Everyone: Check Your Oil!

[TURBOTOM]

I know this is a dumb question, but how do you tell how low your oil is, i know to use the dip-stick, but how do you tell how many quarts low it is. Mine is in-between on the braided part, how low am I

[Texasscout]

Originally Posted by kleicoupe

I know this is a dumb question, but how do you tell how low your oil is, i know to use the dip-stick, but how do you tell how many quarts low it is. Mine is in-between on the braided part, how low am I

Your fine. The bottom of the crosshatched part is one quart low.

[TURBOTOM]

It seems only 6Mt's are affected.

[skeleton_cru]

Originally Posted by kleicoupe

It seems only 6Mt's are affected.

You obviously didn't click the link I posted.

[ResIpsa]

My car is in the body shop now (unrelated accident). When its out, I will pull off the MREV and drop it off at the dealer. Let’s see what they do.

By the way, I am a lawyer...

[dofu]

Originally Posted by ResIpsa

My car is in the body shop now (unrelated accident). When its out, I will pull off the MREV and drop it off at the dealer. Let’s see what they do.

By the way, I am a lawyer...

My G is currently in a bodyshop too, but when it comes out, I will be hitting up a contact I have who is a service writer at Infiniti to see if this is a problem and what he can do...

[onex]

I have an 06 that i just got in April. Did the 1st oil change at 1000 miles then I started the loud engine rattle at 4000 miles. Did a check and at only driving 3000 miles I was down 1-1/2 quarts. I am sorry, but for a brand new car that is totally unacceptable.

When I 1st heard the noise I was unsure what was causing it. So I call my dealer and let them know and the earliest they could get me in was one week later. So I told them in one week there might be engine damage if they don't do something. Any way, I ended up checking this board the next day and saw the posts about oil consumption and sure enough - quart and a half later, no engine noise.

I brought it in and told them I wanted them to drain the oil and check how much was left and minus the quart and a half I just put in to correctly determine how much I lost and also wanted a compression test and to check the plugs for oil fouling. They did none. Just did and oil change and told me to come back in 1000 miles and they would check the oil. I told them in 1000 miles they are going to CHANGE the oil and count how much I am down.

I'll tell ya I am so pissed at this bull**** at 4000 miles that I just want to turn the car in and walk, but I am in a 24 month lease. Had a BMW before this, and though I had some issues with it the service dept was 100% on there game and listened and made sure all was done and perfect. Plus BMW USA called you after each visit so you could rate the dealer's service - so these techs really went above and beyond to do the right thing. Guess that evaluation goes far with the BMW people.

Any suggestions on how to break a lease? Really do not feel like dealing with running low on oil for the next 20 months of my lease. Can I try a lemon law deal on this?

Thanks.

PS Car is an 6MT, 06 coupe, no mods. Was going to mod, but now will probably do nothing since I see many trips to the dealer over the next several months.

I am in NY and got the car at Atlantic Infiniti. They seem nice, but so far I was not the most impressed with how the service dept handled this. For the NYC/Long Island people on the board - am I better off doing service at Competition? Seems some of you referenced them dealing with this problem. Just thought I would originally deal with the dealer I got the car at, especially if I want to try and get out of it.

[extreme4377]

Good to see others are having the same issue as me. Mine just started rattling today. Ive got about 7700 miles on the car. I followed the proper break-in procedure as recommended by Infiniti. Luckily I caught it after only having the engine running for less than a minute. Put a quart in and the rattling isnt as bad but its still apparent. Im going to get an oil change tomorrow.

Is getting an entirely new engine the only fix for this? Or are we supposed to add a quart of oil every thousand miles or so between oil changes?

Also, if the rattling has already started, has damage already been done? Do I need to take my car into Infiniti and have them replace my engine? The oil light did not come on.

[Texasscout]

Originally Posted by extreme4377

Good to see others are having the same issue as me. Mine just started rattling today. Ive got about 7700 miles on the car. I followed the proper break-in procedure as recommended by Infiniti. Luckily I caught it after only having the engine running for less than a minute. Put a quart in and the rattling isnt as bad but its still apparent. Im going to get an oil change tomorrow.

