Okay, so I know I need to look after my oil levels and since I’ve had the car I’ve checked the oil level twice in about 500 miles, both while it was cold (old school!) and the oil level was right up to the top level.
After reading things on here, I decided to take the car out for a good run this morning and check it warm. I found the most level bit of ground I could, switched off the engine, waited 4-5 mins and checked the oil level to be greeted with it barely touching the bottom of the stick!
Luckily I had some emergency 5w-30 fully synth on me (not quite Mazda spec but close enough in an emergency) and it took a litre to get it up to the top mark when warm? Now the car has been hardly used in recent years and has only done 35000 (6000 in the last 6 years, 300 in the last year between MOTs) and the oil was last changed at the end of Jan no more than 650 miles ago.
Ideas??
Now I got it home, it’s obviously running fine and I will do an oil change in the next few days (it won’t be used in the time in between) with the correct stuff and probably get the different dipstick from MX5 parts because the one on the car is pretty vague but should I be looking for anything else? There are no obvious oil leaks anywhere and no, there’s none in the coolant!
You are doing what the manual says but according to this thread it takes 10 minutes for all the oil to drain down. I keep mine at just over the maximum mark when cold and when hot it is at the maximum mark. Place a bit of tissue behind the stick when you take a reading to check you are interpreting it correctly
It has always been my experience and indeed many others to do it this way. (I do have a mechanical background).
UNLESS the manufacturer tells you otherwise of course.
Firstly, make sure that the car (any car really) is level and you have an oil level between the minimum and maximum level when COLD.
Take the car for a run and then return the car to the level ground.
Personally waiting a good 10-15 minutes is ideal. (Go and have a cup of tea). You need to allow the oil to drain back to the sump pan.
(Dry sump systems are obviously different). The MX5 is NOT.
Then you can check the level and add oil if needed to the MAXIMUM mark on the dip stick.
If you add oil to the maximum level when COLD, “Potentially” you can over fill the system.
The reason being is that oil WILL expand when hot.
Quite how you can slightly overfill and warm it up and then the level will be at the maximum mark is a slight mystery to me.
Just my opinion.
IF you are still using oil then again (my opinion) due to lack of use/mileage you “Could” have faulty valve stem oil seals, which would be my first port of call. (You said no leaks).
Clearly many other reason too and lets hope not.
Depending where you live a trip to one of the good independent MX5 specialists will assist and give you good advice.
You don’t say what the level showed on the stick when you got back after topping up? I’m guessing it will be overfull.
Still got the old dipstick here, I check the oil when the engine is cold, preferably when it’s stood overnight, never uses a drop between changes, usually every 5k miles.
Just to add, I think you most certainly know if your engine is burning away litres of oil in a short drive.
Thank you all, I really appreciate it. I think I’m probably worrying too much, I was just surprised how low it seemed when it was well warmed up. I guess I didn’t leave it long enough after turning the engine off.
The oil is getting changed in the next few days then I will know it will have the correct amount and keep a close eye on it.
Am I correct in thinking it will take 4.5 litres in total in the change?
Yep somewhere around that figure, 4.6 ltr if I remember correctly.
If you buy the Mobil 3000 5w 30 FE oil (Wilko £26) you get 5 litres which is enough for the oil change and a little for top ups if needed, other oils available of course.
Modern oils are pretty thin, even at ambient. If you did warm the engine oil, so a good 10 drive and did leave the engine a good 4 to 5 minutes then I would be very surprised if a litre of oil is hung up in the engine. I would be surprised if that were the case after just a minute.
I would suggest that you have some sort of reading discrepancy such as the level ground was not that level, that it sloped slightly differently to where you normally check oil or even that the usage of your engine is so seldom that it allows oil that would normally be elsewhere even 2 or 3 days after use to drain and give a falsely high reading when you check it normally.