^^ ignore him.. you can generally get a rough reading on 'most' cars after turning off the engine for a minute or 2, then checking, for example, after filling with fuel, you can check the oil.. with this engine, you just need to let it sit for much longer

 

watg35 = g35now?

 

I'm sure the design of this blasted dip stick has everything to do with it! j/k

I've always had a good reading rather its been 5 minutes or 5 hours. Always on the first pull out (thats what she said) the results come back accurately every dip and pull.

 

Hes not the only one that has trouble. That dip stick sucks *** for getting a accurate reading. Best way to get it is let the car sit overnight or for atleast a few hours.

 

Never had any of these issues... My dipstick reads great... Since my experience is mostly with motorcycles, I have a habit of starting, stoping, waitng 10, and then checking the oil level. Anyone who ever had to right side a bike to check the sight glass knows what I am talking about!!

 

Unless you have something positive to add to this thread...nobody cares. You sound like a 16 year old kid.

 

This could happen to anyone, at least you caught it before the motor blew or something worse.

 

The dipstick on the VQ is well-known to be a PITA, amongst pretty much everyone who owns a vehicle with the motor.

It was one of the complaints over on Maxima.org, too. What's worse about the RWD layout of the VQ is how much of a pain it is to get the dipstick back IN after you check your oil.

 

I have a problem reading the dipstick too. Usually wait overnight to read it. Also is a pain in the *** when changing my oil, i can't read it at all when i'm filling. It's like the oil pours down that channel, so useless. I have noticed that usually it's easier to read on the back side.

 

^u dont need to read it while filling. jus put 4 or 4.5 quarts. then start it up , turn it off, let it sit then measure and jus add little by little till ur statisfied

 

It's the 'add little by little' part that is the problem.. after adding some oil, you need to wait about 10mins or so to measure it.. as totopo said, the oil seems to run from the filler, via the dipstick, to the pan, so you need to wait for it to drain properly. then if you haven't put enough it.. you need to repeat the whole process.

After a few oil changes, you get good at estimating from how much is left in the oil container.

 

as longs as u have 4.5 quarts in there ull be fine and jus drive it till the next morning to top it off. u dont have to sit there put a little, wait 15 mins, puts more and waits 15 mins again. doesnt have to be super accurate at that moment. people are making it way more difficult then it needs to be

 

Well, yes.. but I prefer to get the oil change done and not have to worry about checking it again the next day.
Anyway, the OP was misled by this poor dipstick design when just checking the oil, not changing it.

overall, once you know about it, you just need to make allowances for it.

 

Not knowing how to use the dipstick was one of the main reasons why my original engine took a dump on me. I always used to check it right after driving and the stick was show well OVER the high mark. Figured that meant I had enough oil but every 1-2k miles the oil sign would come on followed by that rattle from the valves. I figured all my baby need was more oil so I would just add a quart at a time until the sound would go away.

You don't have to guess how that ended....

 

How long did you run the engine with low oil for before it busted on you?