Any driver should know how to check the engine oil level. Even if she is driving a girl who does not understand the principle of the motor, she should be able to do it too. This is simply a necessary knowledge, which allows many to avoid big problems in the future. Moreover, despite the fairly simple check procedure, even experienced drivers do not always check the oil correctly. As a result, they receive inaccurate information regarding the oil level in the engine.
Necessity
Knowing how to check the engine oil level is necessary in order to keep the car in good condition. If you do not check the oil level for months, then in the event of a leak, the driver will not know about it. As a result, the engine will run without lubrication, which will lead to its breakdown. Of course, if there is no oil in the engine, the light on the dashboard will light up, but until this moment the engine will experience “oil starvation” for some time, which is extremely harmful to it.
Training
No special tools are needed to check the engine oil level. At a minimum, you need a rag to wipe the probe. Therefore, it is recommended to have a rag with you, which is not a pity to stain.
Note that even the masters argue among themselves about how to check the oil level in the engine correctly. Some say that the motor needs to be warmed up, while others insist that you need to watch the level “on the cold”. As a result of such disputes on some engines, the oil dipsticks are marked with hot and cold, which must be observed with a cold / hot engine. There is some truth in such disputes: hot oil expands, so the level on the dipstick may be higher. When the oil cools, its volume decreases. Accordingly, the level mark on the probe will be lower.
So, the preparation sequence:
- We put the car on a flat platform. To check if the machine is on a level surface, simply remove the hand brake and engage the neutral gear. If the car does not roll, it means that it is standing on a flat platform.
- Wait about 10 minutes for all the oil after running the engine to glass into the pan.
- Open the hood and proceed directly to the measurement.
How to check the oil level?
Now let's proceed directly to the verification:
- We take out the probe (usually it has a yellow pen) and examine it. So far, he will not show us the exact level information, but will allow us to determine the condition of the oil. If it is too black and very viscous, then it must be replaced.
- Now wipe the probe with a dry cloth and shove it into the crankcase again until it stops.
- Now we extract it and look at the remaining trace. In order to determine if there is enough oil in the sump, you need to navigate by the notches that must be on the dipstick.
Serifs on the dipstick indicate the minimum and maximum oil levels. If after checking you find that the level is below the Min mark, this means that the lubricant must be added. Ideally, the mark should be in the middle - between the two notches Min and Max. In cases where the oil level is not detected at all on the dipstick (the dipstick is dry), it is necessary to add grease urgently. In general, it is advisable not to continue driving on a car with very little oil in its engine. In this case, you need to go to the car shop and buy at least a liter of oil, top up it, make sure that the lubrication level has returned to normal. After this, it is advisable to go to the service station. They must determine where the oil goes.
If it is necessary to top up, it is advisable to use the same lubricant that is currently in the motor. It is extremely undesirable to mix oils of different manufacturers, viscosities and on different bases.
It makes no sense to tell how to check the level of engine oil in a diesel engine. There, this procedure is also carried out.
Finally
Now you know how to correctly measure the oil level in the engine, and you can perform this procedure yourself. It is necessary to check the lubrication level from time to time, because in this way you can timely detect a lack of oil and solve the problem with the motor before it is too late. This is especially true for owners of cars with high mileage. Engines are not new there, and they are not under warranty. Therefore, checking the oil is a mandatory monthly procedure that takes only one minute of time.