Thread: over filled the sump TD5

My comment about the full mark being moved up or down by the manufacturer to anticipate what some people might do when changing the oil wasn't intended to be taken too seriously. I was implying that if the problem was really so serious that a mm mattered, there would be an advantage in guarding against the possibility.

However if a mm or two mattered, there should be a whole trail of destruction caused by people checking the oil level too soon after switching of the engine before all the oil had time to drain down into the sump. Anyone who does that could easily have the true oil level a couple of mm over the full mark.

Anyone who checks the oil when there is a slight slope on the ground could also be over the full mark when the vehicle is perfectly level. I have seen engines where a tiny slope makes a huge difference.

I know that some of the oil will not be in the sump and will be circulating around the engine when you are driving offroad. It happens all the time when the engine is running.

I believe that getting it right is ideal. My point is that if a mm or two mattered, there would be a lot of destroyed motors because there are so many ways to accidentally have the real level slightly higher than it appears when the dipstick is checked.

I will concede that the (probably apocryphal) person who filled the engine with oil until it flowed out the top of the rocker cover had probably overdone it.

A mm or two either way would not mater. Crash, draining it to the correct level was the right thing to do, in your case being 1.4 litres. And I would have done it by dropping the plug, by far the easiest way.

When I fill mine I never rely on what the book says volume wise. If the book says 7 litres, I put in 6. I then start the vehicle to fill the filter/s. I then complete fill using the dip stick.

That's a good point - did you check it with a full or empty oil filter? Makes a difference.