Suitable top off oil for...

[Garak]

Originally Posted By: demarpaint
While that might be true, I'm not going to wait until I'm down a qt in my 4.5 qt sump to top it up. Sorry, and this is not an attack on you. But no one is going to convince me that being a qt low is as good as having the oil level at or near the full level.


While the owner's manuals may not require that oil be added if it's on the low end of the dipstick but still in the safe range, I prefer your approach. In my fleet usage over the years, if a vehicle needed as little as a half quart, that half quart was added. I didn't go silly and add 100 mL at a time, but waiting when it's a half quart short for it to go down to one quart short simply wasn't my way.

 

[demarpaint]

Originally Posted By: Garak
Originally Posted By: demarpaint
While that might be true, I'm not going to wait until I'm down a qt in my 4.5 qt sump to top it up. Sorry, and this is not an attack on you. But no one is going to convince me that being a qt low is as good as having the oil level at or near the full level.


While the owner's manuals may not require that oil be added if it's on the low end of the dipstick but still in the safe range, I prefer your approach. In my fleet usage over the years, if a vehicle needed as little as a half quart, that half quart was added. I didn't go silly and add 100 mL at a time, but waiting when it's a half quart short for it to go down to one quart short simply wasn't my way.


I do pretty much the same thing. When I check my oil its in the morning, and each of my vehicles is no more than 30 feet from the garage and top up oil. If I need a pint I add a pint, no biggie for me. I'm not going to bother adding a small amount like 4 ounces, but I will make a mental note that I was down a little and make sure I add it next time if the level changed. The only vehicle that ever needs topping up is the old beater Aerostar.

 

[Garak]

Originally Posted By: demarpaint
If I need a pint I add a pint, no biggie for me. I'm not going to bother adding a small amount like 4 ounces, but I will make a mental note that I was down a little and make sure I add it next time if the level changed.


We did have one driver that would add 4 oz and things like that. I put a stop to that, since I disliked having a collection of Quaker State bottles with random levels in them. Half a quart, great. An eighth or quarter quart is closer to OCD.

 

[TFB1]

Usually by the time any of my stuff gets near the add mark it's time for a OC... I ain't addin' a quart just to drain it out in 500mi, probably just run it low till I change it...

I recently added a quart to my '98 Grand Marquis at 5K mi, but it's on a 10K OCI using Mobil 1 Extended Performance, will get changed in March or April(or whenever it's down a quart again)..

 

[Jim Allen]

My comments on adding oil and oil consumption come from my years as a dealer tech, where we had a prescribed regimen for determining if an engine was really using oil or not. We had to have a strict protocol because some owners were clueless.

In the process, and with my own engines, I learned that an engine half a quart low might stay that way for a long period but when you topped off, that upper half quart was burned off very rapidly. As I said, windage tends to spray and vaporize the upper half quart... much of it going past the rings or out the PCV. Every engine is a little different, so some experimentation is in order.

Also, I have found some dipsticks to be off by half a quart or more (usually the tube pressed in too far). It was more common on the older American cars I worked on but it pays to check that when you do a change and put the prescribed amount of oil in that the stick reads full, or slightly below. Overfull engines will use most often use oil.

The point about adding oil boosting the additive package is a good one but not germane to an oil burner trying to reduce the expense of adding oil.

As to mixing oils, I repeat, NOT OPTIMAL if done blindly. If you know what you are putting together, you can come out OK to beneficial. Just tossing in anything reduces the benefits of whatever oils you are mixing.

To the OP, my suggestion is to try this out. Monitor the consumption but don't add until it reaches the add mark. Start off with on the full line, monitor it often and see if consumption slows between half a quart and add. Either way, you'll learn something. Once size doesn't fit all.

Two Contrasting Anecdotes:

I know that over 26 years of owning my 6.9L diesel, it will burn almost a quart (it's 2 quarts between add and full) in the first 5-600 miles and then hold steady for another 3000 or so before I have to add a quart. When it hits add, I only add one quart now.

Oddly enough, my Honda 3.0L V6 was slightly overfilled at the last OC and it still shows slightly overfull 7K miles later. Go figure.