Overfilled Engine Oil

[dumkid]

Drive it for 10 minutes. If there's no bubbles in the oil you're good. If it looks like whipped cream, wait for the air to rise out then drain some.

 

[Brons2]

Mine is always over full every time I change oil pretty much, not quite as much as your pics, but some, because I always empty containers. If it says 4.8 quarts, I put 5. And so forth. I just ignore it and drive.

I had an F150 about 20 years ago that stated a full capacity of 6 quarts but was only halfway up on the dipstick if you put 6 quarts. I ignored that too and just drove. Never had to add oil.

 

[Patman]

There is usually a bit of leeway in the listed specifications, because they know that some people will just round it off and put in more oil than called for. Each engine is obviously going to be a little different, but in the LS1 Corvette that I used to have, the spec was 6 quarts but the owner's manual even said that you could add an extra quart if you were racing the car, so I just put in 7 quarts at every oil change and left it that way. I put 133,000 miles on that car and it was perfectly fine.

I'm also curious as to how much leeway there is with my Civic. The manual calls for 4.4 quarts but I'd love to keep things simple and just dump the full 5 quarts in there when I change the oil, that way I don't need to save any extra oil (it doesn't consume any oil, so I really have no need to save the extra oil for later and would rather just put it in there if it's safe)

 

[ATex7239]

Yes, but the dots and cross hatch marks aren't always accurate to where the oil surface should be. Simply put, they're not that precisely manufactured of an item.

There is a lot of dimensional stack up tolerances that don't always come out right. The length of the dipstick itself. The length of the tube it fits into.

How far the tube is inserted. Where the top, (cap) is located on the dipstick. Where the lines / letters / and hatch marks are located on the dipstick itself.

If all of these dimensions are all off one way it adds up. Not only that, but there have been several cases where the dipsticks were flat out made wrong.

I had it happen to my Jeep. The 5.7 HEMI has a capacity of 7 quarts. When I changed my oil the first time, the dipstick showed a quart over the "Full" mark. (Same as it showed when I brought it home).

As it turns out Chrysler Jeep had a TSB on that dipstick. I took it in, (the dipstick), they checked the number and gave me a new one. I inserted it, and the oil level was shown to be right at the "Full" mark.

There were also additional TSB's issued for dipsticks on other vehicles and engines that were too short, that caused false overfilling as well. Bottom line, when in doubt go by the manual.

Yep!

There are plenty of people driving around with over/under full levels either due to overfilling, underfilling, delusion or consumption. When I took my Toyota in for the two free oil changes both times they put 5 quarts into the 4.8 quart sump… and I regularly put approximately 4.5 quart in just cause I don’t want to mess with the faction. If engines were as sensitive to level as people make them out to be, we’d all be in a lot of trouble.

 

[Lubener]

If it's excessively high, you would know immediately. The crank would whip up the oil, there would be vibrations and a lot of smoke from the exhaust.

If there's no symptoms, you're fine.

That's why there's a full mark.

 

[ATex7239]

That's why there's a full mark.

Full is not full with an oil sump though. Full is full with a gas tank.

High performance engines are tested to make ensure the g forces don’t starve the engine of oil. High speed maneuvering will push the oil outward in the sump preventing it from being sucked up by the oil pick up. If sumps were filled to the brim this type of testing wouldn’t be necessary.

 

[odie]

Let it run for few minutes with the hood up , turn off engine and quickly exit the car to recheck dipstick for bubbles . If bubbly , may want to remove some oil .

 

[odie]

One way is to change oil filter . That would remove quite a bit of oil . Probably 10 ounces or more . Recheck dipstick after . Or remove oil through dipstick until you're comfortable with level . Is tedious , but gives a peace of mind . Have done both methods .

 

[DGXR]

Yeah there is some wiggle room here. Engines are generally not designed to have damage with a small amount of excess oil, so you are probably fine where the level is right now. But also every engine is different and obviously you are concerned -- nobody can fault you for that. In your shoes, I would correct the level and get it over with so it doesn't bother you anymore. In the future, either give them the correct quantity in the jug so this can't happen again, or just go to a better shop.

 

[ChrisD46]

Well, the dots are on that dipstick are there for a reason, right?
Full transparency, I am a chronic over filler, but not that much.

When cold , no more than 1/4” above full line … Once you get up above 1/4” above the full line on cold you start getting into that over filled zone . If you have a oil burner than you might live with a 1/2” over filled .

 

[KL31]

Over filled a bit like that won't hurt. Only time overfilling has ever caused issues is when the dummies changing the oil accidentally drain the trans instead and end up doubling the engine oil.

Once your car is running, so much of that oil is pumped throughout the engine. To have the crank hit the oil it would have to be ridiculously full.

 

[doublebase]

Like others have said...if it’s smoking out the tailpipe, you’re overfilled to the point where the oil is making it past the rings into the cylinder and burning. Then you would be overfilled and need to drain a bit - also if you pull the dipstick and it looks like air bubbles/foam, then there’s too much.

But to have it overfilled a little might actually help things, and when I say that, I mean every ounce of that oil in an engine does something - and every extra ounce makes EVERY ounce have to do LESS. If that makes sense. Which might mean that the oil (overall) is having an easier life, and might be able to go a little bit longer. How much longer, and how much easier? I have no idea, but I believe there are formulas/charts/articles, on how larger sumps/more quarts of oil in an engine helps. Problem is, if your car requires four quarts and you put in over five? you probably overfill it to the point of it getting up into the cylinders. Which would mean only adding an extra half quart probably isn’t going to help much, but this is an oil site - and we’re all here to get even the slightest ounce of an advantage, right?

 

[Patman]

I agree that having extra oil in any engine, up to the safe point of course, is always a good idea. It puts less stress overall on the oil if there is simply more of it, so in theory you could go longer intervals.

 

[Badgerstate]

I wouldnt worry about half a quart. Lots of people who do racing overfill engines by up to a quart with no issues. If a V8 turning 8K rpm doesnt froth the oil, I wouldnt be worried about your hatchback.
One time I overfilled my Accord by half a quart and ran it for 12K miles like that. Its not something that Id want to be doing all the time but its not the end of the world.

 

[GMBoy]

I just drained 4 quarts from a 2010 Accord 4cyl thats how much it was overfilled from the quick lube. It was down on power , spewing oil and smoke everywhere yet they drove it here to the shop like that. I always over fill just a slight bit which is 1/4 inch -1/2" past full mark on the stick. So many cars burning oil and people don't check the oil so I figure I am giving them a little bit of cushion between OCI's