Oil Dipstick Trouble - it always reads full.

norbyty · Post by **norbyty** » 26 Nov 2006, 17:16

I drive a 1987 240 DL Sedan. Whenever I check the dipstick on my Volvo, it registers as perfectly full. It doesn't matter if it is full or only has half a quart of oil in it. It ALWAYS reads as full right on the mark. I asked my mechanic, and he looked at me like I was speaking Greek. He said he had never seen that. I know that he was thinking that I had no
idea of how to read an oil dipstick. Trust me, I do. Have you ever heard of this happening before? Do you have any suggestions? Let me know. Thanks.

mrscullini · Post by **mrscullini** » 26 Nov 2006, 17:27

are you the original owner? has the oil level ever registered correctly? typically, the dipstick will "dip" into the sump or oil pan (resevoir where oil is held). the dipstick should be calibrated to read the correct oil level. is it possible the dipstick is from another vehicle? it may be possible the dipstick is too long. if this were the case, the oil level would probably read high when at the correct level. do you have a dent in the oil pan? this may capture oil giving a false reading.

Post by **MadeInJapan** » 26 Nov 2006, 18:16

Moving this to the proper forum.

wojeepster · Post by **wojeepster** » 28 Nov 2006, 18:33

remove dipstick, wipe dry, insert dip stick, remove and read. The cross hatch pattern will retain oil unless you do this.

norbyty · Post by **norbyty** » 28 Nov 2006, 22:07

mrscullini wrote:are you the original owner? has the oil level ever registered correctly? typically, the dipstick will "dip" into the sump or oil pan (resevoir where oil is held). the dipstick should be calibrated to read the correct oil level. is it possible the dipstick is from another vehicle? it may be possible the dipstick is too long. if this were the case, the oil level would probably read high when at the correct level. do you have a dent in the oil pan? this may capture oil giving a false reading.

No, I have had the car about 3 or 4 years now. It is hard to say how accurate it ever was, because it would always read around the full to half-quart low mark, but that seemed to be accurate. Even though it is an old car it retains oil well and doesn't burn through it barely ever between changes. The pan appears to not be dented. It could be a wrong size stick that is too long, but it just seems wierd that it is always right at the full mark.

And just so everyone is clear, I am a school bus driver. I have to check the oil in that thing every morning, and I haven't had a bus engine seize on me yet, so I am pretty sure I know how to check and read a dipstick.

Tyler