My oil level is going up??? Really need help

[rijndael]

I have a '24 Mustang as well, a GT w/ 10 quarts. It seems sensitive to car angle when checking the oil .... or, I'm just overly picky about it being right at a certain mark. My garage floor is as level as most garage floor, for me, nose-in or nose-out makes a difference.

It also matters how quickly I check it after it's been shut off. I like to wait 15-30 minutes as well.

 

[Pablo]

Most garage floors are sloped out, not perfectly level

 

[rijndael]

Most garage floors are sloped out, not perfectly level

And, that's good, because no one wants water running towards the inside of their house. Going out the garage door is preferred. Around here, it's 1/4" / foot, IIRC.

 

[Sequoiasoon]

You could get totally OCD and put some small blocks under the wheels at the low side of garage. A piece of 2x6 under each wheel should do it. Check with a level if that worried.

I actually took my 4ft level and held it against the rocker panel to see when I was doing tranny D&F on daughter-in-laws Tucson in my driveway on ramps/driveway apron. I also checked side to side in engine bay at same 2 points by bump stops.

For the general checking if parked in same place and close to level it should be consistent when cold. My parking spot at work I back in everyday. There are 2 depressions right in front of the curb stop. I have it in neutral and rear wheels sit in them. Car sits for 8-10 hours and all is drained. If I check any hot at gas station as I do often, I use same pump so same parking position. When Hot mine might read 1/8" higher after sitting for about 5 minutes while I fill up.

 

[Nick1424]

Was the car sitting in the same spot. A little different tilt to the car will defiantly make a difference.

Yes that’s one of the first things I questioned but it is parked on level ground in the same spot.

 

[Nick1424]

You could get totally OCD and put some small blocks under the wheels at the low side of garage. A piece of 2x6 under each wheel should do it. Check with a level if that worried.

I actually took my 4ft level and held it against the rocker panel to see when I was doing tranny D&F on daughter-in-laws Tucson in my driveway on ramps/driveway apron. I also checked side to side in engine bay at same 2 points by bump stops.

For the general checking if parked in same place and close to level it should be consistent when cold. My parking spot at work I back in everyday. There are 2 depressions right in front of the curb stop. I have it in neutral and rear wheels sit in them. Car sits for 8-10 hours and all is drained. If I check any hot at gas station as I do often, I use same pump so same parking position. When Hot mine might read 1/8" higher after sitting for about 5 minutes while I fill up.

Awesome idea didn’t even think of that

 

[Nick1424]

Car has sat for over 8 hours cold level check a few minutes ago. Don’t really smell anything just the smell of used oil. I did check my level from the photo I took on 7/1/25 and it’s the same. But the one from 6/30/25 is different.

 

[Pablo]

Car has sat for over 8 hours cold level check a few minutes ago. Don’t really smell anything just the smell of used oil. I did check my level from the photo I took on 7/1/25 and it’s the same. But the one from 6/30/25 is different. View attachment 287980

Normal.

 

[Nick1424]

While I have a ton of people in here… I did fill my expansion tank yesterday to the max line so I can watch it drop to rule out coolant. But it already did. Should I expect it to settle out once the car was driven? Yesterday versus today.

 

[wtd]

Well, only two things could really cause the increase in the oil level and that is coolant or fuel. Does your coolant level stay the same? Is this engine direct injected or a combination of both?

 

[Pablo]

While I have a ton of people in here… I did fill my expansion tank yesterday to the max line so I can watch it drop to rule out coolant. But it already did. Should I expect it to settle out once the car was driven? Yesterday versus today.

View attachment 287984

View attachment 287985

Why did you add coolant? How low was it before?

 

[Nick1424]

It was just below the minimum line and I had never added coolant before so I added some to the max line so I could start to watch it. I found several threads of people being at the same level so to watch mine I filled it to photo you see but as I just checked my oil level I looked and saw it went down some. photo isnt as good

 

[Pablo]

While somewhat normal maybe good you are doing a UOA soon

 

[Nick1424]

Yep. To many things and to many variables going on

 

[Nick1424]

Should I top off my coolant again? And bring it back to the max line now that it’s leveled out or no

 

[50yr Street Mech]

Coolant in the oil usually leaves white-ish stuff up inside the oil cap. I'm sure you've checked the oil cap already. If the engine is G.D.I. , i suspect a bit of gas/oil dilution. Honda had that that issue with their GDI engine. You're safest bet is to get the oil tested for any contaminates.

 

[Nick1424]

Coolant in the oil usually leaves white-ish stuff up inside the oil cap. I'm sure you've checked the oil cap already. If the engine is G.D.I. , i suspect a bit of gas/oil dilution. Honda had that that issue with their GDI engine. You're safest bet is to get the oil tested for any contaminates.

Agreed. Thank you

 

[ecotourist]

Checking oil levels every few days is going to give you some variation - outdoor temperature, angle, time since last run, etc.

If the oil looks good and smells good (and it seems to) the question is "what does it do over a couple of thousand miles?"

As for other levels, I check to make sure that the coolant and brake fluid are between the high and low marks.

I would add coolant if it has been changed recently (it's just replacing the entrained air in the system), but if that's not the case the question becomes "where is it going?". [I would add a bit if it ever got down to the add line, having first checked for leaks and making sure the oil doesn't look milky. I wouldn't top it off completely though as that's just asking for some coolant to spill over when the engine gets hot. But I sure wouldn't make it a habit and I'd be looking for a problem.]

If the brake fluid gets below 'low' you have a problem. And you'd mess up that warning by having topped it off.

 

[ripcord]

Do a UOA and if it's normal, stop worrying about this. If the oil comes back as not contaminated, then the only truly important factor is that the level stays inside the hash marks. A little fluctuation is to be expected due to temperature, your parking spot and the phase of the moon, etc.

 

[Nick1424]

Checking oil levels every few days is going to give you some variation - outdoor temperature, angle, time since last run, etc.

If the oil looks good and smells good (and it seems to) the question is "what does it do over a couple of thousand miles?"

As for other levels, I check to make sure that the coolant and brake fluid are between the high and low marks.

I would add coolant if it has been changed recently (it's just replacing the entrained air in the system), but if that's not the case the question becomes "where is it going?". [I would add a bit if it ever got down to the add line, having first checked for leaks and making sure the oil doesn't look milky. I wouldn't top it off completely though as that's just asking for some coolant to spill over when the engine gets hot. But I sure wouldn't make it a habit and I'd be looking for a problem.]

If the brake fluid gets below 'low' you have a problem. And you'd mess up that warning by having topped it off.

I only added coolant because it was slightly below the min line cold and rose slightly above it when warm. I wanted to bring it to the max mark which I did yesterday and now as you see it’s already underneath it. Which I’m going to chalk up to it settling?