well after reading all of sooner's ten page oil burning thread ive been keeping a close eye on my motor. when i did that first oil change i had it done at a local lube shop were i used to work at and had them use mobil 5w-30 with a generic superchamp filter. the next oil change i decided that i would do it on my own but this time i used castrol gtx 10w-30 with a M1 108 filter. when i drained out the old oil got 3.5-3.75 quarts out of it after only 2,5xx miles. So fast forward to about 1 month later and last night i let it sit over night and i checked that oil this morning and its exactly in the middle of the H and L portion of the dipstick and this is after only 700 miles on the new gtx oil. does this mean i should add a half a quart of oil? now remember i didnt warm up to operation temp and let it sit for 10 mins like the owners manual says to because most of the oil is still in the motor at that point.

 

I think you should get it up to temp and then re-check....

 

If your dipstick inserts into the oilpan like mine, you can't read the thing when the oil/engine is warm (i/e checking at a gas station). When it's warm, I get oil 1/3 of the way up the stick on both sides.

The owners manual says to check after a 10 minute cool-down in an effort to allow the oil to settle down into the oil pan after being circluated through the engine. The problem I have is that 10 minutes doesn't seem to be enough. If you have fresh oil (less than 1000 mi) in the motor, it really should be flowing just fine, and I think it's fine to check the oil level before cranking it in the morning.

If your oil is showing some wear/age/deposits, it's probably a good idea to run the motor to temp and check after about a 20 minute period. That way, you're sure all the deposits heated up enough to allow the oil to "de-clump" and circulate completely through the motor.

Because of the nature of dino oil especially, it's important before you change your oil (if you do it yourself) to heat up the engine, let it cool for about 10 minutes, then pull the drain plug and filter. WATCH OUT--OIL IS HOT AND WILL BURN YOU. I always wear latex or polymer gloves when changing oil to avoid contact burns. You need the oil to be hot, however, to ensure it all drains out in a short time. After I drain the pan, but before removing the filter, I usually crank the motor and IMMEDIATELY shut it off when it idles, just to make sure that all oil in the crankcase is forced down through the pan. I believe this will give you the most consistent, accurate reading of oil capacity and consumption.

Of course, not everyone has time or discipline enough to change their own oil every time it needs changing, so in that case, don't look too closely at the amount of oil used by the tech and compare it to your own levels, because if your car sat in line for 45 minutes, then was cranked to pull into the service bay, chances are your valves will be holding on to some of that colder oil, and not as much will be needed to register "full" on the dipstick. Plus, I've literally had techs tell me with the 96 GXE I used to have that they could never read the oil level accurately just after the oil fill-up anyway, so they just used the amount suggested by the manufacturer. This won't hurt anything mechanically, but it also won't give you an accurate record of your oil consumption. If they'll tell you, it's more important to know how much oil came OUT of the engine, not how much they put in. In a cooler engine (one that's been waiting for service) it won't bleed out completely, and that's why I do the "dry crank"; so I know exactly how much oil came out of the pan and filter.

TMI, I know, but hopefully all your questions were answered, both asked and unasked.

 

Make sure the vehicle is on a flat/level surface.

 

that did he answer some of my questions and my dipstick goes into the block like all the maximas with vqs in them. i know this is going to sound ignorrant but should i still add a half a quart although i havent started the car to operating temp then check the level 10 mins after? it shows exactly half on the H to L line with overnight sitting. im just really parinoid that the motor doesnt have enough oil in it.

 

it is, its in a garage.

 

If it was sitting on a level surface overnight, which you say it was, and the dipstick reads that, yes, I would add a 1/2 qt.

 

okay i rechecked it while it was running and after the 10 min cool down its a bit higher than the full mark so now im leary about putting in the half quart because i dont want to be over either.

 

VQ dipsticks are retarded. 10 minutes isn't enough time. In fact, I don't even think an hour is enough to get a super accurate reading. I always leave the car to sit overnight, and even then, the reading can be questionable. 3 weeks ago, I checked my oil level after letting the car sit overnight, and the dipstick read 2/3. I thought "uh oh, am i burning again?" I stopped driving the car for 3 weeks since I had another car to drive (it was 4 cyl... saving gas FTW). Before I started up the max after 3 weeks of sitting on the street, I checked the oil level, and it was at the FULL mark. My point? Adding an entire 0.5 quart may not be necessary...

 

the dipsticks on the vq35 suck. just monitor what comes out when you do an oil change...

 

I REALLY wish you guys would NOT just use the amount of oil drained to determine how much fresh oil to put in, without verifying the oil level with the dipstick afterwards. Did you check the dipstick before draining the oil or what, and how accurate was the reading even if you took it? Even if you account for the oil drained out of the oil filter, the oil filter media has a fair amount of oil "soaked" into it, that you will never account for. After the oil change and running the engine you ABSOLUTELY have to verify the oil level by using the dipstick. Yes, we all know about the oil dripping onto the dipstick issue........ just give the oil more time to drain from the head. I've found that checking it warm after about 15 min. after shutting down gives about the same indication as checking the oil after sitting overnight. (I guess that's the warm oil expanding as opposed to more drain time). AND Merlot02SE.....do not start the engine after draining the oil out of the pan....the amount of additional oil that MAY eventually drain into the pan after doing that, doesn't amount to a hill of beans, and for that second or so at idle the pump is sucking air and will develop no pressure.