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Is my dipstick different? Oil level low?

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Old Mar 17, 2017 | 07:17 AM
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Default Is my dipstick different? Oil level low?

As I'm taking my newly acquired C7 Z51 on a long road trip tomorrow I thought I should check all its fluid levels for the first time.

I followed the advice on this forum, allowing the oil to fully warm and then took a reading after 5 minutes with the engine off.



Its a bit hard to see but it's right in the middle of the 'O' in 'HOT'.

However, I'm worried that I have a different dip stick to other forum members, as most people seem to be saying that they have measurements on both sides of their dip stick. Mine, however is blank on the other side.
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Old Mar 17, 2017 | 09:22 AM
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That is about the place I keep mine man. Better to let the dry sump be a little low due to the problems if it is at the full mark.

You are good but if your car is one that burns some oil if you track it are get into the WOT a lot. Just take a qt of oil with you and check it like you have said after every 500 miles are so. Again this is only do get into it hard on your trip. Other wise you will be good I am sure.
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Old Mar 17, 2017 | 10:22 AM
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Originally Posted by robert miller
That is about the place I keep mine man. Better to let the dry sump be a little low due to the problems if it is at the full mark.

You are good but if your car is one that burns some oil if you track it are get into the WOT a lot. Just take a qt of oil with you and check it like you have said after every 500 miles are so. Again this is only do get into it hard on your trip. Other wise you will be good I am sure.
Thanks so much for the reassurance
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Old Mar 17, 2017 | 12:19 PM
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Originally Posted by jimxms
Thanks so much for the reassurance
You will be good to go man. But if you don't do crazy stuff in the car. I mean like let's say a 16 yr old kid getting this car for the first time and laying down rubber at every red light & doing WOT at every car that is a sports car. You oil level at this showing on the dip stick is were it needs to be on the car.

That way it will not be coking over into the PCV & into the intake as bad at all. When the oil get really hot at factory temp's is when the bad stuff happens are if you over fill it up to the full mark in the dry sump cars.
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Old Mar 17, 2017 | 04:15 PM
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What was your oil temperature when you checked the oil level? You say warm but it needs to be at 175 degrees, the OM says warm and later in step 1 defines warm as 175 degrees. A number of people don't understand that and another large group including a lot of mechanics don't understand that coolant temp isn't used to determine engine oil temperature.

Bill
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Old Mar 17, 2017 | 04:24 PM
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Originally Posted by Bill Dearborn
What was your oil temperature when you checked the oil level? You say warm but it needs to be at 175 degrees, the OM says warm and later in step 1 defines warm as 175 degrees. A number of people don't understand that and another large group including a lot of mechanics don't understand that coolant temp isn't used to determine engine oil temperature.

Bill
To be honest I can't remember, but I took it out for a 20 minute drive and ragged the absolute sh*t out of it!
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Old Mar 17, 2017 | 08:47 PM
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Originally Posted by jimxms
To be honest I can't remember, but I took it out for a 20 minute drive and ragged the absolute sh*t out of it!
If you did this it was at least for sure the 175 deg.
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Old Mar 17, 2017 | 09:16 PM
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To get the oil temp above 175 I've found I pretty much have to drive it which I find to be a very annoying process as I'd rather check it before I drive it. Just letting it idle in the garage gets the water temp up fairly quickly but not the oil. I just clicked 1500 miles on my way home and remembered to turn on a 5 min timer on my phone after I pulled into the garage and shut it off. The level covered the entire "HOT".
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Old Mar 18, 2017 | 04:09 AM
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Originally Posted by PeteC7
To get the oil temp above 175 I've found I pretty much have to drive it which I find to be a very annoying process as I'd rather check it before I drive it. Just letting it idle in the garage gets the water temp up fairly quickly but not the oil. I just clicked 1500 miles on my way home and remembered to turn on a 5 min timer on my phone after I pulled into the garage and shut it off. The level covered the entire "HOT".
i hear ya. I've been trying for a week to remember to take the oil level every time I returned home. One time I even specifically took the car out for a drive to check the oil and forgot about the whole thing by the time I got home!
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Old Mar 18, 2017 | 12:59 PM
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Originally Posted by jimxms
i hear ya. I've been trying for a week to remember to take the oil level every time I returned home. One time I even specifically took the car out for a drive to check the oil and forgot about the whole thing by the time I got home!
That is funny man just don't tell your wife if married the wife will say sure just wanted to get away out in the car.
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Old Mar 18, 2017 | 01:17 PM
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Originally Posted by robert miller
That is funny man just don't tell your wife if married the wife will say sure just wanted to get away out in the car.
Yeah I think you're right there!
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Old Mar 18, 2017 | 03:22 PM
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Your dipstick is the same as mine (2017 GS), and it only has markings on one side.
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Old Mar 18, 2017 | 05:29 PM
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I have the oil temp pocket gauge visible on the DIC at all times which makes it easy to determine 175°, but if you don't you can position it quickly in the middle of the DIC display using the "Perf" settings and scroll down to the OT gauge. Mine was filled by the dealer at the 500-mile oil change and he put it at the top of the hash marks @ 175°.

