Why doesn't our oil get dark? or, checking oil level is hard on a tundra.

Long story, I did an oil change yesterday because it had been neglected and was at about 7k miles. Oil was light honey colored.

Now, every other vehicle I've had it would be coal black after a couple thousand, and light brown a mile after a change.

But not on the tundra.

Do to my own carelessness I put the wrong filter on and it blew off as soon as I started the truck, vomiting a large amount of oil on the ground.

I refilled it....but I've been having a hell of a time figuring out how much to put in....because even after a few miles of driving the oil in the truck is so clear I can't be sure if I'm seeing it on the stick or not. Sometimes the stick looks dry...sometimes it looks full.....

Anyway....what is the actual thing about our engines that keeps the oil so clean?? I've never had another vehicle where the oil stayed like this.

 

They idle at low oil pressure.. no rocker arms or anything like that in the valve train. Aka less moving parts. Toyota’s in general are easy on oil. My corolla oil is a dark gold after 20k on the oil.
Fill spec with the d3 oil filter is 6.5 quarts. Even if the oil is clear it should see be easy enough to see on the stick unless the stick isn’t clean (varnish)

 

Yeah, I know how much was supposed to go back in, the problem is I don't know how much I puked into the driveway, and everytime I check the oil I seem to get a different reading, from full, to nothing....which makes no sense so I assuming I'm reading it wrong some of the time.

 

It is hard to see, but all you can do is fill it half quart at a time. I usually look at it at different light source and angle to see a difference in reflection from the stick and fluid coating the tip.

 

The key to checking it is to not just wipe the dipstick, but to dry it off using a clean absorbant rag or paper towel.

With any vehicle, I prefer to check oil first thing in the morning -- all the oil is settled, and it's at its thickest. For an even easier read, you could pull the dipstick the night before. That way when you insert in the morning there's no residual oil in the dipstick tube.

 

When I went from Castrol Full Syn to Mobil 1 on my last oil change, I too had difficulty and have decided until I can see it better, I check at least 3 times before feeling good I'm seeing what I am seeing. One issue I'm still trying to determine is does Mobil 1 run much higher temps on starting in morning. Mine sits at 3/4 for a few minutes then settles to normal 1/2 way mark.

 

My pennzoil is dark after 5k miles

 

Trick Tip: Score some diagonal hash lines on your dip stick.

 

Ewwww!

Mobil 1 High Mileage Synthetic user and this doesn’t happen on the 02.

 

Dry the dipstick off real good stick it all the way in then pull it out and touch it to a towel or rag, and the wet spot will show you how high. Some of us older people can't see that good anymore, so I came up with this idea for myself.

 

The coolant temp gauge?

 

Honestly, I don't have any trouble reading the dipstick on my Tundra unless it's during the oil change. My oil will get dark after a few thousand miles. I use Mobile 1 full synthetic.

It got black as tar when I did the Liquid Molly Oil Flush. That was neat!

I've found that one side of the dipstick is more accurate for some reason.

Here it is this morning. Pic makes it look low but in person it's not.

 

That’s not a temp gauge, it’s a pressure gauge.

 

My bad, good catch....I am speaking of oil pressure gauge. Given We are in the Smoky Mountains for the weekend, must be suffering from mountain air
Will post up pic on return home showing what I am speaking of.

 

It's an interesting problem to have isn't it? I change my oil about the 5k mark and its black going out, but on the dipstick it's not nearly as dark. When I put the fresh oil in it looks damn near dry, I have to touch it to know that there is oil on the dipstick and it's high enough up.

One side is definitely easier to read. The dipstick tube takes quite a curve as its passing the block, I think that forces the bottom side to wipe clear. The side that faces the motor when you dip tends to be easier to read.

 

I have over 355k miles on my engine, go 7,000 miles till an oil change and it's still gold. I use plain Valvoline 5/30.

 

Do late model 1sties have the maintenance reminder light for oil changes?

 

Thats normal then. Mine has ‘abnormal’ high pressure on cold starts. Tempers out to ‘normal’ lower pressures once engine has warmed. NORMAL!

 

Nope.

 

I flip my dipstick over and check both sides. The highest side is the true reading. Glasses help if your sight is diminishing. Fresh fluid is hard to read, but the tale tell tension line is always there. Sun angles or flashlight will help reveal it.

 

Hell, I'm still trying to find a longer dipstick. Mine wont reach the oil.

 

Try a Transmission Dipstick from a Ford Econoliner Van.

 

That's cuz the oil is still too new....wait another 50K....

 

How many miles does the average owner change? It’s my 2nd car, so I’ll maybe put 5-600 miles a month? My main car is also a Toyota (Lexus), I use 5w-30 or 0w20 every 8-10k miles.. mind you I put on well over 1k miles a month on her.

 

Mine does

 

He said late model 1st gens. I took that as the early ones, 00-03? We don't have maintenance reminders.

 

Just changed mine. It’s definitely what the other users posted. Stick in you’re dip stick WIPE DRY and check a FEW times. 4th time should be accurate on the side with the raised dots. It holds oil to view when taking the turn through the dip stick tube. It should be visible... even fresh oil.

 

Oh ok. I got ya.