Is my Dip Stick Lying to me?

On my 3rd oil change since I bought my truck.

On the first oil change not much Oil came out when i drained it....and i was not positive how much oil the truck should take. Was reading on the forum most people using 3QT's....so i did the same. I'm using 10w40.

I have been having some smoking problems which almost seemed like i over filled the engine with Oil.

Did an oill change tonight and was carefull to measure how much was going out / in.

To make a long story short i put in 1.5QT's of oil and the dipstick is saying the oil level is fine? Half way up the bottom marker.

I have an 1989 Suzuki 550CC. Is it possible my truck only uses 1.5Qt's of Oil or am i just reading the dipstick incorrectly?

If so it would explain the exhaust smoking issues i have been having and black powder coming out the exhaust.:frustration:

 

Try starting it for a few seconds? That level should drop down considerably when it fills the pump, passages, and oil filter.

My 660 takes 3 on the dot.

 

i did start it....and the level is the same.

any chance 1.5QT's is all it takes? i know the 660's take 3.....but maybe the 550 takes less?

is it possible?

 

you might want to try an oil flush just to be sure all the passages are clean and able to hold as much oil as intended.....possible your dipstick is the wrong one and you are getting false readings ..
Interesting Suzuki F5A engine manual I found if you need the info
http://www.icbm.com.au/mightyboy/manual.htm

 

Like I was saying if your engine has sludge inside valve covers chances are your oil pan has a liter of sludge inside clinging to sides and bottom of oil pan. Manual specifies for 550cc 2.9 liters (3qts) after engine overhaul or 2.5 (2.5qtsaprox) for oil change with filter change. Be careful in drawing it is in pints. Or page 4-55 in fupabox's manual

 

RE: Little foot - what do you mean by this : "Be careful in drawing it is in pints"

What can I pour thru the engine to flush it?

Sounds like i have a bunch of sludge in there.....no way possible it's 1.5

 

it depends, when and how you checking oil

 

In the drawing it says 5.3 pints US, which is 2.65 quarts US. I don't think these are serviced too often in Japan. Did you look inside valve cover? Flushing is dangerous because it also washes crank and cam bearings. If you have sludge your best bet is to remove oil pan and wash it with varsol then re-install and refill with no more than 2.6 quartsUS of good oil to start with. Run it then let it sit for five minutes and check oil levels. Add oil to full line. Then you will have peace of mine. If oil pan is clean you know valve cover is probably clean. But if it's dirty you will need to clean valve cover and the top of the head also.

When I got my little truck it was full of sludge with 73000Kms.

 

Thanks,

I guess ill see about taking off the oil pan. Will i need to get a gasket when I put it back on?

pretty easy job removing / cleaning / reinstalling the oil pan?

More Frequent oil / oil filter changes help flush the sludge out or not really?

 

I would think the sludge on JDM cars would be a result of lower KMs driven,they prob. follow the 5-6k km oil change interval(and ignore the or 6 months part)..unfortunately it takes 2 years to get to the next oil change....removing the pan should be pretty simple....

 

Thinking 2.6 quarts with the factory filter, which is pretty tiny. Anyone using a larger filter can expect to use an extra bit of oil.

 

Like I said I did it in 3 oil changes,1.5KDelco filter-2KFram filter and now 5K (Fram filter) with synthetic but Don-in-Japan says not to use synthetic. I'm no expert but am a firm believer in synthetics. It worked for me and I am satisfied of the results. I plan to use synthetic in my next oil change this week if it can stop raining.

 

I believe in synthetics, but not in worn vehicles. Synthetics tend to get where conventional oils can't.

Just throwing stuff out there.. but like was mentioned, sludge could be a culprit.

 

Well something is taking one liter of space in there aside from air.

 

Oil soaked squirrels?

 

OOOhh I know...ex bank heist getaway vehicle...and the money is hidden in bags in the oil pan....even better diamonds from a jewelry heist!!!

Hey it could happen

 

i dont have alot of free time.....nor the expertise to mess around with the engine too much....so i was hoping if i change the oil like every month.....over time the sludge with dwindle down? run it really hot and then drain the oil...fill with new......am i just dreaming?

im very nervous to switch to synthetic. My truck runs good...and now it does not even smoke much...would hate to ruin it by going synthetic.....since there is no going back after that....

my engine has 63KM on it.....and i do believe that the previous owner did not take very good care of it.

when i did the initial oil change......almost NO oil came out of it....so probably a good deal of sludge.......

 

you could run a bottle of engine flush through it (may have to do it quite a few times to get a 1 litre or so sludge ball out) and it could dislodge some junk and clog the filter....I would stop using Fram filters as well if possible...it's prob. just superstition but they seem to clog easily,have poor anti-drain-back, and have lower regular flow than others..

 

Myth....... only two companies make oil filters. Different paint and part#... Ever watch the program " How it's Made". The filters all come out from same assembly line before they split to paint booths. Sorry 3, Amzoil make their own filters.

 

ok so basically more frequent oil changes will not really do much for my patricular problem.

either i drop the pan and clean it out...or flush it.....

and i agree about the oil filters.......

 

For sure regular oil changes will eventually clear all the sludge provided you use good oil. Don't use recycled oil or oil drained from your F-150.

 

HA.....good point....

Ill drain it....and ill put fresh 10w-40 in there every couple weeks for a while.

i have this black powered coming out my exhaust.... probably sludge trying to make its way out since i have been over filling it like a dumb ass....

hope i didnt do any damage ....

 

and here is a picture of the dip stick.

it's hard to see the oil level....but it's right around the middle of the marked up area (for lack of a better term)

i'm assuming thats right around where it needs to be....or should i be right up at the top... (might need to add some oil if thats the case)

 

Black is usually choke problems running rich. Oil burns blue. White is steam from blown gasket. Synthetic doesn't burn as easily as regular oil because it's ignition temperature is higher. Top is recommended, add ½ quart. Bottom to top mark is about a quart.

 

Little Foot :

this is not black smoke...but more of a black powder.....

i had the side of my bed folded down and my muffler blows in that direction.....so when i went to pickup the bed side i noticed it was all covered in this black soot.....

ever heard of that before?

truck does not seem to be smoking anymore now that the engine oil level is in a good place....

 

Black soot is usually unburnt gas from rich burn but I imagine unburnt oil would do the same.

 

which would make sense....because it only happends when i first start the truck and prime it......so it's probably flooded with gas to some degree

 

When it's time to change oil? Easy - when it's black and start changing viscocity. Then standart(mineral) oil contains less stabilizing additives, so will have shortest lifetime. Also IMO not really correct to change oil by km's or monthes - someone driving on the streets in town, someone in the forest or mountains. And as far as i know most japanese changing oil every 5000km and filter every 10000km