Overfilling oil

[oldcruiser]

Hi guys,

It looks like my mechanic may have overfilled the oil in my aurion. On the dipstick, oil reaches a good 3-4cm above the top point indicating "full".

I have also noticed some oil on the floor where I park my car... Is this just oil leaking out of the oil filter gasket? What's the risk of damage to my car if I just left it over-filled? Does over filling cause the oil pressure in the engine to increase and cause damage?

Cheers!

[sportivo2007]

It should be only till the second bar which is full ,check for any oil leaks top and bottom of the car ,

I wouldn't drive it just to be safe drain the extra oil .

[Hiro]

If you overfill the oil significantly it can reach the bottom of the crankshaft and get whipped up to hell, which pressurises the crankcase and can cause your main seals to blow out.

A cm or so above FULL shouldn't matter (since the level drops when the engine is running), but 3-4cm sounds like waaaay too much. Drain it immediately until it comes down to the FULL mark, and give your engine a good clean/degrease to see if there are any leaks.

[Scottg]

What he said :), plus all the thrashing about aerates (sp?) the oil. Oil pumps don't pump froth real good, so oil pressure can disappear, and air doesn't lubricate much, with resultant financial pain.

I'd be giving the mechanic a call, I'm sure he doesn't want to be involved in repairing consequent damage out of his pocket

Splash lubrication is fine on lawnmowers, but...

[oldcruiser]

Hmm I'm a bit confused. When I replace the level checking stick, then pull it out, the oil level isn't exactly clear... there's oil everywhere and it's not clearly demarcated.On one side there is about 0.5-1cm of oil above the F mark, but on the otherside oil runs all the way about 10cm up.

What is going on!

Also the amount of oil on the floor is minimal, it's not gushing out and I've put some fresh cardboard down to check if it is my car that's in fact leaking.

I'm going to jack the car up tomorrow and drain some of the oil and try to get a better gauge of where the actual oil mark is.

[Hiro]

Whenever you check the oil, always pull the dipstick out and clean the end first, then re-insert it and pull it out again. Also make sure the car is turned off and has sat for long enough on level ground to allow the oil to settle, otherwise there's no point

[oldcruiser]

No worries. It appears it's not over-full.

I managed to jack the car up earlier and this is what I found:

I'm wondering (?hoping) if this is the infamous VVT-i oil line, since then I might be able to have it replaced under CSE? Otherwise I'm guessing I'm up for big $.

Merry Christmas everyone!