How to Check Your Engine Oil Properly
A two-minute check that prevents one of the most damaging things that can happen to an engine.
Checking engine oil takes two minutes but is one of the most commonly skipped bits of car maintenance — and running low on oil is one of the quickest ways to cause serious engine damage.
When to check
Check on level ground, with the engine cold or at least 10 minutes after being switched off, so the oil has had time to drain back into the sump.
Finding the dipstick
It usually has a brightly coloured handle (often yellow or orange) and is labelled with an oil-can symbol. Your owner’s manual will show exactly where it is if you are not sure.
How to read it
Pull the dipstick out, wipe it clean with a cloth, push it fully back in, then pull it out again to read the level. It should sit between the minimum and maximum marks.
What to look for besides the level
Healthy oil is usually amber to dark brown. Oil that looks gritty, milky, or has a burnt smell can indicate a problem worth having checked by a garage rather than just topping up.
Topping up
Add oil a little at a time through the filler cap (never through the dipstick tube), rechecking the level between additions — it is easy to overfill. Use the oil grade specified in your owner’s manual.
If you are consistently needing to top up between services, that is worth investigating rather than just topping up indefinitely.
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