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Diesel Dip Stick Reading ?

19K views 21 replies 13 participants last post by  Futuresystem 
#1 · (Edited)
Out of curiosity and frustration I am wondering if anyone has done an oil level reading on their 3.0 Diesel cold and then done it a second time cold (overnight) and got a completely different reading ?
 
#2 ·
There is no easy answer to this. Certainly I have never had this issue on a vehicle before.

What I do is check it when cold, withdraw the dipstick, wipe, wait 30 seconds then reinsert, wait 5 seconds then immediately withdraw to read. I find it helps if when inserting, that the graduation marks on the dipstick are facing the windscreen, so after withdrawing, lay the dipstick near flat on a piece of paper towel with the markings facing up.

Really, it shouldn't be this difficult.
 
#3 ·
I have exactly the same issue .Mine reads Min. at first look in the morning than 5mm above full if I go for a second or third reading. My car dropped oil after the Service department failed to do the sump plug up tight after the 10k service and I've been try to confirm the oil level since. I have shown others and they just shake their heads and say never seen that before. How do you know what the true oil level is for certain.
 
#5 ·
If the tube goes into the oil (like my old merc diesel) you need to remove the stick and re insert.
Pulling the stick out breaks the seal allowing oil to enter the tube. Hot and cold pushes and sucks oil in and out of the tube.

Use a clean dry rag. Not one that has wiped the windscreen or damp, it will repel the oil and give a false reading.
 
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#13 ·
If the tube goes into the oil (like my old merc diesel) you need to remove the stick and re insert.
Pulling the stick out breaks the seal allowing oil to enter the tube. Hot and cold pushes and sucks oil in and out of the tube.
Thanks for that. This is the first time I've seen a logical explanation for the issue that we have been having with the diesel, and bought to us by a V8 petrol owner.:eek:
 
#6 · (Edited)
Agree to Deserthucker.

Sounds like the oil is withdrawn due to circulating oil and/or thermal expansion effects during operation. Once cooling down, the oil does not reenter the tube/ measuring area until vented by withdrawing the dipstick.

..did you ever try it with a warm engine? Level should be a little lower, due to lower viscosity of the oil but should level faster.

Other test: just lift dipstick until gap opens at the upper opening, reinsert and measure. Maybe you can hear the air escape. Try to cover the area between dipstick an tube with saliva, maybe bubbles show up.

..after all, italian engineering is always good for surprises:)

Good luck

Achim
 
#7 ·
Yes Deserthucker is correct. I checked my oil this morning and on the first check I lifted the dipstick about 20mm to break the oil rig seal then pushed back in and then fully removed the dipstick and the level is 5mm above full.This is the first time on the first inspection that it has not indicated min. .The min. mark on mine must be right at the end on the dipstick tube.So now i need to remove about 250mm of oil.Thanks again Desertthucker this has been driving me mad.
P.S Can you solve the rattling Load Levelling Shock issue please.
 
#8 ·
Baxter
Have a look at your owners manual, it will state how long after shutting down engine (minutes) you should check the oil level
The engine should be run then stopped then oil checked after a set time( I think for the crd it's 15 minutes)
If you leave it over night you will always get an over full reading
Every manufacture has a set time to wait before checking oil level, you should stick to this
Yoda
 
#11 ·
Baxter
Have a look at your owners manual, it will state how long after shutting down engine (minutes) you should check the oil level
The engine should be run then stopped then oil checked after a set time( I think for the crd it's 15 minutes)
If you leave it over night you will always get an over full reading
Every manufacture has a set time to wait before checking oil level, you should stick to this
Yoda
Manual only advises on Petrol engines as follows:

"Engine Oil – Gasoline Engines
Checking Oil Level
To assure proper lubrication of your vehicle’s
engine, the engine oil must be maintained at
the correct level. The best time to check the
engine oil level is about five minutes after a fully
warmed up engine is shut off or before starting
the engine after it has sat overnight.
Checking the oil while the vehicle is on level
ground will improve the accuracy of the oil level
readings."

Doesn't mention anything re the diesel though.
 
#9 ·
Glad to see that other owners have the same problem reading the oil level, I had raised this some time back but did not get a reasonable answer.
I am currently in the states and was most disappointed to find that Chrysler do not have factory tours. I had intended to ask the team that did a 68 mile quality assurance drive in our vehicle how they missed the leaking oil filter bleeder, the weeping seal on the front axle, the misaligned hose clips on the cooling system and the hand brake warning light lead wrapped around the bell crank so that it shorted out plus a few other niggling things that really should not happen.
The one thing that has struck me here is the seemingly massive ground clearance on the domestic Grand Cherokee, petrols admittedly but a way lot higher in the sky than mine. I will check out the oil reading when we get home, I miss my machine.
 
#10 ·
Have you seen the video of the Jefferson plant workers smoking pot during lunch ?
This is why they missed they quality items. Unless they dropped their joint on the floor, the would not pickup the dripping oil.
 
#15 · (Edited)
Standard dip-stick practice on any machine is to pull it out, wipe it, put it in, leave it a second or two, take it out and take a reading.
 
#18 ·
Okay, I need help. I have about 15k on my 2014 GC CRD. I've changed the oil twice and don't recall having any trouble reading the oil level on the dipstick before. However, I have been thinking about going to Baja recently and when I checked the oil while the engine was cold it looked low, so I added 500 ml. I tried checking the oil after that but I couldn't get a clean reading. A few days later I checked the oil level again when the engine was cold and it still seemed low, so I added another 500 ml. Once again, i couldn't get a "clean" reading on subsequent attempts. The same thing happened a third time, but I decided something must be wrong with my technique and found this thread.

I removed 1000 mm of oil, under the assumption that I had overfilled the engine. I've then tried the techique recommended here (pull out the dipstick 20 mm, then reinsert before removing and reading the level) three different times: 1) after 15 minutes, 2) after the engine had cooled to 100 degree F, and 3) in the morning when the endgine was cold, all with essentially the same result: the dipstick wasn't clean and was impossible to read.

Has anyone else had similar difficulties? I'll probably change the oil tomorrow so that I can be sure I have the right amount in the engine, but I'd really like to be able to read the dipstick!

Thank
 
#21 ·
Clean your dipstick with some degreaser.
If it has any type of wax contaminant on the stick the oil will not stick to it.

(some tissues have oil and waxes to make them smooth on your nose)
 
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