Factory Oil Fill Level

[Black Tire]

I just got my Whiteout FR-S a few days ago. I decided to check the oil level, and surprise, it looks to actually be overfilled. Has anyone else seen this on their new FR-S, BRZ or GT 86?

I used to own a BMW E36 M3. That car had some oil pickup problems when run on the track. The poor man's solution was to overfill the oil 1.5 - 2 quarts. Is this happening from the factory here?

The pictures are a little misleading due to the angle. It was really difficult to get the oil on the dipstick to show up at all on the photograph. The oil level is somewhere between 1 cm and 2 cm above the full line on the dipstick. Yes, I did clean the dipstick and re-inserted it before reading the level.

[OrbitalEllipses]

Subaru oil dipsticks are notoriously inaccurate.

[Draco-REX]

Yeah, you kind of have to work around a boxer's oddities. A couple things to remember:

It takes a while to get the oil from the heads to the sump. If you check your oil when you fill up (as you should), pump first then check your oil. If you check it while you're filling the tank you'll get a lower reading.

Also, the dip stick tube tends to get oil splashed up into it. When you check the level, you need to make sure you completely wipe off the dipstick, then seat it fully in the tube and immediately remove. That way you can see where the actual level is (where the oil forms a U) and can ignore the oil along the edges of the dipstick.

Now these tips are for the older Subaru EJ engines. The FA has the dipstick in a different location, so I'm not sure how this will change things.

[russv]

Try checking the oil with the engine stone cold.

[Draco-REX]

Originally Posted by russv

Try checking the oil with the engine stone cold.

That's the preferred method for the most accurate fill. But not always the most convenient. I just assume it's reading a little high.

I filled up for the first time today. The dipstick level reads much like my other Subarus, so no change in behavior there.

[Black Tire]

Originally Posted by russv

Try checking the oil with the engine stone cold.

I checked the oil first thing in the morning before starting it. Wiped of the dipstick very well. Seated the dipstick properly. It still read high (about 1 cm), and not just "along the edges" as another suggested. I really don't think this is much of a problem, but I wanted to see if others have had the same experience.

It will be interesting to see if this changes at my first oil change. I will try to very accurately measure out the amount of oil I put in so that it is very close to what is suggested in the owners manual for a refill after a change. This is still a while away as I will not even be driving the car this week and it currently has about 112 miles on it. I will try to post an update at that time.

[dsgerbc]

Seems like a thread that is ripe for discussion of typical subaru technique of 'polishing one's dipstick' to get accurate readings...

[ahausheer]

Originally Posted by Black Tire

I checked the oil first thing in the morning before starting it. Wiped of the dipstick very well. Seated the dipstick properly. It still read high (about 1 cm), and not just "along the edges" as another suggested. I really don't think this is much of a problem, but I wanted to see if others have had the same experience.

It will be interesting to see if this changes at my first oil change. I will try to very accurately measure out the amount of oil I put in so that it is very close to what is suggested in the owners manual for a refill after a change. This is still a while away as I will not even be driving the car this week and it currently has about 112 miles on it. I will try to post an update at that time.

It is a problem to me. A car is likely the second most expensive thing you will ever purchase in your life. It had better be right from the factory. If you chronically overfilled the oil and ever needed warranty work because of that, you could easily be denied. If it is actually overfilled this is unacceptable. Take it back to the dealer and show them, watch them check it and see what they say.

HOWEVER, some engines are very very sensitive to checking the oil level on flat ground, even slight inclines will significantly effect the level so keep that in mind.

[robo_robb]

What kind of problems are we looking at with an overfilled engine?

[yayforaddison]

A great tip. Get a fine graded sandpaper, and sand about 1cm above the full dot all the way down to the bottom. Makes the oil stick in the right places when you check it

[Hanakuso]

With my other cars that had hard readings to get, I would usually have the oil warmed up then wait awhile, like filling up my gas. After that, I take the dipstick out and wipe it off. Then I would take 1-2 more readings and use these last 1-2 as the accurate level

[mattles]

checked my level this morning before heading off to work, so the car had upwards 12 hours to sit and cool in my garage. It was 1cm-ish over the top fill line indicator thing... however I know these dipsticks are basically fuckall useless, so Im gonn atry sanding mine tonight.

Will report back with hopefully more accurate oil level results.

[stateless]

I've always checked my WRX's oil when it is cold, but the manual for the BRZ seems to suggest to do it warm, if I'm reading it correctly (p. 293):

With the engine at operating temperature and turned off, check the oil
level on the dipstick.

■

Checking the engine oil

Park the vehicle on level ground. After warming up the engine
and turning it off, wait more than five minutes for the oil to
drain back into the bottom of the engine.
Hold a rag under the end and
pull the dipstick out.
Wipe the dipstick clean.
Reinsert the dipstick fully.
Holding a rag under the end, pull the dipstick out and check
the oil level.
When checking the oil, look at both sides of the dipstick and use the
lower measurement to determine the level of oil.

Wipe the dipstick and reinsert it fully.


** UPDATE **


Reading this again, it appears that you should check it cold, which is why it says to wait 5 minutes after running it. It's just worded a bit strangely; it should say "In the case of a warm engine...".

[yayforaddison]

Originally Posted by mattles

checked my level this morning before heading off to work, so the car had upwards 12 hours to sit and cool in my garage. It was 1cm-ish over the top fill line indicator thing... however I know these dipsticks are basically fuckall useless, so Im gonn atry sanding mine tonight.

Will report back with hopefully more accurate oil level results.

I plan on sanding mine this weekend as well. It should help a lot. It honestly may be a little overfilled tho. Mine looks the same as you described.