Is getting an entirely new engine the only fix for this? Or are we supposed to add a quart of oil every thousand miles or so between oil changes?

Also, if the rattling has already started, has damage already been done? Do I need to take my car into Infiniti and have them replace my engine? The oil light did not come on.

The damage is done. Once you let the engine get down to less than two quarts, it's over. It will never recover. Well, in VERY few cases. The oil gets too hot and loses it's abillity to separate metal parts.

The Catch 22 here is "you let the oil run dry" so NO MOTOR FOR YOU! Well if the damn thing wouldn't burn it all up in such a short time...
You need a new motor.

[ResIpsa]

Three things really piss me off.

First, the design of the dipstick is ridiculous. I honestly would check my oil religiously starting about 2000 miles after every oil change. I guess I was misreading the dipstick. I bet the car was always low by the time I checked it but couldn’t tell.

Second, the oil warning light is completely worthless. The damn light did not turn on even when my car was 4 quarts low. This seems to be the experience with everybody on the board. The warning light is supposed to mean “low oil” not “no oil.”

Third, the idiots at the dealership. You mean to tell me that a mechanic wouldn’t realize something was wrong when only one or two quarts of oil drained from my car at scheduled oil changes? At least let me know that my car consumes oil so I can top it off.

Just had to vent...

[skeleton_cru]

Originally Posted by ResIpsa

Three things really piss me off.

First, the design of the dipstick is ridiculous. I honestly would check my oil religiously starting about 2000 miles after every oil change. I guess I was misreading the dipstick. I bet the car was always low by the time I checked it but couldn’t tell.

Second, the oil warning light is completely worthless. The damn light did not turn on even when my car was 4 quarts low. This seems to be the experience with everybody on the board. The warning light is supposed to mean “low oil” not “no oil.”

Third, the idiots at the dealership. You mean to tell me that a mechanic wouldn’t realize something was wrong when only one or two quarts of oil drained from my car at scheduled oil changes? At least let me know that my car consumes oil so I can top it off.

Just had to vent...

All three are very valid points and so true...unfortunately.

[SuperGee]

Originally Posted by ResIpsa

Three things really piss me off.

First, the design of the dipstick is ridiculous. I honestly would check my oil religiously starting about 2000 miles after every oil change. I guess I was misreading the dipstick. I bet the car was always low by the time I checked it but couldn’t tell.

Best thing to do is check the oil in the mornings when the engine is stone cold -- easiest way to see the oil level on the stick.

Originally Posted by ResIpsa

Second, the oil warning light is completely worthless. The damn light did not turn on even when my car was 4 quarts low. This seems to be the experience with everybody on the board. The warning light is supposed to mean “low oil” not “no oil.”

The oil warning light is a low oil pressure warning light. It only comes on when the oil pressure is low, which is caused when the oil level is so low that the oil pump starves for oil and tries to pump air. Not a good deal. Some cars have low oil level warning lights -- like RX-7s and C5/C6 Vettes.

Originally Posted by ResIpsa

Third, the idiots at the dealership. You mean to tell me that a mechanic wouldn’t realize something was wrong when only one or two quarts of oil drained from my car at scheduled oil changes? At least let me know that my car consumes oil so I can top it off.

Just had to vent...

I doubt the mechanics really scrutinize how much oil comes out. They probably just pop the drain plug out and go do something else while it drains out.

People really need to check the oil level on their car, especially when it's new, so they can get an idea of how much oil it uses. When I bought my new Tacoma I was checking the oil level every 200 miles for the first 1000 miles until I knew it wasn't burning oil.

[extreme4377]

So when I call the dealership tomorrow, what do I say? "I need a new engine because I read about this problem on an online forum"?

[SuperGee]

Originally Posted by extreme4377

So when I call the dealership tomorrow, what do I say? "I need a new engine because I read about this problem on an online forum"?

The shop will have to diagnose the car and go from there. Good luck and maybe it's not as serious as you think.

[extreme4377]

Car is being picked up and towed on a flat bed into the dealership in about a half hour. Theyre going to check it out and let me know hopefully tonight. Ill keep my posts updated