Go by dipstick or manual?

[Old Dogger]

Causing even more confusion to oil change “techs” world wide

Agree.......... It also confuses some of the Wrangler buyers!

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[swampflyer]

Drain all your engine oil including filter replace. Refill with five (5) quarts of oil. drive around the block. Park and let it set for a while maybe a six pack or some Makers Mark whisky. A couple hours to be sure. Then and only then check dipstick. Mark your dipstick(up to you) and that's your new full 5 quart mark.

 

[boarder140]

Mine is over if I let the car sit for a few hours and let everything drain back into the pan. From the owners manual, it says to check the level 5 minutes after you turn off the engine. If you have exactly 5 quarts of oil, it will read at the center of the hash marks. So I fill with a 5 quart jug and that's it.

 

[OldGuyNewJeep]

I don’t even look at the dipstick when changing oil. As long as on flat ground (i.e. in my garage), I just drain until it's barely dripping and fill back up with 5qts. With a Fumato valve and 5qt jugs from Wally World it's the easiest oil change of any of my vehicles.

 

[Yawnie'sPapa]

Simple question here but just want to be safe.

Last year when I changed my engine oil for the first time in my 3.6L eTorque JL, I added 5 quarts just like the manual says. However, in the days afterward I noticed that when I checked the dipstick, the oil level was probably 1/8" or more above the max of the crosshatches. So I drained a little.

Today, I changed my oil again and I intentionally left about one quarter of a quart in the jug. I went for about a 15 mile drive (since I also rotated my tires), came back, let the engine cool for about five minutes (per the manual), and then measured my oil level with the dipstick. Now my oil level is bang in the middle of the crosshatches.

Am I right that I should be going by my dipstick to judge the right amount of oil and not just blindly dumping in 5 quarts every time I do my oil change? My assumption is that I just have a bit of old residual oil that isn't fully draining out each time.

Thanks!

You actually drained oil for 1/8" ?
Naw, put in the 5 and forget it. You could be 1/4" over the full mark and not do a lick of damage.

If you put in what it says to put in AFTER fully draining it - when the oil is hot (warm the engine, THEN pull the plug) and you let it sit a while draining, then use the stick only as an indicator of when you need to add.
Been doing auto tech since the 1970s and have seen some variation on how sticks read.
A lot of 3.6s have had a quart too much since they reduced capacity with no ill effect.
Again, as long as it's hot when you drain it, you let it drain for several minutes, you change the filter, too, then put in the 5 - ignore the stick.

 

[Rhinebeck01]

Didnt the 2018 and older models take 6 quarts? They’re just going off of old info. Even jeep dealers screw it up.

From FCA press release when they introduced the 2nd Gen Pentastar...

"Windage-tray weight was slashed by 19 percent and front-cover weight was cut by 5 percent. *The oil pan was redesigned from a two-piece to a single-piece pan and the sump was reduced from a 6-quart fill to a 5-quart fill *– resulting in an overall 5-pound weight savings compared with the previous generation Pentastar V-6 engine."

 

[slim_pickens]

You actually drained oil for 1/8" ?
Naw, put in the 5 and forget it. You could be 1/4" over the full mark and not do a lick of damage.

If you put in what it says to put in AFTER fully draining it - when the oil is hot (warm the engine, THEN pull the plug) and you let it sit a while draining, then use the stick only as an indicator of when you need to add.
Been doing auto tech since the 1970s and have seen some variation on how sticks read.
A lot of 3.6s have had a quart too much since they reduced capacity with no ill effect.
Again, as long as it's hot when you drain it, you let it drain for several minutes, you change the filter, too, then put in the 5 - ignore the stick.

Great advice. Thank you.

 

[Tncdrew]

Agree.......... It also confuses some of the Wrangler buyers!

Uh.... even after looking it up in the Capacities section of thier owners manual?
I guess some are easily confused ?

 

[blnewt]

From FCA press release when they introduced the 2nd Gen Pentastar...

"Windage-tray weight was slashed by 19 percent and front-cover weight was cut by 5 percent. *The oil pan was redesigned from a two-piece to a single-piece pan and the sump was reduced from a 6-quart fill to a 5-quart fill *– resulting in an overall 5-pound weight savings compared with the previous generation Pentastar V-6 engine."

Wow, I thought I had to work hard to shed 5 lbs, DAMN!

 

[jaymz]

Mine is over if I let the car sit for a few hours and let everything drain back into the pan. From the owners manual, it says to check the level 5 minutes after you turn off the engine. If you have exactly 5 quarts of oil, it will read at the center of the hash marks. So I fill with a 5 quart jug and that's it.

According to the 2018 JL manual, middle of the hash marks is 1/2 quart low.

Just follow the KISS procedure. Drain the oil, change the filter and dump in 5qts. It’s not that complicated.

A fraction of a quart one way or the other isn’t going to hurt anything anyway.

 

[Rick4570]

The Jeeps dipstick is awful! After an oil change I have no idea where it is on the dipstick. Using a wire instead of a standard flat dipstick makes it all but impossible to tell if it is overfilled.

 

[roaniecowpony]

A lot of hand-wringing over nothing.

 

[blnewt]

The Jeeps dipstick is awful! After an oil change I have no idea where it is on the dipstick. Using a wire instead of a standard flat dipstick makes it all but impossible to tell if it is overfilled.

Really?? I find it works great, just need to angle it a bit in the light to clearly display where the oil is on the stick IME.

 

[jav_eee]

The Jeeps dipstick is awful! After an oil change I have no idea where it is on the dipstick. Using a wire instead of a standard flat dipstick makes it all but impossible to tell if it is overfilled.

If you can’t see it on the dipstick that means you need more oil haha

 

[REWJeep]

If you can’t see it on the dipstick that means you need more oil haha

I find it hard to tell on the dipstick of my 2022 3.6L engine when the oil is clean. It is even harder on my Generac 22kW standby generator. So, what I do is to remove the dipstick, wipe it off, insert it and remove it, and then lay it against a paper towel. The oil is clearly visible on the towel.

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