This is my first dry-sump car and I've only had it two weeks, but out of curiosity I've been checking at various OTs both warm and cold to establish a general idea of the level at various OTs. My idea was just in case I want to check the level when cold, but I see now that cold readings are not very accurate since a few degrees makes a big difference in the level. The percentages given below represent the level between the twist at the bottom of the dipstick and the bottom of the hash marks. IOW, at 50° the oil level is 10% above the twist.

50° - 10%
70° - 50%
175° - Top of hash marks
185° - Slightly above top of hash marks

Last edited by iclick; Mar 18, 2017 at 05:33 PM.
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Old Mar 18, 2017 | 05:48 PM
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Originally Posted by jimxms
As I'm taking my newly acquired C7 Z51 on a long road trip tomorrow I thought I should check all its fluid levels for the first time.

I followed the advice on this forum, allowing the oil to fully warm and then took a reading after 5 minutes with the engine off.

Its a bit hard to see but it's right in the middle of the 'O' in 'HOT'.

However, I'm worried that I have a different dip stick to other forum members, as most people seem to be saying that they have measurements on both sides of their dip stick. Mine, however is blank on the other side.
The C7 is a great car but the dipstick is the hardest thing to get an accurate reading even when you follow GM instructions.

When I first got mine I kept getting different readings, it's was frustrating!

One thing that I found out from a GM C7 mechanic was to align the dipstick handle pointing towards the left & right sides of the car so you get an even reading on both sides of the dipstick.

To your concern you're good with the oil measuring right in the middle of the 'O' in 'HOT'. Just know that if you were low on oil you will get a big "LOW OIL" warning in the DIC screen.

See attached pic.


Last edited by Maxie2U; Mar 18, 2017 at 05:55 PM.
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Old Mar 18, 2017 | 06:04 PM
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I don't believe there is a low oil level warning for the dry sump car. Normally a low oil level (not pressure) warning would occur at startup since the sensor would be triggered by the level in the pan at the instant of startup before oil is circulating. With the dry sump system some of the oil in the tank drains back to the formerly dry sump over time with the car off thus the reason to check it during a precise time period after shutoff. I haven't carefully examined the tank on my Z06 for a level sensor but I recall one member who had a nearly empty tank due to a flawed oil change and got no warning about level.

Last edited by NSC5; Mar 18, 2017 at 06:05 PM.
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Old Mar 19, 2017 | 11:53 AM
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There is no oil level sensor in the tank of the dry sump system.
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Old Mar 23, 2017 | 12:13 PM
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For those of you with the dry sump the track level oil fill with 10.3 quarts (half quart over full) of oil in the engine brings the oil level on the dip stick just short of the AF engraved on the dip stick above the full HOT mark.

Bill
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