This is neat. 10 QTS oil & no oil.

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Last year we got my wife an Hyundai Santa Fe SUV. Nice but underpowered IMHO. Anyway, I've always done the routine maint on our vehicles and the Hyundai was no different. I'd already performed two oil/filter changes and it was due again. I got my boxend and filter wrench and wriggled underneath. Pulled the drain plug and got about 2-1/2 qts out of it, another 3/4 qt from the filter. Strange, only 3-1/4 qts drained out. Not that unusual though.

I poured in five qts new oil and she was ready. The wife put on 10000 miles and it was time again. I got underneath, pulled the plug and nothing. No oil drained out. I pulled the dipstick and it read above the full mark, but not way above, a half qt maybe.

I sat and mulled over why nothing was draining. I got the owner's manual and started searching. Well, I found it. 10000 miles ago I had drained all the gear oil from her transfer case and put five qts of oil in on top of a full crankcase. She drove it like that, with no gear lubrication for 10000 miles and evidently no harm.

I ran down and bought the 90w oil and refilled her gear box. I then drained 10 qts of motor oil from the engine, replaced her filter, and replaced the oil.

I had TEN qts of 20w-50 Castrol GT in the engine.(V6) Castrol GT is not a synth but is a very good oil. The OCI per Hyundai is 25000 miles with a synth oil and 15000 with regular oil. I implemented the 10000 mile interval. I'm used to the old days and a 3000 OCI.

The Santa Fe has full time all wheel drive, a four speed automatic and overdrive. The trans uses ATF. The transfer gear box sends power from the trans to all four wheels and uses 90w gear oil, approx 2-1/2 qts.

I bought a magnetic drain plug for the gear box and have checked it twice and no telltale iron residuals. Hyundai makes a tough little SUV.
The car ran like a new car. No noise, no smell, nothing. A friend said I was lucky I didn't blow some oil seals with that much oil, but he is under the false impression that more oil equals more oil pressure. Not so. There were no leaks or smoking at all.

When I said 3-1/2 qts, not that unusual I meant that some cars do use oil and getting only 3-1/2 from where I put in five is something I have experienced, although not from a new car.
 
That's one of those stories I would keep to my self if I were the one that did it. Woo, the owner of the truck is lucky he did not ruin it.
 
Jagabom. I think you should mark the
drain plugs with paint or something.
These mistakes will cost you someday.
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I have this friend...he likes to.....

PS There is an edit button, but I'm afraid your time is up. Just say you made the whole thing up....funny thing is, you wouldn't be the first person to have done this.
 
Here they come again, pointing at Darwin, who they generally dismiss. Iesus-horses and all, you know...
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I think it's a bad idea to screw around with the car if you don't know what you're doing, but everyone has to start somewhere, and mistakes happen. I suggest the purchase of a service manual and the liberal use of common sense.
 
Years back, I drove an 1983 TBird, with the 5.0 V8, 5-1/2 quart oil capacity. First time I changed the oil, I took off the drain plug and got about 1-1/2 quarts out, and 3/4 with the filter. Knowing the the oil level read full, on the dipstick, I was (young and) confused. I thought the dipstick was wrong. Well I put on a new filter, and 5-1/2 quarts of new oil. Cranked her up and let it run for about 5 minutes, shut it off, waited 10 minutes and checked the oil level. The oil level was about 1-1/2 to 2 inches above the full level. It was up to the "...overf.." level on the "Do not overfill" wording on the dipstick. Well I crawled back under, and found on these models that the oil pan has two drain plugs, with the pan arching over the rack and pinion steering. Never understood how that worked. Did the pump have two oil pickups, front and back?

Anyway, I think that was the same year I drained the oil in my old '69 chevy six banger, refilling with 5-6 quarts of new oil, only to discover the drain plug was still out. At least I was using a cheap .59 oil, that came in a cardboard can with metal ends. Remember how you had to use an opener to punch a triangle little hole to drain, with another on top to vent? I didnt have one of those fancy spout/punches that you jammed over the can to pour. I guess we live and learn. If only BITOG had been there for me then....
 
quote:

Originally posted by MAJA:
Never understood how that worked. Did the pump have two oil pickups, front and back?

No, it just has one pickup, in the back.

When full, the oil level is above the hump in the middle.

If the oil level is really low, the oil in the front part of the pan won't mix with the oil in the back part. But if it's that low, there's other problems...

EDIT: Oil still came in cans in 1983???
 
quote:

Originally posted by brianl703:
When full, the oil level is above the hump in the middle.

actually, when the engine runs the oil level is below the hump. as oil drains down from the engine into the front sump, it keeps overflowing into the rear sump.

-michael
 
The funny part to me is that he never noticed or thought anything of the horrible sulfer smell that his "motor oil" had. Even if you don't know that gear fluid has that smell, you would think that someone changing their own oil would think "why does my oil smell all of a sudden"?
 
I worked in the automotive section of a small store when they changed over from oil cans to bottles. I think this was around in 83. I worked at the store from 10/81 to 10/84 so I believe 83 is about right. The old cans came 24 to a case. Wow what a load to carry it was kinda nice when they changed to the 12 qt case. We also had a lot less damaged oil. Those cans never liked being sat down hard and the cases where so heavy they were always getting broke. I still have the can of Quaker State 30w that was shipped empty. That's right sealed can but no oil. I have sense started collecting the old cans. One of the things my Dad gave me for Christmas was an old SF Valvoline 10w-40 and Quaker State SC 30wt, both still full of oil. Anyone know when SC was used. I'm thinking late 60's.
 
This is another situation where what you read on the internet needs to be taken with a grain of salt.

Does anyone believe the "Hyundai recommends a 25000mi OCI"?? Which manufacturer recommends this? And which manuf. makes a distinction between dino and synth for their OCI's???

Thirdly, if you doubled? the oil's capacity, it would be coming out the engine's seams, not to mention damage from extreme foaming.

Lastly, that differential would be toast in short order....not just after 10k.
 
My sister gets the oil changed on her Saturn at the dealeship in Monroeville PA. One time they put in about 10 quarts of oil for some reason. She picked up the car and looked like a storm cloud driving down the road. Smoke everywhere!

That Hyunday story seems a bit of a stretch...
 
There's not a snow-ball-chance-in-h&ll any diff will go 10K miles with no gear fluid. And as somebody else said, no engine will run 2X full and run 10K miles without foaming and damage.
 
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