A Mundane Dipstick Question

I have found that it is not easy to get a clear reading of oil level on my 2014 4Runner. I have never experienced this on any other vehicles that I have owned, but with the 4Runnner there always seems to be a significant amount of smearing and blurring of the oil level, so I am not quite confident what I am looking at. I figure the smearing must be happening in process of pulling out the dipstick.

Has anyone else experienced this?

Today I changed the oil and filter. Fully drained for 30+ minutes. I added about 6.3 quarts, since the spec says replacement should be about 6.6 quarts. I ran the engine for a minute, shut it down and let it sit 30 minutes. The dipstick seems to be saying that I am way overfilled, but that can't be.

Any thoughts?

 

Remove the dipstick, leave it out for 5 minutes, then recheck. I've found that oil gets blown up in the tube during operation and then hangs there using the same principle as covering the top of a straw and sucking up your drink. Removing the stick and leaving it out lets that excess oil drain down and lets you get a much more clear reading.

 

Interesting concept let us know if that changes your reading. You may be overfilled my Honda (car) seems to take well below what "capacity" is. Haven't done the 4Runner oil yet. Also some cars are very finicky about being flat and level I have a slight pitch in the driveway and it's enough to change the dipstick reading about 1/3 of a quart. Be sure your sitting good and level when getting your reading.

 

No manufacturer will ever say to let it sit for 30 minutes before checking the oil, that will not be an accurate reading. Hot engine, shut it off, set your phone timing for 2 minutes, then check the reading.

 

this Toyota is a PITA to read the stick. oil is so clear hard to read the stick mobil 1 ...

yes the oil does smear on the stick then I tilt it in the sun to see the reflection of the oil on it.
I wait an hour or so on level ground and then do the check.

yes 6.6qts for me is over the fill mark .. I put in 6.25 qts and it is just above the fill mark..
when new the oil mark was well over the fill mark so I put in 6qts on my oil change then after a couple days I rechecked and it was just below the full mark by 1/16 inch .

I also drain the oil 45 min when full hot .. this engine must have small passageways takes a long time to drain out .. my GM V8 engines take 20 mins ,,,.. also very easy to read the stick ..I have done my oil changes for 50 yrs .. odd ball oil change on tis engine.. but no problems with it still running great..

 

I fill with 6 quarts then check the level and then gradually add oil to the desired level.

 

Also, You don't need to be exactly on the full line. Better to be a little below it than to overfill any vehicle. That's why dipsticks have a high and low marking, the sweet spot is in between.

 

This, and i have drained the oil, removed the filter, then on the refill put the specified amount of oil. I then took a file and put a groove in the dipstick at that level.

 

Thanks to everyone for your insights and suggestions. As to the specific issue of being able to just read the level properly, here is what I observed this morning. After sitting all night (after having been driven 70 miles the prior evening), I removed the dipstick and saw the oil was broadly smeared and impossible to read -- on one side. On the opposing side, however, it was quite clean and I was able to clearly see a horizontal line indicating the level was midway between the ticks marks. I reinserted it and tried to read it again, but now it was pretty smeared on both sides. I figured it was caused by lot of oil sticking to the inside of the dipstick tube that was smearing on the blade as I put it in and out. Furthermore, I figure every time I try to make measurement it drags additional oil up onto the sides of the tube. So I thought I would try to clean out the tube by repeatedly inserting the blade in, but not all the way, so that the tip would just miss hitting oil level, then pulling it out and cleaning it off. I must have done this 50 times. The amount of smeared oil got less and less, and got concentrated just on the very tip. Then I fully reinserted, waited 2 seconds, then removed. It was a clean read.

It would seem the normal action of the running engine splashes a lot of oil up the tube, and it doesn't drain away on its own. I think I will try leaving the dipstick out over night and see if it drains away on its own. The tube is S-shaped, so-to-speak, so the blade, has a lot of contact with the sides of the tube as it goes in and out. On other cars I have had, the blade has been wider, and perhaps more of a straight shot into the oil, so less issue with contact on the side of the tube.

Ugggh. That's a lot of anguish over a freaking dipstick.

 

I feel like that's exactly what I suggested, but you don't have to wait that long... a few minutes will do it.

 

I think you are right. And you said it in a lot fewer words.

So this morning after waiting over night with the dipstick out, it read very clean and easily. Later I did what you said (waited just 5 minutes) and that worked well enough.

 

I would think when you rough up a smooth surface the oil would fall off it faster, because it won’t stick as well. Roughing up the surface probably leads to obtaining a more accurate reading thought.

A slightly rough surface on the bottom of a boat, paddleboard, surfboard, windsurf board, etc will always allow it to move through water quicker than a gloss surface. Water has more grab on smooth surfaces. It’s basic fluid dynamics. And it does not take much to create that “fast“ surface either. A Scotchbrite Pad over the gloss coat is all it takes.

 

Dammit you boys are smart. Appreciate the insight into something that should be so simple. Now to spend the next 30 minutes checking mine...