Oil Change Help---2nd Try
 

Posted a couple days ago. Never showed up...2nd abbreviated attempt.
2018 FIT. Had first oil changed at a Honda dealer. Can someone with experience please comment on whether it is safe to run the car with the oil level shown in the photo at the 'Dealer' level?
Thanks.

https://cimg0.ibsrv.net/gimg/www.fit...d6ff779c92.jpg

Frustratingly common. Dealerships always seem to overfill.

Personally, I consider the level at your marked 'dealer' level to be safe. That's probably only about .5QT overfull.

But I'm just some guy on the internet. If you're concerned, take it back to the dealer and make them do it to your specifications.

Thanks. 100 mile round trip or I would have. If it's really only 1/2qt I agree with you. Hopefully some others will respond also.

When I go in for an oil change, I tell the service rep that when the car comes out, I want him and me to check the oil level. That is the time to complain, because they
do make some stupid errors. The level you showed is unacceptable.

Personally, I rather have under what you mark as "H" than overfill. Not knowing how close the rotating assembly is to the pan being full at the high point. Risk of overfill is the rotating assembly contacting the oil and "foaming" it. If the oil is foamed, you will have starvation issues. No oil from starvation = premature wear or worse yet spun bearing or sized junk motor

Higher then I like it but probably only over buy 1/4 to 1/2 quart. If you are concerned though take it back.

I don't see that extra half quart/liter as an issue but it really is unacceptable for them to do that. Laziness or sloppiness by the dealer's employees. I do my own oil changes and when I'm done the oil level is exactly where it's supposed to be. If I can do it than so can a supposedly well trained mechanic.

Contacted the dealer and sent the photo in this post. Service Mgr. feels a little over 1/4 qt but no more than 1/2 qt was added beyond the 3.5qts listed in the Honda manual. He is certain it is safe to drive but offered to look at it if I want to drive back to the dealership. 100 mile trip and I decided against.

I took a ruler and measured the distance between the L&H marks on the dipstick. 24/32". Distance between H and Dealer in the photo is 12/32" ASSUMING the dipstick LH marks represent 1 qt added, then the dealer added an additional 1/2qt beyond the H mark.

For those wondering about the question in my original post (that got published AFTER this one) that referred to being charged for 5 qts of oil instead of 3.5, he had dificulty explaining the rational behind it. As best I could tell that was a recent change and apparently the dealership is now charging a minimum of 5 qts. for oil used during any change. Something about having partial quarts being left over. That was about 2 minutes after telling me they pumped oil from a drum with a flow meter that measured the amount used which is why he was sure they didn't put 5 qts. in my car.

This was my first visit to this dealer for service. Maybe I'll invest in some ramps and a pocket full of oil pan washers for future service.

Thanks to those who responded here. :thumbups:

It's only a 3-1/2 quart system. 1/4-1/2 quart over is a significant amount. This is why I change my own oil. Besides I'm not a fan of oil coming out of the bulk tank. The one time I had to have my oil changed at the dealer I insisted on the oil in the jug from the parts department. That added something like another $15 to the cost of the oil change.

I've done all of my oil changes since new (2016). With fresh oil and bad eyesight, that dipstick level is hard to read for me. In truth the end of the dipstick gets covered because of oil that coats the inside of the dipstick tube. Sometimes I hit the mark right on, more often I'm at the top of the orange.
At 100,000 plus miles all is well.
That oil level is never a perfect level point. As we drive it always changes as when speed up or slow down or when driving hills.
If it keeps you up at night tell the dealer to drain some out. Either way I think you'll be fine...

Changing out the oil filter should bring it closer to the FULL mark . Oil filters can hold up to 20 ounces of oil . Have done this a few times with our cars after dealer overfill . Brought them a bit over FULL .

The best way to read the dipstick is to lay it horizontally on a paper towel then move it slightly. You should be able to see where the oil spot stops on the paper towel.

Excellent way to check. New oil can be invisible on the stick. Laying it on a paper towel or rag to see the witness mark is the way.

I wouldn't worry about the amount over that is being show. Yes too much oil can cause cavatation, but if that was the case you'd see many air bubbles in that oil.

I don't know what is going on with this forum but I have had one post delayed 3 days, then magically show up after I started this '2nd try' thread. I posted a response to this this thread 2 days ago thanking those who replied for their comments and letting them know all is well and that post has not showed up as well. I then used the "contact us" email option explaining what has gone on and once again no reply to that from a moderator in this forum 'private message' nor to my private email from a moderator or website manager. If some moderator is blocking me it would be appropriate to let me know why.

Anyway, one last try...Thank You to those who have responded to this thread. I no longer require any further info.

sounds like the dealer is feeding you a bunch of BS. How can there be a partial quart when fill from bulk!? If partial quart, it should be 4 quarts instead of 5. If I were you, I wouldn’t go to that dealer even if it’s 5 miles way, let alone 100 miles away for an oil change by them.

And if they were filling it from quart containers do you think they'd be throwing out a half quart left in the container, or just use it for the next oil change five minutes later? Sounds weird.

Ramps are easy to use and not expensive and it's pretty easy to change the oil on a Fit. I would suggest getting a couple of spare screws that hold the shield in place (there are two types of connectors, get a couple of each) because they do break and are easy to lose. And there's no harm in saving a half-quart of oil for your next oil change even if it's a year later.

Also remember to keep a gallon jug around to put the old oil into. Here in NY gas stations take back used oil, by law.