time I checked the oil level?
Is my filter holding ok?
Oh no! it's -20 outside, is my oil gonna be ok?
When cruising on a dusty road; OH **** ! all this dust gonna shorten my oil change interval!

etc...

I think I am an oil-nut!

 

[Starbreaker666]

On both my car and truck. Once a month. Niether one of them consume any oil so once a month is fine.

 

[Pablo]

I check the oil in our cars about once a week.

My dipstick I check when it gets lots of use. I heard you could hire this done, but I wouldn't think of it and always do it myself.

OK OK enough. Here's a strange obervation. I live in a relatively small cul-de-sac street with a total of 7 homes. I live at the very end (top of the key hole?) so I can kinda see all the homes and garages. I have never, ever once seen my neighbors check their oil (let alone change it). What's up with THAT?

 

[doyall]

On my 00 F150 5.4L I checked it several time when it was new to establish it wasn't a burner then I literally quit checking it until afer the last oil change when I had Pennzoil put it at 34,000 miles. Checked it a couple of times since but as there appears to be no usage on the thinner oil either, I'll probably let her rip. I just hope it's like my previous truck (92 Ranger V6) and the oil light comes on when it is 3/4 of a quart low.

 

[Amkeer]

Pablo, thats why I think my neighbors think I am nuts! Or maybe they are the crazies..

The wife finally pulled me from under the hood this past weekend to paint the living room. When she wasn't looking I snuck out and popped the hood! I couldn't resist and was going through withdrawals.

 

[Flimflam]

quote:

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Originally posted by Amkeer:
How often do you check your dipstick? I am just curious.......

---

I have been through something like 7 cars and 7 bikes in the last 25 years. None of them ever seemed to have any kind of change in the oil level throughout the oil-change interval.....at least, not that I could easily notice.

In some really hot summers though, maybe 1/10 of an inch lower on the dipstick at 3,000 miles, which is when I drop the oil out and put in new oil and filter. But if I happen to be using Castrol HD-30, not even 1/10 of an inch.....the oil level does not even go down a hair's width in 3,000 miles.

I only use the dipstick just after an oilchange, to see if I put in enough new oil. If I ever touch the dipstick in between oil changes, it's only because I am curious about how the oil is doing. Whether it's turned black or not. Suzuki rules!!!!!!

 

[V10Ray]

Dipstick? What Dipstick?

Oh that thing that tells me I still have oil?

My V10 burns / uses so little when I checkit about every 2000 miles it's still sitting nice & full. I only worry about it when I'm changing it to make sure I don't under or overfill.

Call me crazy, but I love this truck.

Ray

 

[mikemc]

I typically let the gas tank get to 1/4 full then fill up and I check the dipstick each time.

 

[Patman]

Call me crazy but I worry that if I check the level too much, I'm introducing too much contamination into the oil, either through particles on the dipstick transferred there from the rag, or airborne dust which might get into the dipstick tube while it's open.

Am I alone in this thought?

 

[Swift]

Once every 2-3 weeks.

 

[Amkeer]

Patman, your not alone in that thought. I find myself using paper towels to check the dipstick. When I am done there is usually tiny specs of fiber left behind from the paper. I also check under the filler cap.

 

[molechaser]

I check the dipstick on my wife's CRV when I'm refilling after an oil change. None of my Honda's have ever used oil so I just don't bother.

I check the RX-8 about every 500 miles because it burns oil.

The BMW R1100S has a sight glass so no dipstick checking. I check it before every ride. BMW boxers tend to use oil due to crankcase breathing. Its amazing how much variation there can be in sight glass readings.

I went 2 years without checking the lawnmower, so maybe not too surprising that it was about empty when I finally did check it. Still runs fine. Great piece of precision machinery

.

Guess I'm Mr. Inconsistent

 

[labman]

quote:

---

Originally posted by Pablo:
....snip

OK OK enough. Here's a strange obervation. I live in a relatively small cul-de-sac street with a total of 7 homes. I live at the very end (top of the key hole?) so I can kinda see all the homes and garages. I have never, ever once seen my neighbors check their oil (let alone change it). What's up with THAT?

---

1 Not wanting to be identified as oil nuts, they carefully do it behind closed garage doors.

2 They use Iffy Lube and assume the oil stays up between changes.

Personally I am careless about checking my oil. Even when I had the Grand Am that used quite a bit of oil, I sometimes let it get over a quart low. Part of the problem with it was the time my wife was away with it. I can't remember adding oil to the car and truck I have now. I am afraid I seldom look at either between my 3 month oil changes. Someday, my neglect may mean failing to catch a problem.

After the original one for my truck disappeared, I do look to see if the dip stick is there whenever I have the hood open.

[ November 25, 2003, 08:44 AM: Message edited by: labman ]

 

[yankees1]

Just got back from VETTEFEST in Chicago and a vette dealer who had several quality vintage vettes on display opened the hoods for everyone to admire the engines. After a period of time the owner noticed oil drippings on the fender of I believe a 61 vette. After a closer examination he found that someone had stolen the dipstick from this vette! Pretty desperate for a dipstick I would think! All engine hoods were shut from that point on!

 

[crashz]

Stop Thief!

Never had a dipstick stolen, but batteries "disappear" on a regular basis. People stole my battey out of my old GMC so much that I leave the hood popped so that they won't damage it when they see that I haven't replaced it. Fortunately they haven't stolen anything else out of it. Maybe that is due to the thick layer of rust on everthing. Rust - the latest in crime prevention!

Back to the topic - I check the oil every fill up and whenever I have a few seconds to do so. On average I'd say 6-8 times per month. As Patman mentioned, I hope this doesn't introduce more insoluables to the oil.

 

[Amkeer]

So it seems that the average is about once every 1.5 weeks.

I also keep the oil on full. My last add was to the 4-Runner at 1000 miles into interval. I added about 130 ml or about 3/16, 3mm, below full line on the stick. The additional oil was M1 15-50 to the 10-30 already in there.

 

[Mic]

I will be totally honest.
I check my oil before I change it. I have never owned a car that burned any amount of oil between changes. I check the oil on my vehicles when they are new until the first oil change.
The only time I do frequent oil checks is when I tow for long distances.

Jeff

 

[TSoA]

quote:

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the guys at work have even stopped asking me if everythings ok or if i need a jump! most of them don't even check

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..right, if the hood is up, something must be wrong!

I check every 3-4 weeks, some of you guys are sick-o s

but I would buy a used car from any of you