Dealer put 5 quarts of oil in my car. Should I be worried?

**Svart** · 04-04-2009 11:51 AM

So I just got my car back from the 35,000 mile scheduled maintenance. For every service I give the dealer a box of 6 quarts of Valvoline 5W-40 to keep it consistent. Well they acutally used 5 full quarts this time around (I told them to put empty bottles back in box) and am a little concerned since the manual says 4.5 quarts. The oil stick reading is somewhere in the MAX level, but it's hard to tell where in the max level it is.
Should I drain some of the oil? What could happen if there is too much oil? Will I develop any leaks?

**HEAVY_-J** · 04-04-2009 01:20 PM

well cars can vary about a quarter to half quart of capacity from the manual's specs....although, if its reading OVER max rather than right on it, that can be bad....especially if its significantly over! I'll let someone who actually knows what they're talking about tell you the side effects of too much oil....

**Sly Raskal** · 04-04-2009 02:30 PM

Originally Posted by Svart

So I just got my car back from the 35,000 mile scheduled maintenance. For every service I give the dealer a box of 6 quarts of Valvoline 5W-40 to keep it consistent. Well they acutally used 5 full quarts this time around (I told them to put empty bottles back in box) and am a little concerned since the manual says 4.5 quarts. The oil stick reading is somewhere in the MAX level, but it's hard to tell where in the max level it is.
Should I drain some of the oil? What could happen if there is too much oil? Will I develop any leaks?

Considering the engine calls for 4.5 quarts with a little variance, my guess is someone was pocketing the extra quart you've always been giving them. <2cents>

I took in a five litre jug of Motul 8100 oil for my first oil change, why they would ever need more than 5 quarts if the engine calls for 4.5 would strike me as odd. <insert-shrug-smiley>

**Svart** · 04-04-2009 02:38 PM

I gave them 6 bottles (quarts) of oil. I got back 5 empty bottles and one full one so they didnt pocket anything. Its just that usually would put in around 4.5 quarts but for some reason they put in 5 now.

**Sly Raskal** · 04-04-2009 02:42 PM

Originally Posted by Svart

I gave them 6 bottles (quarts) of oil. I got back 5 empty bottles and one full one so they didnt pocket anything. Its just that usually would put in around 4.5 quarts but for some reason they put in 5 now.

I wasn't refering to them pocketing a quart this time. In the past they could have always been putting in 5 bottles and pocketing the 6th without you knowing and on your end, you assumed they used 6 quarts even though the motor only called for less than 5 quarts.

If they did in fact put in 6 quarts into your motor, like a previous poster mentioned, there would be some bad things that would happen if you had too much oil put in.

**Two A's** · 04-04-2009 03:46 PM

maybe they used a larger oil filter which would require an extra half quart of oil.....maybe

**bblume** · 04-04-2009 10:46 PM

just roll with it...destroy your cat in the meantime...and go TP ;)

**supamannn99** · 04-04-2009 11:18 PM

so.... back to the question. what are the potential side effects or consequences of putting too much oil?

**bblume** · 04-04-2009 11:19 PM

so.....I just told you probably the worst side effect

**supamannn99** · 04-05-2009 12:30 AM

destroying the cat? wtf

**Midniteoyl** · 04-05-2009 01:52 AM

half a quart wont be too bad, if at all. What happens when you put in too much is the crank dips into the oil whipping it to foam. Air doesnt lubricate very well.

Look at you stick, the distance between ADD/MIN and MAX/FULL is ~ 1 qt. If its above the MAX line by half that distance, then go back and have them pull out .5 qt. If its lower, I would'nt worry a whole lot.

**JRMSLINEA4** · 04-05-2009 08:22 AM

Originally Posted by Midniteoyl

half a quart wont be too bad, if at all. What happens when you put in too much is the crank dips into the oil whipping it to foam. Air doesnt lubricate very well.

Look at you stick, the distance between ADD/MIN and MAX/FULL is ~ 1 qt. If its above the MAX line by half that distance, then go back and have them pull out .5 qt. If its lower, I would'nt worry a whole lot.

This is correct.

**Svart** · 04-05-2009 09:54 AM

...ya the manual says it can ruin your cat. I know they were in a rush to do my car cuz they were really busy so I'm guessing they just poured in the 5 quarts and called it a day. Would it be obvious to me that damage is being done or is this something that I will experience later down the road? Right now the car is running fine.

**Midniteoyl** · 04-05-2009 11:35 AM

A quick and easy way is to pull the dipstick right after you park, but with the engine running. You should be able to see foam on the stick if its getting whipped. If its just oil, its good. If the levels are too low to read while running, stop the motor and check after about 10-15 secs but I' hazard a guess that if you cant read it while running, the levels are good anyways.