How to read the dip stick ?

[lewisy]

OK I know that sounds obvious, but I've owned the FN2 now for 6 weeks, checked the oil a few times just to see what consumption is like. Now when I check, the first hole is covered, but the oil is so light i can't tell how far up it's going, it's certainly not covering the second hole, and i would make an informed guess that's it's about a quarter of the way up. Is this normal for 6 weeks ?

Sorry for the dumb question, and thanks for any guidance here. I'll probably phone up the dealer service dept. tomorrow, but any advice would be appreciated.

Lewis

 

[HASNIC]

Pull the dipstick up, wipe it clean with a cloth, reinsert and pull out and you should be able to see where the oil is, no matter how clean it is.

 

[Neily03]

Weeks are irrelevant, how many miles has it done? It considered normal to use up to a litre every 620miles.

 

[Skelly Ops]

Weeks are irrelevant, how many miles has it done? It considered normal to use up to a litre every 620miles.

I've been lucky as with my oil consumption, done 16K and it's hardly used a drop, The only time any oil's been added was at the 12.5K service when the oil was changed anyway. Still check every week though, as sod's law would come in if I didn't!

 

[lewisy]

Weeks are irrelevant, how many miles has it done? It considered normal to use up to a litre every 620miles.

It's done about 1200+ miles now, and i read in the manual what you quoted above. I drove down to halfords, let the engine rest for 3 mins, then checked the oil again, this time it seemed like it was barely covering the first hole!

so the engine could of burned up to 2 litres by the estimation above! I put in 0W 30 Castrol Edge synthetic, as that what HOnda advised. I put half a litre in and now it shows up full, covering the top dot now!!

I'm worried because a) the engine oil has gotten very low (maybe too low ?), and b) it appears it's full now. ideally it's supposed to be between the first and second hole. i hope i haven't done any damage to the engine because it's been very low, and now it being very high ?

 

[Neily03]

There's 1 litre between the min and max marks on the dipstick so if you've only put half a litre and it's now on the max then you'll be fine.

You could try 'roughing' up the surface of the dipstck with some course sandpaper which should help it hold the oil a little better and make it easier to read

 

[lewisy]

There's 1 litre between the min and max marks on the dipstick so if you've only put half a litre and it's now on the max then you'll be fine.

You could try 'roughing' up the surface of the dipstck with some course sandpaper which should help it hold the oil a little better and make it easier to read

i'll give that a try... oil is the one thing i don't want to be guessing on!

never had problems before reading oil, don't know why this oil is so feint.

out of interest, does it make a difference say if you topped up 0w 30 with 0w 40 for example, or 0w 30 with 5w 30 ?

i wish there were a light that indicated low oil and when to top up, and i'm surprised it's not smart enough to have an oil reserve that it supplements as and when required! strange for all the electronics, sensors and automation in a modern engine it does not have this ability ?

 

[Neily03]

i'll give that a try... oil is the one thing i don't want to be guessing on!

never had problems before reading oil, don't know why this oil is so feint.

out of interest, does it make a difference say if you topped up 0w 30 with 0w 40 for example, or 0w 30 with 5w 30 ?

i wish there were a light that indicated low oil and when to top up, and i'm surprised it's not smart enough to have an oil reserve that it supplements as and when required! strange for all the electronics, sensors and automation in a modern engine it does not have this ability ?

There is a low oil level sensor on the FN2, read the manual. But you shouldn't really let it get to that point.

 

[Chiffs]

Pull dip stick out
wipe with rag
re insert
leave for a few seconds
pull out dip stick
hold horizontal
if you cant see the level clearly place the side of the dipstick on the back of your hand, this will allow you to see how far up the dip stick the oil is.


I personally always check my oil with a cold engine before i drive it. The differnce between checking hot or cold engine oil is not worth shouting about.

Think about it.
Cold engine means most of the oil has drained down giving a good reading.

Hot engine which has stood for 3-5min before checking has also drained down because the oil is hot and therefore thinner and therefore drains quicker.


Why do you think you always change the oil after first warming it up, because it drains quicker.


JUST MAKE SURE YOU CHECK IT ON LEVEL GROUND